Could they sell a high-end amp without the fancy

Agree with French_fries above. At Axpona the Hegel 200 drove Sony top of the line speakers beautifully at all volumes with all of the music demo'd. A drum solo that led into a live "Take Five" set was especially well done. First time the group of us that went to the show heard both and we came away very impressed.

The reviews have been very kind to Hegel. Spending a couple grand on fancier cases would not necessarily make the electronics better...just better eye candy..

On the other hand there is an old advertising/marketing saying regarding cosmetics, "catch the customer's eye and you'll catch their pocketbook".

Taters,
I generally agree with your position that function should be more important than form. As an example of this, I just bought a rather plain and unimpressive looking class D amp that has very impressive performance (Class D Audio SDS4440SC amp). But, while I am thrilled with it's sonics, I still wish it looked better.

On the other hand, I also agree with Stevecham that a product should be not only be well engineered, but well styled as well. Many try to minimize it, but pride of ownership is an important factor to most of us, especially in things like cars and audio equipment. We see and use these both on a daily basis and are reminded of any shortcomings in looks and performance on a daily basis, too.

Personally, if I was considering buying 2 amps and they were about the same price/warranty and their sound was equally good, I would not hesitate to buy the better looking amp. Of course, amp manufacturers probably have been aware of this human tendency for a long time.

Thanks,
Tim

You may want to check out Blue Circle audio - they manufacture a wide range including hi-end products that would certainly compete with the best. Gilbert Yeung has carved out a niche market with his custom designs. Cosmetics is never a priority, the focus is internal - not many manufacturers build power supplies like they do.

Just another happy customer.

Taters,

There is a company like you describe ... take a look at Blue Circle Audio. They manufacture a range of products including high end gear that can compete amongst the best. I don't know of many established manufacturers who will offer the level of customizations that Gilbert does, which is unique IME.

Blue Circle doesn't place much priority on cosmetics and largely focuses on what goes inside the case. Cosmetics are really up to the customer and how much they want to spend for eye candy. Gilbert is not shy about using PVC pipe for those customers who only care about the performance.

I wouldn't underestimate the cost that goes into audio jewelery. When you don't have large fabrication runs of faceplates/cases (which is most high-end audio companies) the costs can be very high. The custom faceplates for my monoblocks added an additional cost of $2k for both amps - and I know that is low compared to the exotic casework you often see. You could argue that is only 6% of the overall cost of the amps, but that $2k would buy a lot of CDs. For myself, it was important to have something that looked nice but I have seen one of their customers who choose not to have any faceplate at all.

Just another happy customer.

One area I'm familiar with where design has become more fun is the guitar/bass amp world. Mesa "Transatlantic" tube heads are GORGEOUS (little LED lit innards, very hip and sophisticated designs), and lots of cool ass "boutique" tube amps are beautiful retro looking art, and great sounding things. Tons of reissued 50s and 60s style classics, stuff that looks like old radios...it's nuts, and all good.