2. misc-audio
  3. 139318-20253

Personal vs. Market Values

Take truffle oil. Or truffles. The mushrooms, not the confection.
Honestly I can’t taste it. I’ve ordered all sorts of dishes with "truffle oil" which commanded a premium and if there is any difference at all in the taste I could not tell you even after being told about it.

The point of this is that truffle oil holds no personal value to me. I’m not trading in it or running a restaurant or buying it in bulk. If I did that I’d feel and be willing to spend quite differently than I do now.

The point to this and how this matters in audio is that you should be true to your own ears. Use friends, reviews (cough) and other sources as guides. You may also evaluate a brand based on re-sale value. That’s reasonable as the resale could have a material impact on you in the future.

But if you can’t hear a difference or prefer a speaker/cable/amp no one else does then serve only yourself and your loved ones. Don’t be fooled into thinking that the market value of a particular product has value for you or that it is a display of relative merit. It may not. Our hobby is filled with charlatans selling invisible clothes.

Those who say they can't taste the truffle oil or see invisible clothes spend less and are far happier I think.

Happy listening,

E
erik_squires

Showing 1 response by br3098

br3098
969 posts
 
Truffle oil makes a great contact enhancer, or so Im told.
Mmm, doubt it.  Truffles are fungi and do not contain oil.  Truffle oil is made from soaking chopped up truffle bits (the tough, not edible parts) which extracts the volatile elements containing truffle flavor and aroma (mostly the latter).

The conductivity of truffle oil would depend on what type of oil was used for a base.  Considering that most oils and NOT good conductors and plant and nut oils have especially low conductivity, I would guess that truffle oil would not make a good contact enhancer.  But I have not tried it so this is just an uneducated guess.

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