Hey Sony.....The hell with you and your dreamlike attitude. Sure maybe your the number 1 recognized name but your history of being clueless about commitments leaves me to never support your lines again. I was one of the few who bought your BS about the Qualia line and went out and sold several units to premium clients. The you DUMP THE LINE and blow out the product. All while making direct contact with my client. You have great technology, great performance but your actions scream volumes. Go ahead and sell to the box houses and when you lose do to price keep trying to come back to the custom market that helped support you for all those years. But please don’t think we’re as dumb as you think.

There was a time when Sony ES was synonomous with fabulous HiFi gear. In terms of build-quality and performance, it was at par with other high-grade audio names like Denon, Marantz, NAD, etc. Back when I was a happy little Sony drone, the inside joke was that ES stood for “Employee Standard” because that’s all that we, discerning audiophiles that we were, would spend our money on in-house. Vintage ES gear from the 70’s and 80’s still fetches a fair second-hand price on the used market.

Sadly, those days are long gone. The ES marque has been dumbed down and diluted over the last decade and a half; in part, through chasing features, and adding bells ‘n whistles, as well as hopscotching the traditional exclusive upscale dealers, to be sold through the mass-market. In recent years, I’ve comparison tested ES AV receivers against comparably priced units from Denon, Marantz and Yamaha, and they just haven’t had the guts when it came to sound quality.

In fact, the ES label has become so maligned that it makes sense for Sony to try to bring it back from it’s convalescence, but this may be an uphill battle. For starters, Sony itself seems to be confused about it’s overall direction, and that bodes ill right there. Second, Sony’s cosiness with the mass-market channel has alienated many upscale dealers. The vitriolic comment from the pseudonymous “controlcode” at the bottom of the CE Pro piece is actually quite common, and comes up in private conversation with AV dealers when Sony is discussed.

I want Sony to win, I really do. I think the reason I’m so hard on them is because I was part of the Sony machine when they really stood for something, and as a result, I still hold them to a higher standard.

Maybe this time, they’ll do it.