Do you trust published gear reviews?

Some yes, some no.... payola exists, and many reviewers have an incentive for a good review.  Even those I believe to be legit I only view as someone’s opinion. No more.  

I take all reviews with a grain of salt.  They all boil down to someone's opinion of a piece of gear when used in their system.  

When I see a negative review, I try to look at the system used to evaluate it. 

Actually, I do enjoy them, and if I am looking for the type of item they are writing about, I pay attention. I allow them a great margin as they look for analogies and metaphors to describe what they are hearing. Some folks are naturally good at it, and others less so. But like movie or art reviews, it is almost more important that I understand the taste of the reviewer over time, rather than investing belief in someone just because they get paid to write it. I am less paranoid about who compromised by corruption. I'm sure it has happened somewhere, by someone(s), but only because we are human, and corruption is part and parcel of human nature. 

For the most part, I just take them at their word - they liked this or that, for this or that reason. It might make me curious. It might not.

I like reviews that tell me how listening to the item under consideration makes them feel - some reviewers are great at this. I dislike reviews that are too heavily invested in measurements, and don't talk about whether the piece gives them goosebumps, or made them start clapping, or bored them. To me, that is useful - once I get to know the writer.

David

"Trust" is an interesting word.  I believe most reviewers believe what they write but all of them have their own personal bias on what sounds good in their systems based on their sonic preferences and partnering equipment.  The degree to which I might rely on or agree with an individual reviewer's opinions depends on my familiarity with their preferences based on reading their previous reviews, and on the partnering equipment/systems used for the review.   As a result, I rely on individual reviews to varying degrees and typically read between the lines considering the bias of the reviewer. 

Blind trust, no. Not all reviewers are cut from the same cloth.

Component sonic comparisons give me an idea of value. Multiple voices singing the same song - chances are that I’ll have the same result- nothing is guaranteed. A reviewer surprised I take notice, as well as the word “bargain”.