Not my Words
Not my words, but this is one of the wiser things I've seen on line in weeks.
In referring to sound companies and production companies in general, these statements are true.
It is easy to get excited, run out and get a big fat loan, and buy the nicest sounding gear out there. You WILL sound good. You WILL look good. And you will never have to hold your own against anyone, because you can just show them the logo on your speakers and smile.
However, my respect is owed to the one who can take a little risk by making the decisions that are not self-supported by the huge price tag. No one can argue the quality of a BMW. I respect the man in the Toyota that works for his respect, and didn't spend 3x the money.
Anyways here's that quote I promised:
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"There will always be clients who will demand, and are willing to pay for, superior quality. However these people are in the vast minority.
As a general rule clients simply want for their needs to be met with a solution that provides a result that will be excellent to the casual observer, and competent to the astute observer.
The faster, smoother, more cost effective, or simpler that this solution can be provided, the happier the average client will be.
Once you have a faster, smoother, more cost effective, and simpler rig than your competitors, you will find that not only do have less hassles at gigs, but you will also auto-magically be cheaper. Additionally, with reduced complexity and a mindset geared to more complete-system logistical planning you will also find yourself to have a more reliable system.
There will always be (some) room for the providers willing to provide the best quality at any cost (monetarily or logistically), just as there will always be (some) room for the providers who will cut any corner to give you a cheap gig. However in this day and age of relatively excellent end results being made on ever simpler and more compact systems I really think that the overall mindset of the industry needs to change.
I fear that there are numerous providers out there made up of excellent and otherwise well-meaning people that are in real risk of being steamrolled by a few "super-sound-co's". Companies that aggressively standardize their systems to the majority of needs, hone their logistics to a science and engineer the infrastructure for cost effectiveness, speed, and reliability front to back. These companies may not always sound the absolute best, but they would certainly prove to be highly viable businesses."