Whether you agree or not with the veracity of Fremers reviews, he has had an immense impact on the resurgence of vinyl after the digital onslaught in the late 80's, particularly amongst the baby boomers - we should be thankful.
I think AP & Sterophile will miss Fremer much more than they think, particularly since Art Dudley's passing as well.
I only ever read Fremer and Dudley, and of course the record reviews.
The equipment reviews these days are pretty much advertorials - like the car mags where everything is great - until the new model comes out - thats when they reveal the obvious flaws in the previous model.