ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
This is a tranlation of the article made by Google Chrome (Not the best as you can see...):
The original Danish article.
- Dennis
Nothing really new here. Nothing we didn't know ourselves.
As I've said for the last 2-3 years, B&O stores get little footfall (our local store often has a single sales person during the day) and the footfall they do get, tends to people the usual/traditional audience of 45+ year olds, who want to spend decent cash on a TV that will "last for years", exactly what they did in the 70s.
This audience is diminishing fast and isn't being replaced by a younger crowd. The few times I see someone under 30 enter our local B&O store, they tend to leave within minutes and talk to no-one. They come in, look at the Beosound 8 or Beolit, leave. I don't think I've ever seen someone under 30 look at a B&O TV or even the speakers.
Ironically though, I do know someone who is 28 and is keen to look at the BL3s. He was impressed after hearing mine the other day. But he won't go in the store. Just won't go in. A lot of younger people feel like this. I think they see B&O as a brand for "people with more money than sense", a bit fuddy-duddy and that they will embarrasses themselves walking in to the store (as a price of a TV represents their wage from the last 6 months ;)
Hi there
being one of the younger croud i understand what you mean but i love my bang and olufsen stuff.
this week i have been investigating control 4 automation and multiroom for my system going forward and it is showing me that i wil need to give away control of my system from ML and PUC etc to another system that can intergrate everything.
When i was 20 some 12 years ago multiroom system were un heard of and i dreamt of one day having them, now i have and many years later i am limited by what i can do and what i can communicate with.
I am getting the impression that in my future more and more of my install will be control 4 controlled rather than bang and olufsen and this is really sad as i love my bang and olufsen system but it is just becoming so hard to intergrate it with everythign else.
i was going to update this in my other thread about automation but this seems the right place. they need to move with the times or the times will pass them by. i will always have my bv7 and my beocenter 9300 but i fear my link rooms may be controlled by something else.
the thing i would miss the most by giving control to c4 would be my beo4 good old trusty :)
Eclipse 65V1-32Beosound M5Essence MK2BLI
Most of my friends don't know about B&O, and those that do largely believe it to be either out of their range financially, or too expensive for what it is. Every one of my work friends earn $60,000 or more.
Most of the branches i visit are not in the town centre and always take a bit of investigation to find. I never find a concession like i do with Loewe. Why not team up with say BMW/Mercedes in their larger outlets.
When i ran a shop having the door wide open, employing a female member of staff(who was gorgeous) and having prices on display made a huge difference, even if was just footfall. It sold Polo equipment to the rich and Royalty so the demographic wasn't that much different(Sultan of Brunei, Hermes brothers, Kerry Packer, the Queen!)
Beosound Stage, Beovision 8-40, Beolit 20, Beosound Explore.
I have always loved B&O, ever since my parents bought pieces back in the early nineties, and at 23 I have the disposable income to spend on B&O kit.... TV's, audio etc. but I have three gripes, 'Dumb Tech', Price Point, and customer service.
As Seanie touched on, B&O is just so far behind the spec. of your most basic Sony TV that it is almost impossible to justify the expense - The Beosound 5/Encore is not touch sensitive, The BV7/12 etc, are missing WLAN, USB and sufficient HDMI and all this for more than £2500+
To anyone who is computer literate and under 55 it is very very hard to explain that kind of outlay for a stylish screen only!!
But my biggest issue is most definitely a lack of good customer care - my local showroom's staff [Kent] seemed completely disinterested when last I walked in and despite the fact that I planned to splash some cash, on the basis of the crappy reception I received I went elsewhere - only to find my new favourite retailer retired 8 months later!!!
Beoplay H6, Beoplay A3, Beovision 8, Beovision 6, Beovision Avant, Beovision 5, Beosound 4, Beocenter 2, Beosound Century, Beosound 1, Beolab 3500, Beolab 6000, Beolab 4, Beolab 4000, Beo4, Beo5, Beo6
COMING SOON - BeoPlayA9
I must admit that i do love B&o and the BV7 is a peice of Art as well as a TV in my living room and if the 7-55 was within reach i would buy one but as its not i opted for a external beamer and screen fro when i want a larger screen but this lead me to automation and more possibilities.
The design is excellent i dont think there is a TV i have ever seen that looks as lovely as the BV7 and for now for looks alone i will keep it.
i wont compare to sony or any other as there is no real competition for me but a 2k ML Gateway is not the awnser, they need to get with the times as younger generations expect link rooms, clever tv's all this as standard.
My Beocenter 9300 still looks futureistic and better features than most moden CD players and its like 15 years old.
So i have just got home from work and looked at my bv7 and thought no way I could get rid of you, or my beo4 on the wall in the kitchen or my bv3 in my bedroom, please B&o won't you do some automation or touch screens or something.
What does the future hold, what direction are they going in. Is the mlgw the only way to cross communicate.
Seanie_230: So i have just got home from work and looked at my bv7 and thought no way I could get rid of you, or my beo4 on the wall in the kitchen or my bv3 in my bedroom, please B&o won't you do some automation or touch screens or something. What does the future hold, what direction are they going in. Is the mlgw the only way to cross communicate.
You will need an mlgw, but since you mentioned control4 check out http://c4central.com/2012/02/13/driver-news-bang-olufsen-masterlink-gateway-driver/
Full control of your B&O from control4, you can also use the Beo6 to control everything.
moxxey: Nothing really new here. Nothing we didn't know ourselves. As I've said for the last 2-3 years, B&O stores get little footfall (our local store often has a single sales person during the day) and the footfall they do get, tends to people the usual/traditional audience of 45+ year olds, who want to spend decent cash on a TV that will "last for years", exactly what they did in the 70s. This audience is diminishing fast and isn't being replaced by a younger crowd. The few times I see someone under 30 enter our local B&O store, they tend to leave within minutes and talk to no-one. They come in, look at the Beosound 8 or Beolit, leave. I don't think I've ever seen someone under 30 look at a B&O TV or even the speakers. Ironically though, I do know someone who is 28 and is keen to look at the BL3s. He was impressed after hearing mine the other day. But he won't go in the store. Just won't go in. A lot of younger people feel like this. I think they see B&O as a brand for "people with more money than sense", a bit fuddy-duddy and that they will embarrasses themselves walking in to the store (as a price of a TV represents their wage from the last 6 months ;)
Hey hey, well said Moxxey. Long live the 2nd hand and vintage stuff.....
Brengen & Ophalen
B&O needs to become 'cool' again. Once this is nailed the younger generation takes notice - then peer pressure means they'll start buying it.
A good product combined with excellent marketing - all basic stuff really (I would have thought).
Lee
Phoenix Shaw: .....The Beosound 5/Encore is not touch sensitive
.....The Beosound 5/Encore is not touch sensitive
Funny you should mention the Encore. The 28-year-old I mentioned in my post above asked me the price of the Encore (after he did some research online). I told him it was around £1500 (no idea why I said that, but I was embarrassed by the retail price), he found the price and was completely shocked - he said it's effectively a controller, with a wheel. And, to be fair, he has a point. It is. It's basically a Sonos controller, but with a wheel. When you think it through, it's a very expensive product.
Lee, this potential customer has looked at LifeStyle (and MoreThan) and is much more likely to buy his BL3s online through a pre-loved service, primarily as he simply does not want to walk in to a B&O store. Seriously.
I've always regarded the LifeStyle and MoreThan prices to be what B&O should be charging for the kit new!
It was always much better in the B&O stores when they had the prices on things as you could then review yourself, now you have to ask the price of everything. Perhaps it's a B&O marketing tool that if you have to ask the prices you can't afford it anymore and therefore shouldn't be in the store at all?!
When we moved into our house 15 years ago I bought a new TV (MX6000), it cost roughly one month's salary but I decided it was worth the investment, looking at the current catalogue I'd have to invest 4-5 months salary to get a new TV at a comparable level. Even at Lifestyle or More Than AV I'd have to invest 2-3 months salary to get a current model. A sound system is even worse, my current system Beosound 3000 and Beolabs 2500s were about another month's salary - to set up a new system with speakers now is in the £thousands. My 15 year old equipment is working well but I have no incentive to replace it with current models because of the price. I would happily support my local B&O shop who are very helpful and offer excellent service but I simply cannot afford to.