Reviewing the Reviewers

Sean, I do not have any old IARs. I have read from them in the past. But, it has been a LONG time. And I was also reading with different eyes back then. I used to read for different things back then. I take your word on his personality. Was he at least informative, on top of the bluster? I cannot recall any negative reactions to him that I had. From the Wonder products I used, I have nothing but the highest praise. I later found better, but they got the ball rolling for me.

I too lament the changes in the audio press. Used to look forward to the reviews as much for what they said about the immediate subject as the comments on products it was compared to. Martin Colloms, Anthony Cordesman, Corey Greenberg, Tom Norton and Robert Greene always gave meaningful insights into related issues and the high-end in general. This is no longer the case, as stated by Mr. Salvatore. Can you remember when the C.E.S. report was nearly the full issue and judgements were made about the products IN the rooms? Now all you read is a capsule describing the look and price with inevitable caveat about hotel room sound. Many of the displays are even static! Money corrupts and big money corrupts absolutely. As far as the equipment recommendations on the critique site, I have no frame of reference, save one. The Parasound 1000 is listed as a sort of "best buy". Having owned one I can state that it's virtues lie mainly in rolling off the treble which makes it sound more analog-like but also less truthful. I think Mr. Salvatore has a long road to travel before he comes to grips, as many of us have, with the abandonment of the analog RIAA curve and the greater frequency extremes of digital.It could be argued that much (most,all?) of the amplification equipment designed today is voiced with CD's and would necesarily sound less truthful with vinyl records. I will leave that for someone more knowledgeable.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. I figured all this out for myself a few years ago, but to have it confirmed is nice. Fremer's letter is, without a doubt, very informative.

I finally checked out that website. I have to agree with a LOT of what he has to say. I have said most of those things before and posted public statements supporting the same position on AA several times. I find a LOT of similarities to what he's doing there to what Moncrieff did with IAR. The difference is that Moncrieff actually gave measurements along with his sonic observations and personal opinions of the specific gear whereas Mr. Salvatore is mostly "exposing / confronting" the audio press itself instead of the actual gear. While he does offer his personal take on some equipment, it is rather limited in scope considering the amount of space that the entire website takes up. To answer Trelja's question about IAR, it was the MOST informative magazine that i have ever seen. It might not have had glossy graphs and test specs, but it did give REAL information such as the frequency response of cables, various loading characteristics and the effects on individual cartridges ( complete with FR graphs and noise measurements), etc. instead of just "subjective blathering". One other thing that Moncrieff did was to literally SLAUGHTER products that were "highly reviewed" by others that did not measure up for ANY reason ( price, construction, sonics, marketing hype, etc..). He had no fear of either the manufacturer or the other reviewers. The only thing that comes to mind that i did "dislike" about IAR was that it became a "plug" for both "Wonder" products and Audio Research gear. While I have very limited experience with ARC products myself, I have seen TONS of glowing praise about them. Even with all of that, it did seem like there was favoritism taking place there. Since Peter did not have advertisements in IAR, one could only wonder what was going on behind the scenes. Nonetheless, i long for the day when he or someone else picks up the gauntlet and begins to publish something of that nature on a regular basis. It might not do very well in terms of circulation or popularity with manufacturers, but those interested in "truthful" audio news and reviews will eat it up. Sean
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I am surpised by the lack of response to this thread. Where is the anger over much of our hobby being controlled by an absolute bunch of thieving robber barons? Salvatore's site, while limited, is a fresh and revealing breath of air. It is most unlike the typical audio publication, in that there is a no BS tone. I would love to be able to subscribe to a publication such as IAR. As it is now, I only buy Stereophile. While I have NO plans to cancel(or not renew when the time comes) my subscription, I would love another magazine to come to my home. As it stands, we are more than poorly served. Where have our favorite writers gone? Dick Olsher, Robert Harley, Jack English, Peter Moncrieff, etc. Into oblivion. Replaced by the feeble likes of Jonathan Scull, Michael Fremer, Kalman Rubinson, Chip Stern, Brian Damkroger, et al. I even long for the days of Wes Phillips, who consistently characterized himself as an amateur. Sadly, there is not much else to choose from. The Absolute Sound is as much hit as miss(keeps me from picking up a subscription). Stereo Review was never anything serious, and has sold out even more. It, along with The Audio Critic are not the type of publication that appeals to us on this site. The mostly English European magazines leave me unfulfilled. Audio has bit the dust, taking my favorite audio related issue(annual equipment guide away). The Golden Days of Audio publications these are not...