Just wondered if anyone in the states ever checked out some of the UK forums? Some very useful stuff (about 10%)hidden away between juvenille,idiotic and ? shall we say somewhat 'narrow minded' thinking. "Never in the field of human conflict, has so much s--t been spoken by so few " I don't generally find them very pleasant places to visit. it seems to me that Audiogon somehow manages to remain a civilised and predominantly friendly Oasis. Is this because 'you guys' are more reserved, more polite,more confident? who knows. We should be offering cups of tea whilst you chaps should be all gung ho - seems to me there has been a role reversal along the line - a visit to Pinkfish can be like a stroll in a/the Ghetto(under privildged neighbourhood?) (Black , white or otherwise), loose your wits for a minute - and you get mugged!
Si
Disclaimer - this is only my opinion, I will retract it if it in any way offends anyone or more to the point I don't want nasty comments, god forbid I should have an opinion. It's just struck me, would you call a hifi forum Pinkfishmedia - something stinks there.
I like both Pinkfishmedia and Audiogon, but they are of a very different character. I most certainly wouldn't characterize pinkfish as juvenile, but it's certainly less inhibited, and if you express strong opinions you need to make sure you have thick skin.
Some of the off-topic threads on pinkfish dealing with racism, immigration, terrorism, and religion have presented extremely thought provoking and intelligently thought out views. I don't agree with many of the views, and sometimes fights break out between members, but it is incredibly refreshing to see people able to debate these things in a relatively uncensored forum in a world where "political correctness" is often used to stifle the necessary exchange of ideas.
As a parting thought, why did you find it necessary to criticize pink fish publicly ? Why not simply remove it from your bookmarks ? There are plenty of web sites that I am not interested in, but I don't make a point of telling others about them. Instead I refer people to websites I enjoy.
I think that Audiogon is more "polite," probably due to the quality of those that trade and post here. I also enjoy reading off-topic and non-audio posts, but many of such posts, including some my own, have been censored or removed from this site.
Thanks for the heads up, Simon. I just registered and look forward to wandering through Pinkfishmedia, and undoubtedly getting myself blasted at some point. I like Audiogon forums, but I also like options. Whether ultimately better or worse, so long as there is basic decency the fact that the site has a different character is clearly a good thing.
Anny names of said sites you guys can supply?This is intriguing after readding a bit of the press.Remember their ears might not be so different but like most other contries they have on the main much smaller listening rooms thans us (in tha mainthough apt. dwellers.condoi owners are given short shrift).These rooms are made from different materials and this has to effect what they hear.Maybe us Apt renters/condo owners should read euro/asian press because of this difference. Chazzbo
I think UK audio forums are just marketing tools, you can't believe a word of what's written on them. If they're not trying to sell you something, they're trying to pick a fight with you.
"I think UK audio forums are just marketing tools, you can't believe a word of what's written on them. If they're not trying to sell you something, they're trying to pick a fight with you."
Well, having now spent a little time on Pinkfishmedia , I have to strongly disagree. It is a very cool site. Of course since I like U.K. gear to begin with, it is a natural place for me to hang.
"I think UK audio forums are just marketing tools, you can't believe a word of what's written on them. If they're not trying to sell you something, they're trying to pick a fight with you."
That's very odd, since many of the recommendations on pink fish are for equipment that is no longer produced.
Personally I think you're confusing pride of ownership, with marketing. Many people like to suggest things that they own. Nothing wrong with that.
I would say that Audiogon and pinkfish are both excellent places to get unbiased, experience based feedback for prospective demos or purchases. To be honest I place more trust in what I read on these two sites, from posters with an established track record, than I do in any of the magazines, from professional reviewers.
On the marketing point, the flat eart Linn, Naim coda is being slowly eroded. On track records, I could but won't name dozens of people on Audiogon who have actually owned and heard a huge selection of equipment - most of Pinkfish ? well Linn is great, now SME is better.
Some of the advice is laughable and I see and god forbid hear some of the results. I've seen £50 phonostages in 14k systems and people putting £80 cartridges on 5K linns - through good advice/tips from the forum????? It can be helpful but imo most of the time is the blind leading the blind whereas some of the stuff on Gon goes way further than any magazine review and can really be of great help.
Aslo in spite of some ejjitbay mentality creeping in, most people on Gon buy & sell at realistic & fair prices and do not dick people about for weeks on end making ridiculous offers & demands about something in the classified's.
I asked for opinions and stated my views, and hey , the Pinkfish fan slags me for airing my opinion - get my drift? Rgds Simon
But Simon, Linn is great. :) At least it is far more to my liking than almost all other gear I've heard so far in the same price bracket. That is of course my taste, and as they say, there is no accounting for it.
But seriously, I don't think the fact that people at Pinkfish have an affection for Naim and Linn makes the site in some way any less serious. There is a British sound in hi fi, and surprise, surprise, the British have a liking for it!
Hi Newmanoc, since I have, eh, rather a lot of tables,including a few Linns, I would be the first to agree that the Sondek is a classic table. I've just bought a funkfirm/vector kit for my own Linn and can't wait to get it up & running - will it oust my Oracle? I imagine they will sound different but all my tables do and all have their own strengths & weaknesses.
It's not less serious but can be tedious. The d.i.y. section of the forum gets my vote every time.
PFM involves a lot of (mostly) light hearted banter. If you take it too seriously or too personally then I can see it would be easy to get annoyed by it.
Hi Viridian, inadvertant capitalisation I assure you. However my son was stunned to realise that the Beatles had not in fact copied Oasis ! God forbid they find out I'd called them civilized. Sorry Sean, I couldn't resist the light hearted dig. I read the thread on zyx's in unipivots vs. gimbal arms last night and guess I'll just stick more to Gon & AA. Rgds Simon
"I think UK audio forums are just marketing tools, you can't believe a word of what's written on them. If they're not trying to sell you something, they're trying to pick a fight with you."
No don't be polite, tell us what you really think. As a UK resident, I dabble on the Pink Fish site, but it is'nt as useful as the gon. I have asked a number of technical questions on this site and received considered, intelligent advise, which i have followed to some degree, with great success. That has led me into buying some US products, not such a bad thing with the current $ price. Pink Fish does'nt seem to have the same knowledge base, or perhaps the contributors are better at hiding their ignorance. The Audiogon classifieds are a mine of great kit at great prices, for us Europeans, too. All in all, I greatly prefer Audiogon.
For a good idea of why is worthwhile to check out pinkfishmedia.net as well as Audiogon, check the following links. Of course it is not strictly audio, but some wonderful posts.
I should add, if you check out the threads above you will have to do a little slogging to find the gold. As in any online forum it has to be found amidst the grit and the pyrite. But some posts here are absolutely hilarious, and some brilliantly poetic. Writing like this makes you stretch yourself if you plan to respond, which so far, I often haven't. But quality stuff.
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