Is ASR for real, or is it only for those sub $1k or even sub $2K?


I did some browsing on the forum and it seems like most don't own very expensive gears.  Most of them own mostly sub 1K or 2K gears.  

I recently ask about feedback on the Polk R700 but after about a month with no responds.  I did a search "ASR Polk R700", with all but one poster which actually owned a pair.  Most of them would point you to some measurement and some theoretical discussion but non actually own a pair.

I also looked at a few posts on budget speakers such as the Kef Q7 or Polk R600, but I didn't see any actual owners responding.  

I don't mean to knock on them but ASR seems like a lot of hype but very little substance.

andy2

I don't have a problem with Amir or with ASR in general. They perform tests on equipment. Equipment designers do the same thing. I believe, however, that personal listening tests are an important part of any buying decision. 

ASR really shouldn’t be using the word "Science" in their name. They are being grandiose and over claiming here.

There’s a lot more to science than just measurement. Also, their dogmatic attitude doesn’t sit well with its enquiring nature.

@dynacohum 

While I agree with your assertion of an anti science bias in society at present, I don’t agree with your assertions on the whole. Despite the data posted on the site, many of the participants behave in a very cultish manner. From a psychological perspective, it appears to be a self enclosed bubble wherein members display an imagined sense of smug superiority based upon a "hive mind" conviction that anyone who accords the least credence to subjective considerations is a fool or worse.  One need not spend much time perusing threads to become aware of the pervasiveness of this mindset on that site. Science is based upon openness to possibilities and the denizens of that closed-loop display quite the opposite. This sort of dynamic is observed in many types of groups -- it’s not limited to audio. My sense is that many on the A'gon forum value measurements for that portion of the audio experience they address; we simply don’t find they tell the whole story. This does not mean we are anti-science. 

@stuartk 

It’s a good wheeze by ASC to pretend that science is on their side, so anyone not in agreement with them automatically becomes anti science.

Everything I have seen of them suggests that they are the antithesis of scientific.

Quantitative data is not any more virtuous than qualitative.   

+1

I was trained and worked as a scientist for a decade. I agree that measuring some stuff and publishing it as if it were science is not science. Science is about pursuing truth... and ASR completely fails at seeking and publishing truth.