Turntables and Trusting Online Reviews

All,

I’m getting ready to upgrade my turntable to something in the $2500 price range including things like the VPI Prime Scout.

So naturally I find myself hunting for reviews on the various turntables in that range and came across one by Paul Rigby. Now all the media captured in the review includes a Ortofon 2M Red which even I’d consider low for this level of turntable but it was the only cart that he didn’t comment on.

Asking him in the comments about that cart (curious to see how much difference between something that low level and the higher ones that he did demo) he admitted that the media wasn’t even his, that he found the pictures and used them for his review.

So now I find myself asking the question, if you aren’t producing your own media, are you even reviewing the equipment?

Is this common place? Are there reviewers who are more trustworthy than others?

Or it really does come down to audition with your own ears because not only can you not know what another prefers, they may or may not be honest in their own right?

Help me out here?