DCS threatening Goldensound..What an industry this is

[BillK]

Nothing from dCS has ever sounded right to me. That goes for Nagra,(except their tape decks), Esoteric, AR, Boulder, & Ayre.
I'm all about the sound, not price points, tech specs, or glossy mag reviews.

Again, interesting as I agree on Boulder and Ayre source components (specifically their phono stage and QX-5 Twenty DAC), but the Ayre KX-R Twenty preamp and MX-R Twenty amps are the most musical I've heard and are what I use, and I have been impressed by most Nagra demos I've heard. The KX-R preamp was the first time I ever heard a source component sound better for having gone through a pre rather than being wired directly to an amp.

(Actually, I haven't heard any DAC using the ES9038 PRO sound good, though the Oppo UHD-205 does well with movie soundtracks.)

Just goes to show there is a substantial amount of personal preference as to what sounds real to each of us. (What's ironic is I find the Ayre and Boulder sounds to be incredibly different in character, the former being very musical and the latter the definition of clinical solid-state sound.)

I too take your opinion on gear; I spend the absolute minimum I have to to get the sound I seek, and magazine reviews do nothing but help me narrow down which components I should audition in my own home. I've also laughed at the opinion of magazine reviewers and other audiophiles who disagreed as I know what I hear.

I'm even one of those weirdos who have bought gear based on what I heard at shows (gasp!) as most of my equipment did not have a local dealer when I chose to buy it.

 

[sonrock]

I think there’s nothing wrong if you decided to buy equipment after hearing them at shows. I did pretty much the same with my speakers, amps and digital front end.

It’s just funny enough that I made a decision to purchase my speakers after listening to their smaller siblings. And the same to my monoblocks and pre when I listened to their smaller stereo amp with an older pre.

I had never had a chance to listen to those boxes before they were made and delivered to my room . Actually the monoblocks were developed and built for me based on my order as they only released the new stereo amp by that time but I needed a pair for my system.

Imho, if a piece of equipment sounds great at shows (e.g speakers), it should sound much better in a dedicated demo room at dealer/distributor or at a domestic environment.

However, I also appreciate system matching, room/electronics conditions, the music being played etc. which can give us a very wrong idea about how an equipment sound as it’s the combination of everything, not that equipment alone.

That’s the double edged sword can give us disappointment when getting a new toy and found out it doesn’t sound as good as we’ve heard elsewhere due to various differences. And vice versa, we were not impressed by a room/equipment at shows then later to find out how incredible they sound in a dealer’s demo room or fellow audiophile’s place.

 

[Lee]

Just checked Dunn and Bradstreet. DCS sales revenue is 9.26 million. They are a reasonably reliable source.

They are just okay. Lots of self-reported date therein. I used to do analytics for banks and insurers.

 

[Lee]

Yes, in my experience. After listening to the Bartok, I had a home audition of the DCS Rossini APEX. The Rossini APEX was definitely on the extremely resolving and detail-oriented side of the audio spectrum.

That’s not been my experience at all. My Rossini Apex has smooth highs and resolution, but in service of the music. It’s very natural sounding to my ears. I also hear this on my own two track recordings or even Chesky sessions I worked on or sat in on.

 

[Lee]

Hi Jim - so it sounds like you are saying they are so small their "CEO" isn't worthy of being a CEO as they are just a small time company.

It also sounds like you are saying that they are a really small time company yet this not-really-ceo still has no clue what is going on in his company even though he admitted to being involved in getting a lawyer involved.

All around it sounds like you are saying dCS is a poorly run company? I would agree with that based on what we have seen them do in this instance.

Here is what we CAN so with "confidence" - dCS acted unprofessionally, tried to bully and intimidate someone, and brought in a lawyer who at best was questionable and went nuclear on something foolishly. AND the CEO was aware of this per his own admission.

Not a good look for dCS no matter how many of their friends try and defend them.

Poorly run company? That’s going too far. The GoldenSound incident could have been handled better but dCS has been a well revered company for it literal defense-level innovation in digital technology since the 1980s. They have consistently innovated and have a deep engineering bench. The Apex upgrade noticeably improved the sound quality and that’s only trickle down learning from the Varese. I am very keen to hear the Varese based on what I am hearing from members of the press and dealers who have heard it.

 

[Synaxis]

Poorly run company? That’s going too far. The GoldenSound incident could have been handled better but dCS has been a well revered company for it literal defense-level innovation in digital technology since the 1980s. They have consistently innovated and have a deep engineering bench. The Apex upgrade noticeably improved the sound quality and that’s only trickle down learning from the Varese. I am very keen to hear the Varese based on what I am hearing from members of the press and dealers who have heard it.

Hi Lee - I stand by my comment. Please note I am not saying the below in a combative tone towards you, but instead as an emphatic tone in my *personal* belief based on 30+ years on the corporate world working with c-level execs"

While possibly being great at technology, the CEO doesn't have the first clue how to handle a negative situation THEY CHOSE to manufacture and THEY CHOSE to let it create a PR disaster. A good CEO would NEVER have released an initial statement full of lies.

A good all-around CEO would never have allowed any of this to happen.

Again, he may be fine on the technical side, but it takes more than that to be a great CEO.

Although we have different opinions on this I do appreciate the opportunity to hear your viewpoint on it and my post has no argumentative tone in it.

 

[facten]

based on 30+ years on the corporate world working with c-level execs"

While the situation was handled poorly, being the "CEO' of some small audio company isn't comparable to being the CEO / c level exec of a corporation. And, let's be honest there are c level corporate execs who have their own warts

 

[Lee]

Hi Lee - I stand by my comment. Please note I am not saying the below in a combative tone towards you, but instead as an emphatic tone in my *personal* belief based on 30+ years on the corporate world working with c-level execs"

While possibly being great at technology, the CEO doesn't have the first clue how to handle a negative situation THEY CHOSE to manufacture and THEY CHOSE to let it create a PR disaster. A good CEO would NEVER have released an initial statement full of lies.

A good all-around CEO would never have allowed any of this to happen.

Again, he may be fine on the technical side, but it takes more than that to be a great CEO.

Although we have different opinions on this I do appreciate the opportunity to hear your viewpoint on it and my post has no argumentative tone in it.

We have similar backgrounds. In a prior life I was a McKinsey consultant and interacted often with Boards and C-suite executives as well. David took over the company from his dad who passed away and is a relatively young man in the CEO role. I will confess to being a fan of the dCS products as I have been astounded by the quality of sound from my Rossini APEX and that of the Vivaldi Apex in other settings I know well. I'm reluctant to judge the quality ofDavid's work on this mistake given the super high quality of their product development team and the marketing team which brings out the products and does a great job of explaining the very complex technology. David seems to hire very high quality engineers and customer facing people (who are usually engineers as well!).

Also, I appreciate the civility of your reply. It is absolutely refreshing these days!

P.S. I recently have been enjoying your YouTube channel. May be starting one myself soon.

 

[Synaxis]

Also, I appreciate the civility of your reply. It is absolutely refreshing these days!

P.S. I recently have been enjoying your YouTube channel. May be starting one myself soon.

Thanks Lee.

Also appreciate the kind words on my channel. The videos are a real labor of love and I enjoy the creative outlet they offer me.

Happy to share some of the learning pains on sound recording, lighting, camera and lenses so you don't make the same mistakes I have on video gear. It's been a very steep learning curve.

Feel free to PM me.

 

[facten]

Here's some large company CEO blowback

A week ago, Starbucks’ new CEO was a ‘messiah’…and then everyone found out about his 1,000-mile private-jet supercommute

“The longer this new CEO goes without making a huge impact that's noticeable internally as well as externally, the worse this decision will look."

www.yahoo.com

One could also have a field day with the train-wreck that is Boeing

 

[Al M.]

Here's some large company CEO blowback

A week ago, Starbucks’ new CEO was a ‘messiah’…and then everyone found out about his 1,000-mile private-jet supercommute

“The longer this new CEO goes without making a huge impact that's noticeable internally as well as externally, the worse this decision will look."

www.yahoo.com

One could also have a field day with the train-wreck that is Boeing

Oh yeah, Boeing. I'll try to avoid ever flying in a 737-Max. What a plane-wreck.

 

[Synaxis]

Here's some large company CEO blowback

A week ago, Starbucks’ new CEO was a ‘messiah’…and then everyone found out about his 1,000-mile private-jet supercommute

“The longer this new CEO goes without making a huge impact that's noticeable internally as well as externally, the worse this decision will look."

www.yahoo.com

One could also have a field day with the train-wreck that is Boeing

Boeing executives need to be charged criminally and go to jail.

The SEC filling they filed showing how they took quality metrics out of measurements and replaced them with social issues instead for executive compensation should land people in jail.

 

[JiminGa]

Boeing began replacing a safety first culture with one focusing more on efficiency and productivity under Dennis Muilenburg and Dave Calhoun. Dennis Muilenburg resigned following 2 crashes killing 346 people and Calhoun after the door plug blowout. In that business you have to focus on "never events" because even one will deeply harm your business. The FAA concluded that they failed to meet significant quality control requirements. An expert panel concluded that Boeings procedures are not structured in a way that ensures all employees understand their roles in safety management. The NTSB is investigating and congress is investigating. Boeing is a company who de emphasized safety in pursuit of increased efficiency and took their eyes off of their prime safety first mission. Hopefully Kelly Ortberg gets things straightened out.

 

[Synaxis]

Boeing began replacing a safety first culture with one focusing more on efficiency and productivity under Dennis Muilenburg and Dave Calhoun. Dennis Muilenburg resigned following 2 crashes killing 346 people and Calhoun after the door plug blowout. In that business you have to focus on "never events" because even one will deeply harm your business. The FAA concluded that they failed to meet significant quality control requirements. An expert panel concluded that Boeings procedures are not structured in a way that ensures all employees understand their roles in safety management. The NTSB is investigating and congress is investigating. Boeing is a company who de emphasized safety in pursuit of increased efficiency and took their eyes off of their prime safety first mission. Hopefully Kelly Ortberg gets things straightened out.

From the New York Post Published Jan. 11, 2024, 9:31 a.m. ET

"Elon Musk ripped Boeing over a filing that appeared to show the aeronautical giant two years ago began using diversity, equity and inclusion goals as incentives for executive compensation after previously focusing solely on safety and quality controls.

Beginning in 2022, the aircraft manufacturer changed its incentive plan from giving executives bonuses based on passenger safety, employee safety, and quality to rewarding them if they hit climate and DEI targets, according to the SEC filing."

 

[Al M.]

From the New York Post Published Jan. 11, 2024, 9:31 a.m. ET

"Elon Musk ripped Boeing over a filing that appeared to show the aeronautical giant two years ago began using diversity, equity and inclusion goals as incentives for executive compensation after previously focusing solely on safety and quality controls.

Beginning in 2022, the aircraft manufacturer changed its incentive plan from giving executives bonuses based on passenger safety, employee safety, and quality to rewarding them if they hit climate and DEI targets, according to the SEC filing."

I severely doubt that the DEI issue is the problem. That's just a scapegoat. The whole working culture on the floor has become rotten for the sake of "efficiency" and making shareholders happy. Workers are even afraid of reporting problems to their bosses.

 

[Synaxis]

I severely doubt that the DEI issue is the problem. That's just a scapegoat. The whole working culture on the floor has become rotten for the sake of "efficiency" and making shareholders happy. Workers are even afraid of reporting problems to their bosses.

Totally agree it's not the lone issue.

I'm pointing it out as part of a larger issue that should be investigated as criminal negligence. No one in their right mind would find that as acceptable on any level.

I just read the head line the astronauts may be stuck in space until 2025 due to issues with the Boeing space craft.

Insanity.

 

[facten]

The Starbucks article i linked earlier also illustrates how even a large company with an executive suite, along with dedicated legal, communications and corporate affairs staff can run afoul of in its corporate messaging.

 

[JiminGa]

DEI goals and compensation are not the culprits in this particular case. I am personally agnostic on the subject. The entire Boeing culture all the way down to the floor deteriorated because leadership were not engineering based or safety focused. Calhoun was an accounting major running an engineering company. Of the dozens of interviews I've seen on the subject no one blamed DEI. Everyone blamed managements focus on efficiency over safety. It will be something MBA students study for a very long time.

 

[PYP]

DEI goals and compensation are not the culprits in this particular case. I am personally agnostic on the subject. The entire Boeing culture all the way down to the floor deteriorated because leadership were not engineering based or safety focused. Calhoun was an accounting major running an engineering company. Of the dozens of interviews I've seen on the subject no one blamed DEI. Everyone blamed managements focus on efficiency over safety. It will be something MBA students study for a very long time.

did they outsource the safety process/procedures? And now will bring them in-house? Can't remember...

They seemed to forget to listen to their employees, some of whom saw the degradation and lack of focus on safety. Sure, you always have complainers, but they usually have a point too.