Why are Speaker Review so bad?

[Cos]

Can't we all be bought to some extent?

If my boss tells me to review some cables and fib a little, I'm not going to risk my job denying him the request because we are just talking about cables here, not a matter of life and death.

If AJ wants to continue working for Stereophile, he has no choice but do things that they want him to do, even if he doesn't want to do.

AJ made it clear on AVS that he doesn't like to review cables. But he does like to keep his nice job.

I like to keep my nice job. I think most people would like to keep their nice jobs even if that means fibbing about some harmless worthless cables.

Oh, BTW, I use Kimber Kable 8PR, which costs $6 per foot bulk. Hey, they look pretty.

Off Topic for me again but $6.00 a foot is a nice little way to dress up my speaker wire, thanks for tip. I can live with $6.00/ft for the look

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Um, ok, but, um... If Stereophile loses credibility due to 'small fibs', 'white lies', or just out right lying, then there would be no job for JA to go to.
Credibility. It matters!

Stereophile has credibility with reviews?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Off Topic for me again but $6.00 a foot is a nice little way to dress up my speaker wire, thanks for tip. I can live with $6.00/ft for the look

Aesthetic is important.

So a pair of 6FT Kimber Kable 8PR bulk is $72, 8FT pair is $96 (terminate your own cables), not any more than some home-made cables sold on eBay.

http://www.thecableco.com/Product/8PR-Bulk

This is my weekend to work, so off-topics is fair game.

 

[psbfan9]

I'm sure I'll take some hits for this but ... Here it is. I have no science to back this up but I believe this is true to a certain point. If someone hooks up their, lets say, EMPtek's, or, Revel Salons, with the same speaker wires that came with their HTIB, I think new thicker wires would make a difference. A

Ok Irv, I'm guessing you disagree with this part? Would you use thread thin speaker wires for your Salon 2's?

 

[psbfan9]

Stereophile has credibility with reviews?

Well played sir, well played.

 

[Seth=L]

Um, ok, but, um... If Stereophile loses credibility due to 'small fibs', 'white lies', or just out right lying, then there would be no job for JA to go to.
Credibility. It matters!

Between their die hard readers and those who are referred to it as a source of information from other audiophiles and Hi-Fi retail stores I rather doubt they question the credibility of an audiophile magazine publisher. That said, I think anyone that considers any or most magazine publications to be completely credible needs their head checked.

 

[Irvrobinson]

Ok Irv, I'm guessing you disagree with this part? Would you use thread thin speaker wires for your Salon 2's?

No, I use 10 gauge zip cord. I was disagreeing with the "true to a certain degree" comment. I interpreted that to mean that you felt two properly engineered cables could sound different. JA has asserted this in the past, but I just ignore it. I'm pretty sure he doesn't really believe that either. The article on Page 10 sums him up well, I think:

http://www.theaudiocritic.com/back_issues/The_Audio_Critic_22_r.pdf

 

[psbfan9]

No, I use 10 gauge zip cord. I was disagreeing with the "true to a certain degree" comment. I interpreted that to mean that you felt two properly engineered cable could sound different. JA has asserted this in the past, but I just ignore it. I'm pretty sure he doesn't really believe that either. The article on Page 10 sums him up well, I think:

http://www.theaudiocritic.com/back_issues/The_Audio_Critic_22_r.pdf

No. I was referring to the tiny threads that pose as speaker cables in HTIB vs. a larger gauge wire.
I have read that article before thanks to ADGT. Thanks for posting it again. I think it will help people.

 

[3db]

There are those who truly believe that speaker wires affect the sound coming from their system. Imagination and sight bias are far more powerful and influential than those "deceived" listeners realize.

I'm happy that I'm not in that camp.

If JA is endorsing a particular cable on it's sonic merrits, then he's simply saving up for a new extravagant purchase is all. It's too bad it gets in the way of the truth.

 

[andy19191]

Um, ok, but, um... If Stereophile loses credibility due to 'small fibs', 'white lies', or just out right lying, then there would be no job for JA to go to.
Credibility. It matters!

Credibility certainly matters in the eyes of the audience the magazine and advertisers are trying to reach but it doesn't matter much in the eyes of everyone else. If JA were daft enough to actively promote the "scientific view" on cables he would lose credibility with the audience for his magazine.

 

[Sheep]

Can't we all be bought to some extent?

If my boss tells me to review some cables and fib a little, I'm not going to risk my job denying him the request because we are just talking about cables here, not a matter of life and death.

If AJ wants to continue working for Stereophile, he has no choice but do things that they want him to do, even if he doesn't want to do.

AJ made it clear on AVS that he doesn't like to review cables. But he does like to keep his nice job.

I like to keep my nice job. I think most people would like to keep their nice jobs even if that means fibbing about some harmless worthless cables.

Oh, BTW, I use Kimber Kable 8PR, which costs $6 per foot bulk. Hey, they look pretty.

I guess that's you then. I won't do it.

Paying money for looks is totally a justifiable expense. Looks do in fact increase the cost. If my setup wasn't in wall wired I would totally have made some 10ga. wires with a nice braided wrap. 10ga isn't cheap, even from the cheap places. However, if anyone ever asked, I would say it's because I'm shallow and image conscious, not because it made my midrange chocolaty smooth.

SheepStar

 

[andy19191]

No, I use 10 gauge zip cord. I was disagreeing with the "true to a certain degree" comment. I interpreted that to mean that you felt two properly engineered cables could sound different. JA has asserted this in the past, but I just ignore it. I'm pretty sure he doesn't really believe that either. The article on Page 10 sums him up well, I think:

http://www.theaudiocritic.com/back_issues/The_Audio_Critic_22_r.pdf

But cables do sound different to many people. I think you might need to look carefully at what JA actually said rather than what you may have taken him to have said. He normally misleads with partial truths and it is fun watching him do it.

 

[Sheep]

But cables do sound different to many people. I think you might need to look carefully at what JA actually said rather than what you may have taken him to have said. He normally misleads with partial truths and it is fun watching him do it.

Yeah, but people are different.

SheepStar

 

[Irvrobinson]

But cables do sound different to many people. I think you might need to look carefully at what JA actually said rather than what you may have taken him to have said. He normally misleads with partial truths and it is fun watching him do it.

I know what he said.

 

[Swerd]

Whenever I read anything written by JA, I get the distinct feeling that I need a lawyer to help me understand exactly what he says – and equally important – exactly what he doesn't say. He is skilled in the art of verbal slight-of-hand.