Headphones are electronics. Electronics break sometimes. This is not news to anyone, but how one responds to a failure – well, that’s where the differences lie.
Most headphone manufacturers have solved the issue elegantly: when the device breaks, you throw it in the trash and buy a new one. Handy – for the manufacturer. For you, it means another hundred euros less in your account and yet another lump of plastic to the landfill. To us, this sounds like a pretty stupid system.
Why would anyone throw a working device away?
Because it’s cheaper for the manufacturer. Running your own service costs money. You need premises, tools, spare parts, and a person who knows how to use them. Big corporations have calculated that it’s cheaper to send a replacement unit from Shenzhen than to hire even a single repair technician.
We did the math differently. Or actually Jasse did, and Jasse is an audio engineer, not an accountant, so the numbers might have been a bit off. But the conclusion was clear: repairing makes more sense. For the customer, for the environment, and in the long run for us too.
What does repairing mean in practice?
We have our own service center in Kajaani. The right people, the right tools, the right spare parts. When something breaks in VMK25 headphones, they are sent to us and we repair them. We don’t automatically send a new one, because the old one is usually perfectly salvageable.
The most typical repairs:
- Ear pads wore out – they twist right off and new ones snap into place. You can do this yourself at home.
- Battery doesn’t hold up – we replace the battery. The device will work for years again.
- A crack appeared in the headband – we repair or replace the part. No need to throw away the whole device.
- Ran over by a tractor – well, at that point it’s a bit different. But we still have repair kits.
During the warranty period (24 months) repairs are of course free. Even after the warranty the device can be repaired – you just pay for the part and the labor.
Wouldn’t sending a new one be easier?
It would. For us and for you. In the short term.
But we are a 14-person company. We can’t afford to waste working devices, and we don’t have a warehouse full of replacement units waiting for someone to sit on their headphones. Henri drives an Alfa Romeo that breaks every other week – if that too were thrown away every time, we’d already be bankrupt. Though it would eat into the Ferrari fund quite nicely.
Repairing just makes more sense. A single replaceable part costs a fraction of a complete device. Less stuff ends up in the landfill. And you get to keep the headphones you’re already used to – with broken-in pads and all the scratches.
Throwaway culture is laziness
We’re not trying to be any kind of environmental organization. We don’t print green leaves on the packages or talk about carbon handprints. We just repair devices because it’s smart. Period.
If you want to buy headphones that last and that can be repaired when they don’t, you’ll find them at valco.fi. Every purchase funds about 0.000001% of our Death Star, so it’s really a matter of galactic charity.
