Farrell8882 wrote:

A friend of mine asked me "Why _not_ Bose?" and I really don't have an answer
for her. I know audiophiles routinely revile the brand, but that's not an
excuse I'm comfortable sharing. It's not one I can either defend or expound on.

The number one problem with Bose is not their sound, which is passable,
but that the exact same thing can be had via Cambridge Soundworks for
a couple of hundred dollars. Cambridge soundworks of course changes the
mounts and wiring terminals and color just enough so as to pass the
minimum amount of changes to not infringe on their patent, but it's
essentially the same thing.

Why pay 400% markup over the same thing without the label?

For $800-$1000, she can get a full setup that will sound several times
better. Tannoy and KEF, for instnace, make very good minisystems,
as does Energy. Real rubber surrounds on the speakers instead of
foam. Connectors that can be used with any receiver. Screws instead
of glue to hold it together. $10 speakers(their cost) versus $1-2
ones BOSE uses.

No, these aren't high-end soundsystems, but they are a step up.