What's more important; sound or brand name?


I have had several people leave comments about my inability to hear things with my system because of quality of one or more of the parts. They seem to think it's not good enough to reproduce whatever sound is being discussed on that particular thread. The issue I have is I think my system is pretty good inspite of the fact that some of the componants might not be a popular enough name.

Many of the comments were based on my choice of speakers. I cannot describe how happy I am with the sound quality of the Sony SS M9 speakers inspite of the name on the grill cloth. Yes I have heard many other 'Hi-end' speakers over the years. Some have sounded better than the Sony's, most have not.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not whining because someone else doesn't like my gear as much as I do. I just wonder if people care more about the name on the product than the sound of the product.

If Sansui made a great product I would consider it inspite of the fact that I consider their stuff to be mostly junk. Maybe Sansui is a bad example since I prefer to buy American but you get the gist...

Any opinions? Have you noticed this happening?
128x128nrchy
The sound, of course. Call me contrarian, but drinking by the label never really appealed to me.

About 6 or so years ago I went with a friend to an audio store where he was auditioning a Conrad Johnson phono stage for his system. When I arrived a little late, he was listening to a phono stage of which neither he nor I had ever heard but which was one of those components that you knew right away on listening was something special, the Aesthetix IO. We clearly preferred it to the CJ, but both of us had the same qualms about it that Kinsekd mentions above. Ultimately, in part from my urging (it's easy to spend someone else's money!), and with a call to Jim White to convince himself the company would be around for a while, he bought the IO, which he is happily enjoying this day. I guess I fall that way too, as my speakers are not available to the market yet (to their designer's chagrin), as are my speaker cables and various isolation devices, and my Audio Logic DAC is one of the better kept secrets in audio. Really, at some point in this hobby I guess you realize what it is you're looking for, and when you find it you don't care what anyone else thinks about it. I think you've reached that point, and that's good, because it's then that you can get off the equipment merry-go-round and start concentrating on the music.

I'm surprised to read that you feel people are putting down your speakers, as I remember reading the highly favorable Stereophile review and being impressed as to how well-designed and made they were. I thought more people knew about them, but I guess not.
Sound and brand recognition are both important. Sound quality is important when listening, and brand recognition is important when you go to upgrade and need to recoup some money on your old component toward the new item. Happily, with some equipment, you can have both.
I mostly agree with previous posters. Sound is the most important factor, of course. But I am also mindful of the brand's track record - reliability, durability, quality, and servicing. "Famous, popular, big, and expensive brand" does not necessarily mean them to your satisfaction.
BOTH.
Ecpecially for the brand names that don't have overpriced and unreliable units.
Manufacturers and dealers at CES should realy hide their equipment behind the curtain to let visitors to audition blindly. It's entertaining as well!
At the end of CES you get "Answers" what were in particular "blind" room.
For better or worse, brand name also translates into marketability. For those who are concerned about resale value or simply the ability to unload equipment in the future, brand name can be an important feature.