Matt Pengelly Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Just spotted this little nugget on PSW. I'm not entirely sure what to make of it. link here to prosoundnewseuropehttp://www.music-group.net There is of course the obvious knee-jerk reactionary Behringer-bashing that runs through one's mind as you read the article, but there could be some serious upsides to the deal; especially given the apparent back-seat the brands were being given within Bosch. No doubt the proof will be in the pudding over the coming years as Music Group-era KT and Midas products start to filter into the market, but it will be interesting to see what (if any) effect it has on how things currently are within the structure of the company/promotional campaigns/etc in the short term. I'm sure that there are people from the parties involved on here that will have thoughts too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 The serious response is that probably only the large MI companies (Proel, Mackie, Peavey etc.) have the financial resources to keep small specialist manufacturers (such as Midas) afloat. Bosch is active in the PA/VA sector, a market where Midas doesn't feature at all. They are getting rid of the company that doesn't really contribute to their core market. The less serious response involved spitting coffee involuntarily across the PC monitor.... Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themadhippy Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 so when are trabant buying out rolls royce and Ferrari? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savage1 Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Somebody told me about this last week and I thought it was a joke... I guess we're going to see a behringer pro6000 afterall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Showing my age, I recall when Sony stuff was considered cheap, knock-off Japanese rubbish. Like any take over, we'll have to see how this one goes--it could be good or bad for Midas and KT. However, financially I suspect this gives them a much firmer footing in the world. ....and maybe Uli can do something about the MIdas reliability! The only consoles I've ever used that suffered failures that actually affected a show have been Midas (twice). Never Behringer! :) Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 so when are trabant buying out rolls royce and Ferrari? Trabant ceased production. Various parts of Rolls Royce now belong to VW / BMW. depending upon your viewpoint, the analogy still stands ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dan slv-tech Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 Same old, big corperation buys a company, doesnt fit into there core sales, so they sell it, and ill lay penny to a pound that behringer use all designs/ ideas, and that KT is either continued but built by behringer to appeal to the higher end market, or theyll blatantly rip off a KT unit under the behringer name. and im sure the same will happen with midas,(though havnt they kinda done this with a range of mixers?) though they still have a core business, so maybe thatll continue.... Same things happened with countless other pro audio names, EAW (owned by mackie group) Turbo (owned by proel group) etc etc.... its all bout money. Shame to see midas and KT go, both legendary UK names, but times move on and I suspect that these companies possibly havnt moved with the times, hence bosch cant warrant there existance. I wonder how much outboard KT sell now as apposed to 5 years ago? proberbly nothing in comparison to behringer, so if behringer cant get into high end pro audio, why not do it with KT stamped on the front! same approach is happening with other companies and there buy outs. Then again same is happening in every other sector of business, IBM (lenevo), Cars, need I go on...... Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Pearce Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 I expect KT will have been hit hard by the digital mixer revolution (are we at a point where we can call it a revolution yet?). I wouldn't be too worried about it just yet, Behringer/Music Group have a lot of resources and market routes available that Midas/KT didn't, and I doubt they'll run Midas/KT into the ground just for a quick buck. It seems a good route for Behringer and co to have a high end market share and a logical upgrade path from their MI equipment to flagship sound reinforcement equipment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlyfarly Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Same old, big corperation buys a company, doesnt fit into there core sales, so they sell it, and ill lay penny to a pound that behringer use all designs/ ideas, and that KT is either continued but built by behringer to appeal to the higher end market, or theyll blatantly rip off a KT unit under the behringer name. and im sure the same will happen with midas,(though havnt they kinda done this with a range of mixers?) though they still have a core business, so maybe thatll continue.... Same things happened with countless other pro audio names, EAW (owned by mackie group) Turbo (owned by proel group) etc etc.... its all bout money. Shame to see midas and KT go, both legendary UK names, but times move on and I suspect that these companies possibly havnt moved with the times, hence bosch cant warrant there existance. I wonder how much outboard KT sell now as apposed to 5 years ago? proberbly nothing in comparison to behringer, so if behringer cant get into high end pro audio, why not do it with KT stamped on the front! same approach is happening with other companies and there buy outs. Then again same is happening in every other sector of business, IBM (lenevo), Cars, need I go on...... DanMidas and KT have not "gone".....they just happen to now be part of a parent company, please read the statement from Bosch Communication Systems, Music Group and Midas themselves here.Uli Behringer is a smart business man and I don't think the guys in Kidderminster would have accepted this without thinking long and hard. Also I would like to point out that Mackie does not own EAW, they are both part of a parent company called LOUD Technologies. Smaller companies becoming part of a larger umbrella is commonplace in the business world nowadays; the smaller company can benefit from some pretty big resources in all sectors. To me the only reason this is causing such a stir is that Behringer is involved, a name that has become synonymous with being the whipping boy of the audio industry when in reality they have made some pretty good products along with some dogs that people in the know avoid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryson Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 so when are trabant buying out rolls royce and Ferrari? Fiat own Ferrari and Maserati. VW own Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini. The truth of the matter is that it's not unprecedented at all for a "budget" manufacturer to have the resources to buy a more prestigious brand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark M Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Is Behringer really that bad? I khow they are low end kit but Ive been using a Behringer desk that Ive got on demo and it seems to do everything I need to be honest. I assume its the same as people saying your wasting your time driving a Fiesta and you should be driving an Aston Martin but I dont have that sort of budget and the desk will be used once a fortnight tops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Payne Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 LOVE it you could not make it up. Heritageilizer Pro .... Comming soon. M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Smaller companies becoming part of a larger umbrella is commonplace in the business world nowadays; The track record of large corporations or holding companies buying up pro audio manufacturers is generally not a happy one. The new owners often want to see a reasonably quick profit on their investment, something which the specialised, low volume sales audio market cannot always deliver. Whereas there are examples of a cash rich investor buying a company and letting it "do its thing" there are also plenty of examples (such as Crest / Peavey and Loud/RCF/EAW/Mackie) where relocated production (not always to the far East) changes the perceived or real quality of product and its support. Of course, small pro audio companies aren't a stable protected economic entity, and can fall by the wayside just as easily as any other business. Cadac was rescued by a Chinese firm (who also bought the remains of Studiomaster) and it could well be argued that Midas/KT - for all their acknowledged wisdom and expertise - were perhaps not in the best position. The XL8 was bought to market after several other manufacturers had established themselves as the de facto standard, and it hasn't really established itself as a 'must have' item on top band's riders. The Pro 6 appears to be fairing better, but has stiff competition. The danger is that in trying to increase market share or profitability that the present manufacturing location and methods will be changed to make units more affordable or with improved margins. The other main danger is that of diluted brand kudos, should labels like 'powered by Midas' start appearing on low cost MI level gear. Who knows, we may even see riders of the future state, "absolutely no Peavey / Mackie / Behringer / Midas" in bold type :) Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pisquee Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I've certainly seen no Midas Venice/Verona/Sienna on riders... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomHoward Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 ..or theyll blatantly rip off a KT unit under the behringer name.To be fair it was probably in the pipeline anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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