Press as the Public Relations Arm of Industry
There are a lot of pieces and parts of the show report – kind of sprinkled in amongst almost 2000 photos – and even I forget where I said what.
But one of the themes this year was influenced by a ‘Cranky Geeks’ episode (online or special TiVo download) that crystallized, for me, the problem with most reviews in our industry. Although Cranky Geeks was talking about the software industry – it applied equally well to ours [and the Washington Press Core as well, but let’s not go there].
That is that the press is serving as the Public Relations arm of the Industry. The corporations. They take press releases [well, in high-end audio, we don’t need no stinking press releases – so our reviewers have to do more work], massage it, and spit it back out as a review.
Thinking about this off and on during the last few weeks as I do the kind of laborious task of juggling CES photos, I think that there are telltale signs of reviews that are really just PR – that really just server as pages for the industry to link to, to serve as an incentive for the industry to donate free equipment to get more of, a safe place to advertise on.
And those signs are that it reads like PR.
PR, like your prototypical salesperson, never, ever, ever say anything bad about what they are selling. Nothing that can even be *slightly* construed as negative about the piece of equipment.
Now reviewers are famous for putting in clues that seem like they maybe might be a hint at what they really think about the component.
But, think about it. All components have a sound and have issues. .
So most reviews are like describing a car crash by saying over and over again how great the car was – and about what songs were playing in the car at the time of the crash.
Anyway, I grew up respecting the press as being honorable, reporting what was really happening, very often DIFFERENT from what the official spin was about the events. Now it is all in support of making more money. Not making waves.
And the only reviewer who I have any confidence in that they actually write real reviews is Mike Fremer.
Sure, he ignores his prejudices, and ignores how badly his poor sad room affects the sound, and ignores the fact that much of his system equipment is flawed and affects what his results are going to be. So he ain’t perfect [and he has some anger management issues – or at least, he should learn to count to ten before posting. I know. I know. Many people want me to count to a billion before posting]. But I think he is the best we got. [Which is saying a lot about the state of the press industry here, huh?]. And I think he has been getting better.
HP hasn’t written a real review for years and years. Art Dudly, Srajan are runners up – and they may be just as good as Mike, but I just don’t read enough of their reviews, especially of equipment that I am familiar with that have easily agreed-upon issues.
As far as the other reviewers go, as far as I have time to read their copy – uh, well, there is really no reason for me to go farther.
I haven’t met Mr. Fremer, nor Art Dudley and have no specific desire to do so [I emailed once or twice with Fremer about 6 years ago]. I have met Srajan at shows when he used to go to shows here in the U.S. [and he is the only member of the press that acknowledges we exist – all the others try hard to ignore us because we encroach on their (abandoned, as this post testifies) domain] but he doesn’t review stuff I am familiar with – and I instead mostly end up reading his editorials.
Anyway, to wrap this up – it is not like reviewers, in general, are any more a**holes than the rest of us – in fact, of the few I see at shows, most of them are just like the rest of us. It is just that I see the responsibilities of being a reporter differently than they do.
Hi Mike!! When you have time,read the article below…you may see things differently. I know I do…
Guy;-)
http://www.high-endaudio.com/RR-FREMER.html
Hi Guy,
Yeah, I read that several years ago, and there is a another angry thread on Romy’s site too. That is why of the ‘count to 10’ suggestion.
I guess I am coming from what people produce, as part of their professional persona, as opposed to the, uh, quirks of their personality.
As for Salvatore, he is one of the stars of the ‘Heckler Class‘ that has risen up with the popularity of the net. He reviews some LPs, which we link to, but the rest is typical Heckler: pumping oneself up all the time, using ‘credentials’ that are derivative instead of self-evident, always attacking instead of trying to help the industry ‘Keep Moving Forward’ [I am watching Meet the Robinsons :-)], deriving their popularity from their attacks, and using creaky logic and near-zero experiential data for the basis of their attack.
AVSForum is a prime example of this.
I think I’ve met Salvatore, a few years ago at CES, and he was a nice person – a little shy in fact.
Anyway, I am no ‘fan’ of Mike Fremer. I just think that he is writing the best reviews of major equipment that we have going right now.
Sometime I’ll have to write about the ‘Honesty Deficit’ and ‘Competency Deficit’ in this country, and in this profession, circa 2008.
Thanks, it is good to see you posting again 🙂
Mike.
Hi Mike!! there’s always two sides to a coin so whatever happened between those two I can’t take side but I was very surprised to see a glimpse of what’s happening in the small world of audio that we the readers don’t get to read in printed mags…The thing I agree the most is Salvatore’s description of how reviews work , I admire you for telling it like it is in your show reports..although you take some heat from manufacturers occasionally(YG Acoustics…)
take a look at THE SECRET RULES OF ‘AUDIO REVIEWING’
a real eye opener for the novice
Guy;-)
link: http://www.high-endaudio.com/RR-FREMER.html#Rul
Dude:
It’s not a problem that we’ve never met but it is a problem that you charge I have a “poor sad” room, when Dr. Floyd Toole has measured it declared it quite good, when Richard Vandersteen has set up the Quattros in it and declared it one of the easiest and fastest installs he’s done (with the powered subwoofer/bass EQ system), etc. My room is not large (nor is it small) but it is quite good. It is appropriately treated (not overdamped) and quite good-sounding. You are welcome to visit my “poor sad” room and hear it for yourself. In fact, if you look at the in-room measurements of speakers like the Audio Physic Scorpio, the Focal 1037Be and even the Wilson MAXX2s which I OWN, you will see very good response. Otherwise the advice to count to 10 is excellent. I often regret not taking it.
As an aside to “Guy,” if you believe Mr. Salvatore’s “Secret Rules of ‘Audio Reviewing’ you are gullible and worse. None of what Mr. Salvatore writes bears any relation to the truth about audio reviewing. It’s something he knows very little about. He was a retailer who has allowed his failure in that field to embitter and poison his thought processes. So you as a person who knows almost about the innards of reviewing choose to believe the word of someone who knows little more than you do? And the reason you choose to believe him is? (Understand Salvatore and I have buried the hatchet, though I’m sure all of the vile, unfounded speculation he spewed about me remains on his site).
Guy: I have no “secrets.” I am very outfront about what I do. I don’t’ give a damn who advertises in Stereophile and it has nothing to do with what I write or what I review. And that’s a fact. When I read about nefarious “deals” and how advertising colors what’s published I have to laugh. We put Continuum on the cover as product of the year. They haven’t spent a cent in Stereophile. Ditto VPI. I could go on. But in the twenty years I have done this, at TAS and Stereophile, I have NEVER been told what to review, or what to write, nor has a word been “censored.” I have had meals paid for me and been given bottles of wine. I pay my own way to audio shows overseas. Occasionally manufacturers invite me to their factories while I am there and they pay for my flights to their facilities and pay for the hotel rooms too. They even feed me. If you think I would sell myself for a meal, well then you probably don’t trust your mother either. The gear in my system was purchased by me. I don’t take “long term manufacturer’s loans. I get an industry accommodation price on what I buy. If that bothers you, I can’t help you. Still manufacturers complain about me owning stuff because they say I’m “invested” in it and can’t be objective about their gear. So there’s no winning with some people–manufacturers or readers–them’s the breaks. Fortunately, most people who live in the real world, understand all of this and get from the reviews what’s worth getting, without indulging in childish, conspiratorial fantasies. I don’t claim to be a guru. I am like any hobbiest, a guy who sits in his GOOD room and listens. I then describe what I hear, hopefully honestly, accurately and responsibly, and in a way that entertains. I am not a publicist for any manufacturer and I abhor reviews that read like publicity blurbs. But please, Guy, if you believe Salvatore’s sinister charges, not backed up with a whit of evidence, real or even circumstantial, my advice to you is: grow up!
Hey Mike,
Well, I’m happy that you are happy with your room. I’ve never been in nor heard of a room that I’d be happy with [and feel that even the concept of a ‘good room’ is way under-specified]. Obviously I haven’t been to yours [and thanks for the invite! I am kind of a homebody, but if we ever stray outside the Boulder – Vegas corridor…] and was only reporting on what people who have been there have said [so I am also guilty of gullibility, at least to some extent] .
Hey Guy,
Well, I don’t think you are necessarily any more gullible than anyone else [and please, don’t grow up. Grown up people are just plain boring :-)].
As far as Salvatore’s list goes, this is an example of what I mean by ‘Heckler’. At this point in time, our society is drowning in hecklers: at least one TV News network, talk radio, forums…
It is always someone saying ALL people of this [race, ethnicity, nationality, group, sex, celebrity, etc.] are [fill in the blank with any accusation].
Yes, SOME reviewers do some of the things on the list. Maybe some do them all. But some reviewers do none of them.
An example is how people on slashdot, digg, and even avsforum heckle audiophiles. There, 1000s of people ridicule audiophiles for being idiots, paying a lot of money for snake oil, etc. etc. Yeah, a few of us might be gullible – but the vast majority do indeed buy things based on differences we hear in cables, CD players, etc. So these attacks are unfair and unfounded, because they attack the many for the acts – or the supposed acts – of a few.
A few years ago these kinds of people attacked the French – something I think about them thinking Iraq was a stupid war. Next year it will be someone else. It really doesn’t matter who – all that matters is the attack.
Speculating a little bit, I think we the Public are overwhelmed by all this, not used to it after the relatively sane Watergate / post-Watergate [if I may be U.S. centric here] style of journalism. But eventually, the public will develop anti-bodies – and be able to tell this kind of ‘reporting’ for what it is – designed to trigger an anger response, or feeling of superiority, and make us feel that the reporter is on our side – filling us in on what those nasty THEMs are up to.
Sorry to go on. I was just at AVSForum a few days ago – seeing if anyone had posted a link to our report yet – and the attacks and personal venom against audiophiles there is awful. It always makes me wonder why those people do this – and why they are allowed to take over like that, and especially when the forum is supposed to be for audiophiles.
OK, hopefully we can all move on to more fun topics.
Thanks,
Mike.
Hi Mr Fremer!! I didn’t want to upset you,as I said earlier,I don’t take side in whatever happened between Salvatore and you, I don’t have anything against you, I see a lot of suffering may I suggest you read Eckart Tolle ‘the power of now’ you will come to realise that the ego is the source of all suffering. Happiness is easier than you think!!
I send you unconditioned love and hope to see you at the Montreal FSI.
Regard
Guy La Rue
Montreal, Canada.
Well saying you don’t like your room either is a cop-out.
You called my room a “poor sad” room when demonstrably it is anything but. When you write such a thing without adding that it comes to you second hand, you act irresponsibly because you leave whoever reads this site with a false impression. Now, had you visited and came to that conclusion, fine. But of the people who do come here, I am fairly certain I know the ones who are happy to say my room is “poor and sad.” Guess who they might be?
Your comment about “listening around” MAXX2s in the LAMM room is also telling. It tells me you are an amateur with an axe to grind. Of course one has to “listen around” MAXX2s. One has to “listen around” every loudspeaker, including Karmas, since they are all fundamentally flawed and as anyone who has attended a hifi show knows, all sound different, though some designs are more fundamentally sound and thus the end result is more accurate, especially in terms of frequency response.
Your comments about the “commoditization” of the Continuum turntable were yet another pointless and snide episode. You seem to put the cart before the horse, allowing the conclusion you wish to make, to take precedent over rational thought processes. But whatever…
>> Well saying you don’t like your room either is a cop-out.
Just being honest about the facts. I don’t identify so heavily with my rooms, nor the equipment in them, that I have here at this time in my life that I feel insulted when people have different opinions about them than I do. Sure, I feel affection for my favorite pieces of equipment – some of which I have never owned.
>> You called my room a “poor sad” room when demonstrably it is anything but.
Again, I am glad you like it and that it is appropriately sized for everything from monitors to horns and that ambient noise is at or below a couple of dB, in summer with the air conditioning and winter with the furnace blasting, that trucks and airplanes stay far enough away to not be heard, that the power never has DC on the line and is always a purrfect 120 volt sign wave, that the reflections in the room not only have a perfectly flat frequency response but that their magnitude is perfectly suited to the ears of each listener, so those that like it ‘live’ sounding get their cake and those that like a more laid back dynamic get theirs too.
>> When you write such a thing without adding that it comes to you second hand, you act irresponsibly because you leave whoever reads this site with a false impression. Now, had you visited and came to that conclusion, fine. But of the people who do come here, I am fairly certain I know the ones who are happy to say my room is “poor and sad.” Guess who they might be?
Since I have never heard of anyone who praised your room, I would say that ‘they’ are everybody. I think people are under some amount of INTENSE pressure to say something nice Mike when you are about to review their equipment – but maybe they are being straight up.
The real point, it seems to me, is that reviewers should have either, preferably, several rooms with known imperfections, much like the ones that 99% of their readers have, or one that is perfect [not that such exists in reality] – all well documented and open for people to see and judge for themselves. You have a reputation for having a ‘poor, sad’ room. There are several ways to dispel this. Posting angry comments is probably not one of them.
>> Your comment about “listening around” MAXX2s in the LAMM room is also telling. It tells me you are an amateur with an axe to grind.
You toss around the word ‘amateur’ like is an insult. One, no we don’t get paid, and two, the low quality of professionals has made ‘professional reviewer’ a pejorative in common parlance. When you are not spending your time attacking people for having different opinions about your current equipment, and apparently your current room setup, you are supposed to be one of the better ones.
‘Axe to grind’? The only axe I have are my ears. It is not that the MAXX II grind on my ears so much as the bass sounds detached and out of sync with the midrange, both of which are tipped up somewhat so that they impress buyers in the showrooms. We actually like Wilson speakers, as we have stated many time, they just need a whole lot [significantly more than average] of care and attention.
But that wasn’t the point. The point was that the amps almost cost 3 times as much as the speakers, and are true statement products, and, yes, not only does one have to listen around ANY speaker when trying to listen to amps, but especially so when the speakers only cost about a third as much as the amps [and would be even less if they didn’t have that world class fit-and-finish] and whose purpose in life is to only be Impressive.
>> Of course one has to “listen around” MAXX2s. One has to “listen around” every loudspeaker, including Karmas, since they are all fundamentally flawed and as anyone who has attended a hifi show knows, all sound different, though some designs are more fundamentally sound and thus the end result is more accurate, especially in terms of frequency response.
Yes. So we agree. Though just because frequency response is easily measured does not make it the most important attribute to being a ‘good speaker’.
>> Your comments about the “commoditization” of the Continuum turntable were yet another pointless and snide episode. You seem to put the cart before the horse, allowing the conclusion you wish to make, to take precedent over rational thought processes. But whatever…
I have no idea why this is pointless and ‘snide’. Commoditization has to do with stiff competition / over-crowded market bringing down profit margins on product that has no other differentiator besides price. Although I think the Continuum has had run-of-the-mill sound in the many systems I have heard it in, its differentiator could have remained its price, design story, the fact that you own it, and its MSYTIQUE. But it is the company itself that is commoditizing its product [I am sure you have heard how – we try not to publicize stupid business practices of the industry here… where would we start?]. Hey, we’ve all been owners of products of companies with really, really bad business sense, believe you me.
Identification with one’s equipment and room so heavily seems silly. People on the forums do it all the time, when they themselves diss the very same things, over the months and years, as they ‘upgrade’ their equipment and add this then that room treatment.
Me? I am more interested in pictures of your room. Diagrams. What room treatments you liked and didn’t. What measurements were taken. Personal preference for what kind of treble roll off.
HOW does your Continuum setup sound different that the many we hear at shows. Warmer? Cooler? More detailed? More dynamic? What cartridges have you tried. Are you using their rack? Have you attached that accelerometer of yours to it? How are the ones at shows incorrectly setup? How can they make them sound better?
Don’t really expect you to go into all these details. But this what we ‘amateurs’ do and we love it.