StUrrock, a sad posibility perhaps. I dont know how much they scaled down vs sent away for production. But it is non the less the path for most companies today, and the current ways of B&O does hint at it 

DanTop wrote:

Hi Aussie, I do agree that they can mean different things. I guess they for me mean one and the same. In my opinion the older style of B&O feels more true to the brand.

I miss the old design and stability. With that said, yes I understand that the brand has moved towards new trends and that effects it in many ways.

The BL90 is in my opinion a cool product. But I think that what i miss perhaps most, is the line of Beocenters/Beosounds. The head units. I am aware that they are not needed but I feel they are a part of that ”lost DNA”.

do I understand you correctly that you think the new P6 is a step out of the Beoplay range? If so, how? I am curious now.

Aussie Michael wrote:

I think the DNA is linked to when you started first purchasing the brand. So obviously it’s different for different people 🙂

That’s a good definition - thanks Michael ;-)

However, I started 50 years ago.

My first B&O was a BeoMaster 900K.

On Beoworld you can read about that: ‘The first product of the new era was launched in 1964’

Aussie, yes for sure, the more variables available, there will also follow more risk of problems. 

Indeed, someone born in the 50s or 60s would probably argue the design of that era  as the ”true” one. But I do think, even when looking back, that the most beautiful and also mechanically fun design from B&O was in the 80-90s

DanTop wrote:

Aussie, yes for sure, the more variables available, there will also follow more risk of problems. 

Indeed, someone born in the 50s or 60s would probably argue the design of that era  as the ”true” one. But I do think, even when looking back, that the most beautiful and also mechanically fun design from B&O was in the 80-90s

I agree, to me the 80/90s were peak B&O for style. While I truly do appreciate the earlier, 70s products, to me even the later Jensen stuff is not as impressive as the David Lewis designs, though the Jensen products were very stylish as well.

My Beogram 3000 tangential is a Jensen design, but the rest of my daily use kit is all Lewis.

Jeff, Lewis did the Beo4... for me that is the pinnacle of it all!

Its almost unbelievable how many things he did besides that. CD changer, sliding doors, the banana and my favorite the BV7, to name just a few. 

What I love with Jensen is his use of wood, and still keeping the products in general so futuristic, compared to all the other brands. 

Jensen and Lewis are without any doubt the two best designers of modern time. 

The Beo4 is a classic. The only thing I wish it had was a backlight for the buttons and display for dark rooms, but I can understand why they might have avoided that on the main models of it for battery life. Still hands down, no pun intended, the best remote ever for how it feels in the hand to me. Such a comforting weight.

For my AV setup I use a Harmony by Logitech, it works splendidly, but doesn't have the same satisfying feel. If Harmony made the exact same thing for a hundred or so bucks more that was metal and such I'd have spent the extra cash on it.

I still remember the first time I was at the hifi store and saw the Beosound 9000 when my friend who worked there excitedly brought out the first one and unboxed it. I have never in my life had such a reaction to any electronics product. Usually I studied and thought long and hard about my selection, but that day I knew immediately that I absolutely had to own that CD changer! It was lust at first sight. Today, 20 years later, I still use it daily. It's lasted longer than any other piece of stereo or AV gear I've ever owned, except for my Beogram.

BeoGreg wrote:

I’m so desappointed by B&O at the moment that I don’t even want to talk about it... The DNA is lost in the chinese and korean skys.

I share that feeling...

To such an extent, that I lose my interest in any new product they launch, I'm sure that the last purchases will also be the final last.

Jeff, that would have been some nice extras indeed. But in some way it would also take away it’s minimalistic feeling a bit. 

They weight is the thing I miss the most with the Beoremote One. It feels plastic, end even though it looks cool, the feeling is cheap. 

BS9000, one of Lewis’s masterpieces.

Chris, B&O had a crisis many years ago, and they pulled through. Hopefully that will do the same again. I am sure they are selling and making good profit these days but non the less they are in my opinion in ”crisis mode”. 

They need to launch something spectacular to get back on track!