Audio Research Corporation (ARC) in financial difficulties/bankruptcy!

[sidvee]

Audiogon Discussion Forum

I just heard Audio Research might be filing for bankruptcy. This is a shock to me. I just called them a few days ago to have my Ref 6 upgraded to a Ref ...

forum.audiogon.com

Sad news indeed, I was an ARC equipment owner and fan.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[square_wave]

Really sad to see this. In the wrong hands this brand can really go down the drain. On the other hand, clever new owners could potentially use the brand name and legacy but probably bring down pricing to sane levels and make it more accessible to audiophile. In recent times, the value proposition of AR gear has taken a hit because of cheaper alternatives. Most perform at the same level but at a lower price point.

 

[Yelamanchili manohar]

Really sad to see this. In the wrong hands this brand can really go down the drain. On the other hand, clever new owners could potentially use the brand name and legacy but probably bring down pricing to sane levels and make it more accessible to audiophile. In recent times, the value proposition of AR gear has taken a hit because of cheaper alternatives. Most perform at the same level but at a lower price point.

I'd fully agree. A lot of brands are pricing themselves out of the market. Especially with the advent of cheaper but high quality gear from China, the asking price has to be very competitive these days. Their recent 10k dac 9 model as per some reviews compares with the multitude of other dac's at the 3k price point. So except for the ardent Arc fan, that will be a hard pill to swallow.

Direct to customer sales, circumventing the dealers also makes things significantly cheaper for the chi-fi gear. I expect the going to only get more difficult for the expensive and established brands in the days to come, unless they seriously correct their pricing strategy. Gone are the days, when a few glowing reviews in the usual magazines would trasalate to sales. Every Tom, dick and their uncle is reviewing gear today. And as end buyers, it is so easy to do our homework from the plethora of comparisons on the net to arrive at our buying decisions. So absolutely no hiding behind brand names these days and every model has to individually perform at its particular price point.

 

[Nikhil]

Sad to see this. I thought that ARC was a really strong brand.
Has such a loyal and strong customer base. But it's true that competition has gotten tough.




.

 

[reignofchaos]

Hope it survives. Chapter 11 doesn't mean the end of a company.

 

[arj]

pricing is a more strategic game since lower prices also mean it being perceived as lower value and that could lead to erosion of brand value and this is not just in Audio but any product . Perhaps they might prefer the 1M you get of selling 100 10K pieces that 200 50K in quantity.

Any way I dont think AR is in that much of a price sensitive market hence perhaps they might be struggling as the do not stand for anything these days as a brand ?

 

[square_wave]

pricing is a more strategic game since lower prices also mean it being perceived as lower value and that could lead to erosion of brand value and this is not just in Audio but any product . Perhaps they might prefer the 1M you get of selling 100 10K pieces that 200 50K in quantity.

Any way I dont think AR is in that much of a price sensitive market hence perhaps they might be struggling as the do not stand for anything these days as a brand ?

I would agree. They are in the " aspirational brand " category in that context. That demographic is slowly shrinking though. More and more people want to be in the smart audiophile category these days.

However, the smart audiophile is going in a crazy spin these days.The majority of online reviewers especially many on YouTube dont really have a great listening room nor associated gear that will reveal differences. Also, many of these reviewers always have a constantly changing system and it just becomes a job. Unless one has a very revealing system that they have spend a lot of time with, it is tough to introduce a new gear into the system and come up with some comparative listening analysis. Among high end dealers and professionals who make gear, many of these online reviewers are a big joke. So there is still a market for really high end gear but that market is shrinking.

 

[rikhav]

Statement from ARC


Audio Research Corporation
was acquired by AR
Tube Audio Corporation
a privately-owned
Delaware-based corporation
which includes Valerio
Cora of Acora Acoustics
Corporation as a director.
Audio Research will operate
independently from Acora
Acoustics, an Ontario-based
high-performance
loudspeaker corporation. The
acquisition was approved by a
judge after an asset purchase
agreement was made with
Lighthouse Management Group

Audio Research will operate
independently from Acora
Acoustics, an Ontario-based
high-performance
loudspeaker corporation. The
acquisition was approved by a
judge after an asset purchase
agreement was made with
Lighthouse Management
Group.
Private equity and venture
capital investment groups
are not involved in the new
corporation, it is comprised
of passionate audiophiles
devoted to great music reproduction.

This acquisition is set to
provide the financial stability
required to resume the growth
that Audio Research had
achieved over the decades.
There are exciting new
products on the horizon,
like the Reference 320M
amplifer, which will fuel
Audio Research's growth. The
product line remains, and
will continue to develop over
time in the tradition you have
come to expect from Audio Research.

Valerio Cora, with his extensive
business experience and
ownership of Audio Research
components for many years
is the perfect person to be
at the helm. "I am thrilled
to be joining the fantastic
team at Audio Research on
their journey towards a very
bright future. As someone
whose audio journey has
been built on the foundation
of Audio Research, I am
deeply honored to have the
opportunity to contribute
to such an innovative and
forward-thinking brand. I can't
wait to work alongside these
amazing people and help drive
Audio Research's success to
even greater heights!"

 

[bornfi]

Please Assist Brandon Lauer of Audio Research

Hi Guys, I have rough news today, but fortunately many of us are in a position to help. Brandon Lauer of Audio Research was in a very serious motorcycle accident here in Minnesota, when a car pulled out in front of him. Broken arms and legs, compound fractures, etc... and a long recovery ahead of...

audiophilestyle.com

This could be the reason?

 

[grindstone]

Pretty comprehensive factory tour by Mr. Fremer (guided by Dave Gordon) posted 4 days ago. Long (48min) but probably worth it for AR fans.