Love it, or Hate it ? (wood trim)

Funny that you bring this up today; I was just looking at some Chinese built amplifier yesterday that mixed wood and metal the way Unison, Pathos and other manufacturers have done and thinking just how stupid it looks. I do like a well implemented mix of wood and metal, but I cannot think of any audio applications where I've seen it done well. I think it can be quite stunning when done well, but the audio manufacturers seem to be throwing it in as a design novelty rather than something that is well-integrated and thought out as an integral part of a design. Also, it seems like the trend is to make the wood look as if it were a blob of Play-Doh™, all rounded and amorphous looking. Personally I don't care as much how components look as I do how they sound, but to answer your question, well, I guess I already did!

Marco

I tried some of those LPs with the wood trim, but my cartridge will not track them well. So, dislike, I suppose.

Form Follows Function. If wood adds to the function of the equipment,
and if the equipment is designed properly, it should look and sound
good.

Otherwise, use what functions the best, which would seem to be
whatever material reduces RFI/EMI.

Supratek comes to mind as a company that successfully blends wood
and metal (copper, chrome...) into beautiful looking and functioning
preamps and amps. First Sound, on the other hand, uses a copper lined
chassis, precision volume pots and selectors and point to point wiring to
produce a preamp with sublime functionality. Out of that functionality
comes the Presence Deluxe II's beauty.

To answer your poll, since the question seems to be based entirely on
visual preference, I have to answer "Neutral".

I think it (wood trim) is dumb but would judge a product primarily by sonics and reliablity - never say never

Neutral, just as long as it sounds awsome.
Wood with brass colored trim and glowing tubes look KILLER.