John Darko
€11,800 (or US$15,000). No, that’s not a typo. That’s how much we’ll be asked to pay for Hermès’ first pair of Bluetooth ANC headphones when they go on sale this summer. The luxury fashion brand has tapped its Ateliers Horizons workshop in Paris for the industrial design who, in turn, hasn’t made known the identity of the third-party company handling the design and manufacture of the headphone’s drivers, amplifiers, microphones, ANC circuit and Bluetooth receivers. The optional USB-C to USB-C hard-wired connection points to one well-known French audio company (but then again, maybe not).
Hermès’ website copy further obfuscates what’s going on under the hood: “The sound is directed to the outer ear, thus protecting the eardrums and preventing noise-induced fatigue” and “Natural sound reproduction thanks to balanced bass frequencies and precise tweeters with exceptional clarity.” Tweeters in an over-ear headphone? Final and Nura tried the multi-driver approach to over-ears and consumers didn’t take to it.
So, where else does our money go? According to Hermès, the leather headband, the earcups’ leather outer and the lambskin ear cushions “showcase the craftsmanship of saddlery”. The metal elements are “micro-sandblasted and satin-finished aluminium” and engraved with the brand logo.
There’s no disputing that they look nice, but at 415g, they’re also heavy. That’s more than the Apple AirPods Max’s 384g, the Focal Bathys 2’s 350g and the Sony WH-1000XM6’s 254g. Every gram counts when you’re putting them on your head. Weight matters. So do in-hand feel, build quality, functionality and advanced codec support.
And I’m sure it’s lost on nobody that 15 pairs of the Focal Bathys could be had for the Hermès headphones’ asking price. Are the Hermès fifteen times better than the Focal? Most likely not: we know that the law of diminishing marginal returns bites down harder the further north we go on price. We won’t know how these headphones sound until we get our hands on a pair — if we ever do. Hermès will be banking on brand signalling (and pride of ownership) picking up where sound quality and aesthetics leave off.
That’s the news, but what’s the story?
A wealthy friend of mine announced on Facebook over the weekend that he will buy a pair of the Hermès headphones as soon as they go on sale.
You can already guess how the comments section went:
“You’re an idiot. All you need is a pair of Meze Empyrean II, which can be had for $3000. Best headphones I’ve ever owned”, wrote one chap.
In response to this first reply, someone else wrote:
“Nope, you’re an idiot. All you need is a pair of Dan Clark E3 for $2000. No need to spend more.”
Then it snowballed:
“You’re an idiot, too. All you need is a pair of Sennheiser HD600S2. I got mine for under €500.”
The killer blow?
“You’re all idiots. I’ve had my Koss Porta Pro for over two years, and they still sell for €99 or $50 in the USA. The Koss are all anyone needs.”
Although painful to read, the lesson here is four-fold:
1) We cannot speak for other people’s disposable income and how they choose to spend it, even if it is largely on brand cachet. Most people will see the price, roll their eyes and get on with their day but…
2) Some people cannot help themselves — their compulsion is to brand buyers of such luxury fare as idiots. And they do this to make themselves feel better about their own less costly headphone choices — aka cope. When it’s not our money, it’s not our business.
3) Societal income inequality is no joke but it also tells us that disposable income varies wildly from person to person to make one man’s ceiling another man’s floor.
4) Only the market – the actions of many consumers – will decide if it can sustain a €11,800 headphone.
Further information: Hermès
