The dCS distributor in the Benelux has published their new dCS pricelist (in Euro), which shows a price hike for just the Vivaldi and Varèse range, all others stay the same:
dCS price list 1 May, 2025:
VIVALDI
APEX Digital to Analogue Converter € 47.900
CD/SACD Upsampling Transport II 39.000
Master Clock 25.500
Upsampler Plus / Network Streamer 33.900
Insane imho - Varese (less transport + clock) was already $266,700 With a 26.000 Euro price increase the Varese should now price out around $300,000.
At the end of the day I would speculate the actual build cost of Varese is relatively minor compared to the end price - after all it is just like Vivaldi- circuit boards and case work. I imagine an extremely large part of the initial $266,000 price was amortization of R&D - circuit boards and milled chassis simply cannot cost that much relative to the final price.
Quite an increase! As someone who used to work in fashion, and as someone who consumes high end fashion as a hobby, I know many like myself who can afford it are starting to grow tired of the excessive run up in prices of the last several years, and are starting to refuse based on principle . The high end fashion business is taking a hit, I think high end audio should start to pay attention as well.
Let’s be realistic guys. If you’re in that league you don’t care about a couple of 10k more or less. It’s waaaayyy out of my league but if not I’ld say better expensive than not for sale at all. What I meant to say,I will never be able to afford it so the price is irrelevant to me.
I agree that the R&D cost has to be amortised. However the cost to dCS of parts from their suppliers might surprise you. Labour costs need including too ( first world salaries with benefits and they have needed to take account of overall inflation here in the UK), then “hidden” factors that add costs like the lengthy test procedure including listening to each unit before shipping ( which requires a multiple sign off regime - it isn’t just box it up).
Then there are two margins to add, that of the distributor and that of the dealer.
Finally there is tax Unlike the USA, in Europe we have VAT ( which must be included in the price advertised to non-business customers). This alone adds around 20% and of course increases in value when there is a price rise.
So I am not particularly surprised by the rises. Of course to me it is all academic as I am not likely to buy anything.
As do we - although it is administered on the state and not national level. On a Varese purchase of $300,000 the NYC sales tax is 8.875% yielding an additional $26,625 - bringing the total to $326,625
You should look at a video Linn posted on YouTube showing how their flagship digital streamer is made. Machines populate surface mount boards in no time flat without much if any manual labor, automated cnc machines mill out billet case work . The manual labor part is really mounting completed boards and transformers in place. I think if you calculate the bill of goods on the circuit boards, transformers etc. you would be surprised how little they cost compared to the final price of the unit. The most expensive parts are most likely the FPGA chips - pricey however, relatively speaking compared to the $300k price, peanuts. I think the price of the new FPGA chip dCS was now using was once posted here on the forum - $500 each.
I still think the majority of the cost is amortizing the development cycle.
I respect your opinions Gregg but I want to comment a few of your points.
Varèse is built with milled-from-solid-billet chassis and single circuit flex-rigid boards. The board in the Core is one of, if not the, largest flex-rigid board ever made and afaik only one of our suppliers has the tooling necessary to make it. This is not “just like Vivaldi”. These state-of-the-art techniques command a considerable price premium.
One of the drivers of these recent increases was the rising price of aluminum billets which has been hit hard by tariffs as well as increased transport costs.
dCS works with three-tier distribution, we have distributors who recruit, train and support retailers who sell to and service end users. They make margin on each sale which they earn through the value they add (holding inventory, offering in-store and home demos, installation and support services etc.). We invest a lot in our channel and are pretty proud of the level of service it provides, although we see plenty of ways we can improve and are committed to doing so. Some less fortunate vendors run with two-tier or sell direct via forums and trade shows. They can and do offer deep discounts to close sales because there are fewer mouths to feed, but the owners generally pay the price in the level of service they receive and the residual value of their equipment.
Varèse is a flagship product, a “moonshot” where hitting a certain price point was never part of the design brief. However the technology will, and indeed already has trickled down. As an Apex owner you are already benefitting from it, as are Lina owners.
Two years ago I would probably have thought the same as you. Having seen it from the inside I now have a different perspective.
Shipping costs have gone mental right now and not just around the war zone.
It’s not great seeing big price hikes but that’s how it is. I guess if I had the money for a varese system and the rest to go with it, i would just pay it and not be that bothered. I also think good news my vivaldi kit has just also gone up a bit as far as secondhand prices go.
But its an expensive life at the moment and things are getting out of control. I feel lucky to have what I have, but can’t see any future investment into a vivaldi replacement for me as I feel that cost will be far to great. Plus I feel for people trying to get to the vivaldi level and seeing it only going up, frustrating but its how it is.