That's true, but when op says that, I assume they don't mean any $50 headphones, they mean the best (lets go with least harmonic distortion as our arbitrary criteria for "best") ones you can get in that price range, and for the most part they are describing a trend that DOES exist to some degree in almost any category of physical good you can buy, from power tools to kitchen appliances.
Thanks I appreciate that. I would still prefer a positional switch but that will make a big difference..........once I download the app which I have never used because I just assumed it was bloatware. whoops.
The price is steep as is the apple way, but I agree that saying "EGAD How can they charge as much as HD6-whatevers" when those headphones basically require an external amp just to run is just a little silly.
Happy owner of mx4s here. Great work headphones, but man the UX is bad. On top of everything you mention, it defaults to noise cancelling and turning off noise cancelling (I only want noise cancelling for travel, otherwise I like being able to hear) involves listening to a woman tell you what mode you are in while basically muting current audio. WTF SONY
Oh, don't get me wrong, I love speakers, and I adore filling a room with noise, I just think headphones make more sense to someone interested in getting more depth and clarity out of their music.
Edit: For their dollar that is. With unlimited money I would probably take speakers.
I'm sorry but you seem to have some sort of vendetta against a group you are branding as audiophiles, which shares very little in common with the vast majority of audiophiles.
There definitely an element of being a gearhead, but I just really love music, and want to listen to it in the most accurate way possible.
> The audiophiles don't like music
That is a pretty bold claim to make with such confidence about a massive and diverse group of people whose name literally means lover of audio.
Sennheiser HD650 + an empirically incredible amp and dac will run you between 1 and 2 grand. For speakers multiply that by 10 at least. And they still won't sound as clear and intimate as something pressed up against your head.
And also open backs just bleed noise, they don't shake the room, so unless someone is next to you they aren't gonna hear anything anyways.
MacOS. These points have been made a million times, but I'll make them again.
Windows is fine for day to day casual use, but the moment you attempt to peek under the hood you encounter a hostile and alien landscape.
Linux is usually consistent, well organized, and highly configurable when you are under the hood, but is a pain in the ass for day to day use. Edit: Illustrator and Photoshop still aren't available for Linux as I just discovered.
MacOS is Unix under the hood, but it has software support near that of Windows, and it also adds a layer of convenience and thoughtfulness on top that isn't matched elsewhere. Ffs, It is still the only OS that recovers basically flawlessly from running out of batteries.
Apple should just release a really really expensive version of the air. That way people looking for a designer laptop have something they can throw too much money at, and the rest of us can have a mbp that makes some allowances for performance.
Edit: I may be overly snarky, but I find it hard to imagine that recent mbp models were not influenced by the social clout that the iphone brought to the apple brand.
Don't assume forums are somehow freer of group-think because they are less accessible. Once they get established, the existing user base tends to push out anyone that doesn't agree with their views.
Some subreddits are awesome, and some are way less awesome. And much of the best, most informative and technical information out there lives on subreddits.
Many people pine for the days when only the most savvy users knew about the forums, but I don't think there is any way to bring that era back.