The Death of Audiophilia

It's a good point, and going forward, we are going to start adding a short bit at the end of each record about sound quality, at least on the version we get for review. We don't always get both (or sometimes all three) formats.

We used to concentrate on it only in the audiophile re-releases, but starting this issue all recordings will have commentary on the sound quality. I know how grumpy I get when I find a record I like and the sound quality is lousy.

Any suggestions on how you'd like that described, or just a standard 1-10 gradation?

 

Some verbal description would be nice, even if it's a paragraph or less. And some warning about whether or not it's an ultra-compressed "Loud" mastering.

 

No, I just review gear that I'm interested in and feel is decent stuff. There are plenty of things we've had the chance to review (and companies who have wanted to advertise with us) that I've turned away because I felt the stuff wasn't all that great.

I've also spent more time concentrating on gear from the majors than the small off the beaten path gear that Six Moons and some of the other online magazines have concentrated on because while many of those companies make products that are halfway decent, not all of them have the financial wherewithal to stay in business long term. And I realize this is somewhat of a "I can't get the job without the experience and vice versa" situation.

But, when I tell my readers that a piece of gear from Conrad Johnson, McIntosh or ARC is decent stuff, I know it does represent good value for the money and I know the chances of getting it fixed 10 years (or more) from now is very good. And I think that is a BIG part of the equation when you are spending your hard earned money on audio gear.

We don't write a lot of negative reviews, because anything I thought wasn't ready for prime time, was sent back. We aren't Consumer Reports.

The fundamental difference between us and some of the others is really that we're trying to help you put a decent system together. I don't stand on the soapbox and try to tell you what "the best" is. We've never used that line in over four years, only to tell you what was the best last month, no longer is.

We do our best to describe a component in terms of sound, how easy or difficult it is to set up and how it works with other components. If a speaker is tough to set up, we tell you and if there are any short cuts to getting it set up, we tell you that as well. Same thing with components.

Our job is to describe a component to the best of our ability. It's still up to you to seek it out, listen and decide if it's worthy of further consideration by you. We've had advertisers leave because we wouldn't give them stellar reviews and we've had companies not advertise with us because we wouldn't guarantee "product of the year" or other awards.

We only handed out a dozen awards last year out of about a hundred products reviewed and I think it's going to go up to 18 or 20 this year. My competitors in print either have 500+ "recommended" components or they've given an award to almost every product they reviewed in the calendar year.

We've also got about a 60/40% advertiser to non advertiser ratio of reviews, and we are trying to get that back to 50/50%, so I think it's pretty unfair of you to say we are in the mfrs. pockets. If that were the case, I would only review products from advertisers.

And at the end of the day, unlike almost all of the online publications, my writers and editors are paid print magazine rates. Sorry, but this is a full time job and the $$ has to come from somewhere. Nothing subscription based has ever survived. Sorry to say, but that's the way it goes. If everyone that gets TONEAudio wants to kick in 20 bucks a year, I'll throw the advertisers out tomorrow, but honestly, it wouldn't change the editorial.

Much as you'd like to think there is a big conspiracy, it doesn't work to my advantage to write trumped up reviews, because if you buy a lousy product because I've said it's fantastic, you'll just dump it on Audiogon and never return to the mfr., and you certainly won't use my magazine as a resource in the future.

And then, there is the 70 pages of music per issue that you don't get with all of the other hifi magazines combined....

 

Now everybody—

Use all the loose descriptive prose and epicurean verbiage that Gourmet will no longer be spouting.

Phrases like "Rich Chocolaty Goodness" come to mind.

 

well, I do like food...

 

for what it's worth I exchanged messages with LA Record and they said it's on their radar. Chris Z. is a great guy and VERY intelligent, and I think they would be a great place for kids who care about sound to read about, well, sound!

 

There are more quality turntables to choose from right now than a decade ago. The best turntables are arguably better (overall) than anything in history.

CD playback is on a budget is great, and now you can play anything you want from uncompressed (if you choose) files on a computer. A nearly endless playlist. This makes quality DACs fashionable again.

You can get good sound from an iPod if you want, and GREAT sound if you try (with some add-ons and such...). How many good-to-awesome choices do we have in headphones now?

The list of good speakers priced at and under a grand is daunting. You can pick up a great pair of speakers for around $300, a level of performance unthinkable just a decade ago, much less 20-years ago.

Good, affordable integrated amps are plentiful, as are mono blocks and preamps, both tube and solid state.

Seriously, I don't understand all the hand-wringing that goes on with audiophiles.

For a 'dead' hobby so far away from the mainstream, you sure have a silly amount of toys and options to choose from!

dan c

 

There is softwares available to measure dynamic range. STEREO mag in germany adds the DR number to some albums of interest : DR 3 is very low 7 is average , 9 pretty high and 13 is extreme - usually only found in classical music. Since you don't give points for content I don't think you should add points for sound, a symbol with the DR number and a few lines about the sound quality in an extra bracket below the album might be a nice addition ? Maybe use colors ?

 

Agreed - a very good list Dan.

And I'd add that there is more music of all shapes, sizes, styles and formats available now than at any other time in history.

Do you know how hard it was to find some albums now considered "seminal" in the mid-80's Pre-CD reissue era? I can tell you that I spent two years looking for a clean copy of the Stooges' Funhouse, for example, that wasn't $100 and wasn't hacked to bits (of the literal vinyl kind)

 

I wonder how long that will last in the new music economy? For example, Van Morrison's "St. Dominick's Preview" is out of print, how can that happen?

 

Independence Day

Saturation. Counted 7 copies of my favorite Paul Simon CD—"Rhythm of the Saints"—in the $1.95/$2.95 used CD section at Rasputin's yesterday. CDs may not offer perfect sound forever but they give generally acceptable sound for one whole heck of a lot longer then LPs did. I don't think anybody's going to have any trouble finding that LP/CD with its curious image of Mr. Morrison sitting on the steps of one of San Francisco's more acoustically viable Churches, showing off a massive rip in the crotch of his jeans in the process.

Hey—if some of the best of Jordi Savall's classic Astree recordings are still awaiting re-release then Van the Man can get in line & wait his turn.

 

I'm not suggesting the reviews are trumped up, but everybody knows their role.. Hey, I don't blame you. Everybody's got to make a living, right ? I think folks who read the stuff take it with a grain of salt. Myself included.

< edit by tf >

 

I really like the idea of a dynamic range rating in CD reviews!

 

And so you should....

 

I haven't been able to find it for a reasonable price, which is a shame. "Jackie Wilson Said" is absolutely essential, and I don't wanna have to go to a compilation to get it.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7ERMu825m4

 

Too bad he can't site any evidence other than "it's ridiculous!" He just comes off as an Aussie mouth-breather.

 

What an incredibly annoying guy! I couldn't take that whining for more than 3 minutes - and I was really struggling the last 2,5...

 

I love that guy!!!!! Annoying as hell, but his words ring true!!!!


Lots of snake oil out there.

"You WILL hear the difference.........just don't expect your friends to! "

Classic stuff!!!

 

Well, not really true.

1. In blindtest done in Canada, most people prefer the same sound.

2. Just because some people have hearing problems don't change the reproduction of sound. For example:

5 people will listen to a small Jazz band live. Each of them have a different hearing problem. At the same time they listen a guy is recording the music.
3 hours later, they can hear the mastertape from the recordings.
Now, they all have different hearing problems, so do they all want different sound from the system so it can sound a live as the concert 3 hours ago?

No! The reason is simple, they always hear the reality with the same "faulty" ears. If you put them in a great room with extremly neutral system, they all will hear the sound they heard live. But if you change the system, adding coloration, none of them will hear the sound as it was live.

So the myth about we don't hear the same is not really true. We hear the "same" sound, but maybe a little different. But the reproduction needs to be the same for all to sound correct and the same a live.

Are no problem at all. How would it be if all music sounded the same? The CD/LP is the finished product, it is that one need to reproduce.

Yes, and one should fix the room as much as possible.

That is what I am.

Sounds like a myth. What gear measure perfectly and sound terrible? And not all top hifi designers will say that, it something you made up.

No confusion at all, but you seem rather confused.

 

Absolutly not. Good speakers are MADE to sound good in a room, not outside in the open. You must have thought about something else here, I thought that was rather basic knowledge?

 

LP can sound good, and a good mastered LP can be really nice. But it will not change the fact that vinyl is clearly mot distorted and colored than a normal CD player.

 

I do not agree. There are a lot of very expensive junk that get great review in those magazine.

Sorry, that is not good enough. What a random person says are of no scientific value.

You cannot really know that.

 

How is that? Please explain that. (I mean that sincerely)

nin, you used to be very into vinyl, always talking about LPs (particularly vinyl) - what changed?