First,i make it a policy to never criticize a product when speaking to a customer. However when talking to pro's or in a forum like this "Bombs Away". The olny problem i have w/ Bose is that they market their product as "High End" Audio. Clearly it is not.

Sorry to bring this up to the top once more... but the dilemma I spoke of earlier has reared its head up again. Bose Built-Invisible stuff is a reality that ain't going away. With AVAD now setting up dealers faster than ever we're going to experience more competitive bids from this product (mostly from what appears to be electricians... you know... the ones who get to the builder before you do). I've recently tried to gain access to a client that the builder is shading. The builder loves Bose... the client loves Bose. I've been told to shelf my proposal and get one to them with Bose or I can forget about the deal.

My advice to Custom guys would be to go to your nearest AVAD... get the codes to log onto the Bose learning site... spend an hour and learn how they do things. WHY?
1. Because you'll know exactly what you're up against.
2. Because you're going to be up against it a lot more often.
3. Because you'll learn the proprietary way they wire and you can potentially prewire a system to accommodate both options (should you finally gain access to a client like this and get the ability to sell them something else).
4. Because sometimes you just can't win. The brainwash is too great. You'll have to ask yourself the question " Can I sleep with myself tonight if I install this"

I'm sorry to say that I think I can, and I'm darn close to setting myslef up as one of these dealers. A client who loves his/her system is a happy client. Someone who Bose has gotten this far into will be happy with a Bose system whether it sounds like poo-poo or not... and in my area (Washington State... with one of the nations highest unemployment rates and high ratio of dealers to clients) a paying client is a good thing. I do this work because its a wonderful way to make a living and I enjoy the customer interface and the game of getting and pleasing clients. Ultimately though, I do it to pay for my house and meals and clothing for my family and with money coming in easy (you should check out the lead system that Built-Invisible will bring) I may join the dark side and be a benefactor of all of this marketing. Please don't judge me too harshly if I take this step. I still believe in high end audio and would never take a fresh open-minded client and lead them to a Bose system... I'm just saying that if someone comes at me with a wad of money and wants to throw it at me to install one, and I can't convince them otherwise, I'm afraid I'll take it.

As Eric said, you need to know your competition. What I'm saying is that the money that has been spent to market to clients in the retail sector is starting to be spent on custom installation clients. Bose will be a big factor in our business... too big a factor to dismiss by telling someone that Bose sounds like crap. Here is the first piece of conditioning... "simplicity. We engage a loudness circuit automatically so you don't have to think about it". This will bring up the question to you and may even lead to other multi-source/multi-zone manufacturers coloring their sound as well if they sense that they are losing business to this ploy. Learn what you're up against... it's going to be big.
The one positive is that clients who hadn't even thought of custom install will now be getting an intro from Bose, bringing more of them overall into our market!

I hear what you are saying. Electricians and builders love bose beacuse THEY DONT HAVE TO LISTEN TO IT!. Im in a different position. I try not to work with McBuilders, (like Ryan and Ryland). I am a "Custom Home theater" Shop. The builders i have chosen to work with are interested in giving their customers high quality product. So far it hasnt taken much for me to steer these guys away from BOSE.