"Let our rigorous testing and reviews be your guidelines to A/V equipment – not marketing slogans"
BMXTRIX
Audioholic Warlord
It's crap like what this guy has to deal with that steers me clear of the entire audiophile world and just disgusts me. It's a constant struggle to just not lose my crap whenever someone insists upon talking endlessly about measurable differences that don't correlate to audible (or visible) differences.
Since I'm a projector guy, this goes full tilt with the new DLP 4K models vs. the Epson and JVC models that can only put up half 4K on screen... but they have much better contrast. It's a strange world when people think that the non-visible or audible performance increase is more important than the visible and audible changes that actually improve upon performance.
The people that roll with the BS seem to be the ones that rise to the top. Not giving a damn about reality pays well. They often call them 'salesmen'.
Since I'm a projector guy, this goes full tilt with the new DLP 4K models vs. the Epson and JVC models that can only put up half 4K on screen... but they have much better contrast. It's a strange world when people think that the non-visible or audible performance increase is more important than the visible and audible changes that actually improve upon performance.
The people that roll with the BS seem to be the ones that rise to the top. Not giving a damn about reality pays well. They often call them 'salesmen'.
panteragstk
Audioholic Warlord
Good lord that was painful. Crazy how passionate people are about their own BS.
Reminds me of when I had to set up a Monster Cable display showing how their HDMI cables were better than competitors. Interesting that the competitor cable was composite...
I told my boss that it was BS that they market their stuff that way. I only sold their stuff if customers wanted it. I refused to BS my customers about their "superior" products...
Reminds me of when I had to set up a Monster Cable display showing how their HDMI cables were better than competitors. Interesting that the competitor cable was composite...
I told my boss that it was BS that they market their stuff that way. I only sold their stuff if customers wanted it. I refused to BS my customers about their "superior" products...
mtrycrafts
Seriously, I have no life.
Thanks for the post. I wasn't aware of the power cable demo, only the HDMI demo.
What a guy that Mark is. Even his hi-res audio questioned by him is willing to change his mind. A stand up person.
What a guy that Mark is. Even his hi-res audio questioned by him is willing to change his mind. A stand up person.
Montucky
Full Audioholic
That's crazy. Sounds you and I are similar in that regard. Even having owned my own A/V company, I refused to rip my customers off with overpriced cables, but always found it funny when customers were dissapointed I didn't have them. Don't get me wrong. I carried some very nice, not cheap ones, but they weren't a mass marketed brand and they also weren't a ripoff.
Had a customer with some VERY spendy AudioQuest HDMI cables that failed. He clearly spend a fortune on the cable so was in disbelief that it was the culprit. I swapped it out with one my nice cables which cost him like $30 retail and voila. Problem solved and my cable was clearly a better design. He was asking if I had any AudioQuest cables instead but he was at least happy that I got his gear working. Sigh. He seemed stoked my cable came with a lifetime guarantee though, which I personally guaranteed I'd be happy to swap out if he EVER had an issue.
This whole topic always cracks me up. I am a sucker for high end, top notch gear. Sometimes I AM paying for aesthetics and I'm ok with that as long as I know what I'm getting. What I DON'T appreciate is when people lie about product capabilities. There is nothing wrong with relying on a product's own merits, and there's also nothing wrong with admitting when something is merely a cosmetic upgrade, which is also perfectly fine if that's what somebody wants. Thank goodness that there really are some wonderful, honest companies in our industry. Too bad there's a certain subsegment within though that undermines what the rest of us work hard to accomplish.
S
sterling shoote
Audioholic Field Marshall
Seems to me history will confirm what does and what does not work. For example, I get pleasure listening to my circa 1959 Magnavox Transistor Radio. I find it quite entertaining to compare and contrast the old radio to the listening experience of iHeart Radio from my iPhone 7+. It makes me wonder what are the combined technologies which make the iPhone sound so much better than the transistor radio? I also wonder as each of these technologies came about what sort of skepticism there might have been for the technology. Sure, some ideas don't have any future but until that future is here how do we really know? Reading the article, shows how folks can see things differently; and, when passionate about it, may not be receptive to opposing views. BTW, I stand with Mark W. since he has the credentials to profess on audio perception matters. In my own arena of expertise, Long Range High Power Rifle Shooting, I read articles almost daily which tell me how to do it written by folks who, having been to the range on a singular occasion, think they actually know something about it. I used to engage these folks but it has never been productive so I just now follow the advise about casting pearls to swine. Idiots are destined to believe whatever they believe without any critical thought involved. You cannot persuade them with facts.
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jinjuku
Moderator
Bob Levi's job is to deliver gullible audiophiles up to manufacturers. Recently I went out to Denver to check out a setup and found him using $1200 AQ Diamond interconnects with the DBS system. Come to find out that the interconnects were dodgy and cut out intermittently and that he just paid $125 (more than the cost of all my interconnects) to repair.
lovinthehd
Audioholic Jedi
Bob Levi sounds like a lord helmet as does his "society". Is he associated with Ted Denney? 
panteragstk
Audioholic Warlord
Who the hell pays to fix an interconnect? Just get a new one that works...
3db
Audioholic Slumlord
I wish charges of fraud would be levied against any company and anyone who supports companies like the one reported for using dubious means of cheating people of their money. I swear a toddler has more insight than an audiophile.
BMXTRIX
Audioholic Warlord
How the hell does an interconnect go bad in the first place? I mean, HDBaseT extenders sometimes fail, and I've seen the cat6 connections sometimes fail (HDBaseT is super sensitive to this), but beyond that, I've never had a well made RCA cable fail, or a HDMI cable fail after it was installed and working properly from the start.
I JUST had a HDMI cable I installed that was wonky on one end. But, that was an out of the box issue, not a six months later issue.
Stop using crappy cables that are more than $50 and go back to a decent Blue Jeans or Monoprice cable for $20 or less and enjoy it forever.
People are stupid.
William Lemmerhirt
Audioholic Overlord
Truer words were never spoken...
William Lemmerhirt
Audioholic Overlord
Truer words were never spoken...
panteragstk
Audioholic Warlord
I've seen tons of monster cables fail. People buy them for the lifetime warranty...which they will need at some point. They just aren't well made at all. All my monoprice cables are great and didn't break the bank.
Montucky
Full Audioholic
Same here! Out in the field, Monster Cables are the only cables I've seen so many failures with both RCA and optical. Just so poorly made, which is annoying since they weren't cheap. Like you, I've had great luck with Monoprice. Seriously, though. How junky does a cable have to be for RCA to go bad???!!!
panteragstk
Audioholic Warlord
The ones I replaced were all HDMI and XLR.
S
shadyJ
Speaker of the House
Staff member
I have had a multitude of interconnects go bad. Usually the lead gets yanked too hard from the connector or something like that, and it can break or loosen a contact in the connector. It happens.
Montucky
Full Audioholic
While that certainly can happen, one would think that the failure rate on higher priced cables should be lower, but instead it's the opposite. I've seen by far the MOST failed cables being AudioQuest and Monster. Ironically, many of the less expensive ones really do hold up better. Too cheap is not great either, but there's a nice middle ground for sure.
H
highfigh
Seriously, I have no life.
Am I the only one who sees the irony in calling that event 'AudioCon'?
Part of the problem I have with HDMI is that they can and do stop working for no apparent reason. Another is that they started with one standard and have bloated the requirements so much it's not a matter of if it will be replaced, it's a matter of when and distribution via IP is gaining a lot of adopters. They should have just gone with fiber and been done with it.
If something is expensive and is extremely attractive, they should be required to include a disclaimer stating that the aesthetics have no bearing on the sound quality.
Any claims about sound or video quality that include "We feel", "We think' or "You'll find' should be sent to someone who can prosecute for this fraud. If they don't KNOW something will cause an improvement, they need to shut up about it until they do.
Part of the problem I have with HDMI is that they can and do stop working for no apparent reason. Another is that they started with one standard and have bloated the requirements so much it's not a matter of if it will be replaced, it's a matter of when and distribution via IP is gaining a lot of adopters. They should have just gone with fiber and been done with it.
If something is expensive and is extremely attractive, they should be required to include a disclaimer stating that the aesthetics have no bearing on the sound quality.
Any claims about sound or video quality that include "We feel", "We think' or "You'll find' should be sent to someone who can prosecute for this fraud. If they don't KNOW something will cause an improvement, they need to shut up about it until they do.
mtrycrafts
Seriously, I have no life.
Not anymore.
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