Well Sol, it was about 20 minutes....
(This took about 15)
You want the small profile speakers? There are dozens of other companies
that manufacture better speakers for the same, or less price.
Tannoy
KEF
Energy
Oh heck, heres a link...
http://www.intellexual.net/speaker5.html
http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_10_4/htib-roundup-intro-12-2003.html
Sol, please do not compare Apple to Bose. That's foolish. The Apple products are good, high quality. Now while I do agree that the iPod has been promoted nearly to the point of Bose, one must admit that it all has good build quality. Bose does not.
Sol, I am not employed by a different company. However, this is a viewpoint shared by thousands of audio experts and audiophiles. You get what you pay for in some cases, certaintly not with Bose. People aspire to own Bose, even though it costs less than you could imagine to manufacture.
As for their own technology? Yeah, right....
BOSE AND THE PATENT SYSTEM:
To quote from Michael Wong, a visitor to this site: "...a casual perusal of their website reveals that they have used money and lawyers to repeatedly abuse the patent system. They have patents for the Acoutimass (Helmholtz resonator), the Direct/Reflecting technology (multipolar speakers), their Acoustic Waveguide (transmission line), and their JewelCube technology (amalgam of transmission line and other old ideas). In each and every case, their patent is a joke; an obvious example of the all-too-common trick of making one minor alteration upon a pre-existing idea and then using an army of lawyers to get it patented... And why all the bother? Because it looks good to write "patented technology" on the box...". For a company that emphasizes cutting-edge research so much, I'm curious as to why their flagship 901 speakers have not seen any signigicant mechanical changes in the last 15 years. Where is the "better sound through research" going?
Their technology has been in use for decades, before Bose repackaged it. It's a well known fact in audio forums, and with audiophiles. They claim that their research allows them to do so much, but they spend more on marketing than all the high-end audio companies combined together.
Don't be fooled by the hype, and popularity. For instance, we use macs. Now, going by the logic set forth, they're inferior because they're not as popular. Why, let's ditch and go to Windows/Bose!!!
Also, many home theater in a box systems(ugh!)actually sound better. Many in the $500 range. I linked to a variety of systems up top.
How about when they sued Consumer Reports for a rating of 62/100 for 'unscientific testing' when they used a double blind test, perhaps the most neutral one could get. They lost, but still instilled a sense of fear in reviewers....
Again, I don't want to erupt a flame fest, or get in a pissing contest. Hopefully this doesn't go that way and remains civil.
Off topic: Chip, do you use Leica equipment?