Whither Audio Research

davidavdavid said:
Any entity bidding and/or seriously looking to buy will have to assume considerable debt. And it is not just a matter of having enough capital to make the investment, it is about having more than enough money to right and re-position the ship.
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The only debts mentioned in the filings are the secured debt of about $1.5M, and unsecured debts of about $1M.

This level of debt is NOT considerable. It’s less than 10% of ARC annual income.

For the last 15 years the interest on this balance wasn’t a burden. It has become a burden in the last year as the Fed has finally started raising interest rates to historically normal levels.
 
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Another Johnson said:
The only debts mentioned in the filings are the secured debt of about $1.5M, and unsecured debts of about $1M.

This level of debt is NOT considerable. It’s less than 10% of ARC annual income.

For the last 15 years the interest on this balance wasn’t a burden. It has become a burden in the last year as the Fed has finally started raising interest rates to historically normal levels.
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The filings may or may not be complete secured or otherwise.

The court has issued a timeline/deadline of May 17th. At this juncture it is sit back and wait for any and all related events.

Stay tuned!
 
davidavdavid said:
The filings may or may not be complete secured or otherwise.

The court has issued a timeline/deadline of May 17th. At this juncture it is sit back and wait for any and all related events.

Stay tuned!
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It’s not clear to me how debt might be hidden from the receiver. TWS is out already.
There appear to be some good options as the process moves forward. Payroll is current. Business activities continue.
I think sit tight and wait is good advice. When I think back on other iconic businesses that have actually gone bankrupt, I am reminded of both Guitar Center and Gibson. Both have operated in bankruptcy for a long time. Owners have been pushed out, but business has continued.

ARC needs a white knight who can provide a solid business plan that will allow them to make necessary corrections. The mess ups here are real, but small in the grand scheme.

Selling ARC short may be wise for some stakeholders because of their own financial positions. But I don’t think it’s necessarily the best plan for all. The picture will clarify in time.

I got my parts order without drama on Saturday after ordering on Tuesday. The car is not off the rails at the present time.
 
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The prospect of getting all your money is preferable to pennies on the dollar.
 
Gregadd said:
The prospect of getting all your money is preferable to pennies on the dollar.
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But people aren’t getting all of their money. They’re trying to “get out.” And pennies on the dollar isn’t yet in play. Frankly, it is a doomsday position.
 
Another Johnson said:
The only debts mentioned in the filings are the secured debt of about $1.5M, and unsecured debts of about $1M.

This level of debt is NOT considerable. It’s less than 10% of ARC annual income.

For the last 15 years the interest on this balance wasn’t a burden. It has become a burden in the last year as the Fed has finally started raising interest rates to historically normal levels.
Click to expand...
Maybe it’s because I’ve been in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past 5 years, but this appears to be a trifling amount of debt.
 
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KeithR said:
Why do you assume that? That’s not always the case.
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It is not always the case, but unless the responsibility for the acknowledged debts is delegated elsewhere, the shortfall will have to be addressed.
 
godofwealth said:
Maybe it’s because I’ve been in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past 5 years, but this appears to be a trifling amount of debt.
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If it were CJ, it would on the order of annual revenues and much harder to ignore.

If it were McIntosh it would be even more trivial compared to their annual revenue.

Personally I’m opposed to debt in general. But it can be a useful tool if properly used.
 
Another Johnson said:
If it were CJ, it would on the order of annual revenues and much harder to ignore.

If it were McIntosh it would be even more trivial compared to their annual revenue.

Personally I’m opposed to debt in general. But it can be a useful tool if properly used.
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In the world of tech startups and venture capital/finance to which I am accustomed the numbers ($$$) by comparison are not great. They would be considered negligible by some. The debt here plays a role, one of several factors in determining just how attractive the acquisition. It should by no means be regarded as the deciding factor unless it is "off the charts."
 
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Mmm... so many stories of speculation, different scenarios of this & that and various angles of probability... but no happy ending as yet.

At this stage, if ARC's main operations are still running- production, testing & packing, shipping and dealership operations (warranty & tech support) then it's business as usual. What goes on behind closed doors, none of us will ever know simply because we're not part of this deal nor are we Trent Suggs. I'm not sure even if he knows what exactly is going on but I'm sure he's got an interesting story to tell. Perhaps on the next Oprah one-to-one interview.

All I'm looking out for is the happy end! ... after which it's business as usual.
Until such time, do enjoy those fine tunes!
RJ
 
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davidavdavid said:
In the world of tech startups and venture capital/finance to which I am accustomed the numbers ($$$) by comparison are not great. They would be considered negligible by some. The debt here plays a role, one of several factors in determining just how attractive the acquisition. It should by no means be regarded as the deciding factor unless it is "off the charts."
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I don’t think that this situation is comparable to a tech startup or a venture capital case.
Neither of those typically have a 50 year history, or an established brand with the ongoing operations of ARC.
It appears that there are multiple suitors and that an effort will be made to close the deal with the best one.
 
Another Johnson said:
I don’t think that this situation is comparable to a tech startup or a venture capital case.
Neither of those typically have a 50 year history, or an established brand with the ongoing operations of ARC.
It appears that there are multiple suitors and that an effort will be made to close the deal with the best one.
Click to expand...
I wasn't comparing the scenario, I was making light of the relative amount of debt. Where in the tech/vc world $2.6M is more of a blip. If what the article suggests is indeed true, there could be a suitor within the next 90 days, possibly sooner. Hopefully, it will be one who instils renewed confidence in the ARC brand.
 
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the devils in the details.
 
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There are a lot of guys here who will be disappointed. No wake. Obit written and now too early. Like Alfred Nobel’s early obit that led to the Nobel Prizes, maybe ARC’s early obit will have a transforming effect on the future of the company.

I registered here as a user, posted a few times, and left because of the overall pallor.

I was still listed as a new member after over a year when I came back last week because someone linked to this thread on another forum, and it was the first I’d heard about the demise of a good friend. So Plus One for WBF.

I really appreciated knowing the news. I was greatly relieved when “Commish” posted, and was able to follow up, and have felt good about where this was going since shortly after that post.

But I’ve got to also say that it seemed like buzzards were circling here … and they were uninformed buzzards who didn’t even know the 21st century history of ARC, let alone the 20th century history. Just having fun poking the hopefully dead giant whom they’d never liked

The Germans call it Schadenfreude.
A lot of families are going to celebrate tonight, and not only in Maple Grove.

The devil is not in the details. The devil is in hearts.

My glass is raised in honor of my friends and their families.
 
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