Audio newbies are often surprised to find that Bose products are not well-thought-of by more experienced audio experts.
Bose's highly competent marketing and high prices lead many average consumers to believe that their products are high-quality. Friction can develop between people who've always heard that Bose products are great, and people who have explained many times what's wrong with them.
In-depth enthusiasts who would start a wiki with a title like this see a need to differentiate themselves as enthusiasts. Despite falling for basically the same marketing but in different ways (e.g. Audio-Technica and Denon's wooden phones) within their hobby, they will often compromise every other aspect of a product (usability, comfort, etc) for perceived superiority in sound quality in comparison to mass-market-appeal products such as Bose in order to prove that they are not 'part of the herd'.
This guide exists to collect information available via the Head-Fi community about this subject, and organize it in a clean way that will allow a relative audio beginner to make an informed choice about Bose products.
Bose's highly competent marketing and high prices lead many average consumers to believe that their products are high-quality. Friction can develop between people who've always heard that Bose products are great, and people who have explained many times what's wrong with them.
In-depth enthusiasts who would start a wiki with a title like this see a need to differentiate themselves as enthusiasts. Despite falling for basically the same marketing but in different ways (e.g. Audio-Technica and Denon's wooden phones) within their hobby, they will often compromise every other aspect of a product (usability, comfort, etc) for perceived superiority in sound quality in comparison to mass-market-appeal products such as Bose in order to prove that they are not 'part of the herd'.
This guide exists to collect information available via the Head-Fi community about this subject, and organize it in a clean way that will allow a relative audio beginner to make an informed choice about Bose products.
