Good Audio Magazines

[whateverman]

I've been thinking about getting a subscription to a few audio magazines, just for some reading material in the bathroom and when I'm bored. What are some good ones? I think I'm going to subscribe to Sound & Vision and Stereophile, but is there anything better than those? Or anything else I should subscribe to? How is Home Theater magazine? I basically just want to read about speakers/audio equipment, the electronics that make them up, all that good stuff. Thanks.

Also, does anyone know other good magazines similar to Popular Science or some good Electronic Engineering magazines? Maybe a hobbyist/DIY electronic engineering magazine or something like that.

 

[Joe Schmoe]

I've been thinking about getting a subscription to a few audio magazines, just for some reading material in the bathroom and when I'm bored. What are some good ones? I think I'm going to subscribe to Sound & Vision and Stereophile, but is there anything better than those? Or anything else I should subscribe to? How is Home Theater magazine? I basically just want to read about speakers/audio equipment, the electronics that make them up, all that good stuff. Thanks.

Just be sure not to lose sight of the fact that they are strictly entertainment. I stopped believing their reviews decades ago.
My favorites are the British magazines HiFi News and What HiFi.

 

[3db]

Just be sure not to lose sight of the fact that they are strictly entertainment. I stopped believing their reviews decades ago.
My favorites are the British magazines HiFi News and What HiFi.

yeah and they are good for pushing English products and are just as entertaining.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I've been thinking about getting a subscription to a few audio magazines, just for some reading material in the bathroom and when I'm bored. What are some good ones? I think I'm going to subscribe to Sound & Vision and Stereophile, but is there anything better than those? Or anything else I should subscribe to? How is Home Theater magazine? I basically just want to read about speakers/audio equipment, the electronics that make them up, all that good stuff. Thanks.

Also, does anyone know other good magazines similar to Popular Science or some good Electronic Engineering magazines? Maybe a hobbyist/DIY electronic engineering magazine or something like that.

Check out The $ensible Sound at the news stand. Be careful with that Stereopile. While their measurements are good, anything more and it is most subjective and imaginative.

 

[fmw]

I don't read audio magazines any longer since there isn't anything for me to learn from them. I read a magazine called Recording from time to time. There are also some decent music magazines.

 

[PeterWhite]

I've been thinking about getting a subscription to a few audio magazines, just for some reading material in the bathroom and when I'm bored. What are some good ones? I think I'm going to subscribe to Sound & Vision and Stereophile, but is there anything better than those? Or anything else I should subscribe to? How is Home Theater magazine? I basically just want to read about speakers/audio equipment, the electronics that make them up, all that good stuff. Thanks.

Also, does anyone know other good magazines similar to Popular Science or some good Electronic Engineering magazines? Maybe a hobbyist/DIY electronic engineering magazine or something like that.

There's only one that's of any use, in my opinion. The $ensible Sound.

See: http://sensiblesound.com/

The others I've seen are all promoting religion in the form of cables, cable and CD treatments, Shakti stones and which amplifier sounds best. Stereophile and The Absolute Sound are by far the worst. Read them for comic value only.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I prefer Home Theater Magazine over Sound & Vision. I also like Stereophile. I have all 3 subscriptions.

I would rank them: 1st HTM, 2nd Stereophile, 3rd S&V.

I prefer magazines and websites that have actual measurements and graphs/specs to BACK up their OPINIONS.

We all differ on our preferences and opinions, but actual measurements are closer to being facts. I mean specs don't tell the whole story, but they are a good starting point.

 

[whateverman]

Alright cool, thanks for all of your suggestions. I'll look into a few of those and see what I can come up with.

 

[dorokusai]

I get the usual rags but Audio Xpress & Paste are my favorites to receive in the mail. I think Paste makes Rolling Stone look like an Archie comic and while I'm not a DIY by any means, Audio Xpress has some great articles, writeups and projects. It's always a good read.

Mark
Polk Audio CS

 

[PeterWhite]

I prefer Home Theater Magazine over Sound & Vision. I also like Stereophile. I have all 3 subscriptions.

I would rank them: 1st HTM, 2nd Stereophile, 3rd S&V.

I prefer magazines and websites that have actual measurements and graphs/specs to BACK up their OPINIONS.

We all differ on our preferences and opinions, but actual measurements are closer to being facts. I mean specs don't tell the whole story, but they are a good starting point.

Where are the graphs and specs to back up the cable tests in Stereophile? I'd love to see a graph depicting the midrange liquidity of the various cables the Stereophile clowns wax orgasmic over. ;-)

 

[3db]

Where are the graphs and specs to back up the cable tests in Stereophile? I'd love to see a graph depicting the midrange liquidity of the various cables the Stereophile clowns wax orgasmic over. ;-)

Did you say orgasmicÉÉ Dam, I have been reading the wrong publication.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Where are the graphs and specs to back up the cable tests in Stereophile? I'd love to see a graph depicting the midrange liquidity of the various cables the Stereophile clowns wax orgasmic over. ;-)

I wasn't talking about cables and wires.

I was talking about speakers, amps, & preamps.

Sensiblesound and The Absolute Sound are Absolutely Useless; they are just giving their personal opinions. And like Audioholics says, in a lot of these so-called reviews, the reviewers might not have even LISTENED to the products. It's just their personal opinions.

 

[PeterWhite]

I wasn't talking about cables and wires.

I was talking about speakers, amps, & preamps.

Sensiblesound and The Absolute Sound are Absolutely Useless; they are just giving their personal opinions. And like Audioholics says, in a lot of these so-called reviews, the reviewers might not have even LISTENED to the products. It's just their personal opinions.

Stereophile makes the same unsubstantiated claims about amplifiers that they make about cables. They claim that some amps and cables sound better than others, even though no proper blinded studies have ever shown that this is possible, unless the cable or the amp is introducing some form of distortion to the signal, which can easily be measured.

So if David A Rich at $ensible Sound doesn't bother doing an extensive listening test to the latest Onkyo or Yamaha receiver, trying to perceive some difference in the "sound stage" or the "liquidity" it's because he knows, based on the specifications, that they must sound the same.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Stereophile makes the same unsubstantiated claims about amplifiers that they make about cables. They claim that some amps and cables sound better than others, even though no proper blinded studies have ever shown that this is possible, unless the cable or the amp is introducing some form of distortion to the signal, which can easily be measured.

So if David A Rich at $ensible Sound doesn't bother doing an extensive listening test to the latest Onkyo or Yamaha receiver, trying to perceive some difference in the "sound stage" or the "liquidity" it's because he knows, based on the specifications, that they must sound the same.

Oh, I did not know that David A Rich is an editor for Sensible sound. I think he is a very good guy.

However, my point is that opinions are fine. But I read the reviews for the actual lab measurements, not for their opinions.

You mentioned "specifications". Well, unless they do actual measurements, they are just using the manufacturers' specifications, which anyone can do just as well.

I believe David A Rich was with The Audio Critic. But The Audio Critic actually has lab measurements, not just opinions.

 

[whateverman]

I get the usual rags but Audio Xpress & Paste are my favorites to receive in the mail. I think Paste makes Rolling Stone look like an Archie comic and while I'm not a DIY by any means, Audio Xpress has some great articles, writeups and projects. It's always a good read.

Mark
Polk Audio CS

Audio Xpress looks like it's right up my alley. I'll definitely consider a subscription for that. I was looking at Voice Coil, on the same website, and $98 for a subscription?!?! Man, I'm used to magazines costing no more than $20-25 for a yearly subscription But I guess you have to pay good money for quality

 

[whateverman]

Is there a print magazine that is like The Audio Critic? With lots of measurements, graphs and whatnot? I want a very technical magazine that has good reviews on audio equipment/new audio products.

 

[annunaki]

I subscribe to Home Theater Magazine as well. Their video reviews are actually pretty good. They use good test equipment and seem to be keeping any bs to a bare minimum. Most of the reviews for audio (as of late) have been pretty good as well. They offer measurements on most everything.

Their recent article on the video sections of AVR's was really good.

 

[Joe Schmoe]

Sensiblesound and The Absolute Sound are Absolutely Useless; they are just giving their personal opinions.

The ads in TAS are quite humorous, especially for nonsense like "cable elevators"
The British magazines I mentioned earlier go them one better, though, by actually reviewing things like interconnects and (seriously!) equipment racks.
"The glass shelves in rack A greatly improve the soundstage..." Hi-freakin'-larious!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Is there a print magazine that is like The Audio Critic? With lots of measurements, graphs and whatnot? I want a very technical magazine that has good reviews on audio equipment/new audio products.

That's what I like too. Lots of technical stuff!

But I don't think The Audio Critic has print magazines. Othewise, I would subscribe.

Of course, Audioholics doesn't have print magazines either. Otherwise, I would subscribe.

So for now, I would rank Home Theater Magazine #1 for print magazines. Stereophile has lots of measurements too. And that's what I look at. Sound & Vision has less measurements than HTM & Stereophile.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I HAVE to have reading material for the bathroom. I looked at the same Parts Express catalog for almost a year (I can probably tell you what page every little connector is on) Finally someone on here told me how to get a free script to SOUND&VISION so I have a little more material each month. S&V takes about an hour to read the entire magazine so I have been looking for something else. This thread reminded me of that so I just went to the HTM site and got this:

Home Theater
Price: $12.97
Term: 12 Issues


Stereophile
Price: $10.00
Term: 12 Issues