Are audio reviewers biased or incredibly biased?

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veindoc

veindoc

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Heard a tidbit that intrigued me today when a bonafide quest on the Howard Stern show admitted to being a true Audiophile and audio writer/reviewer. He unabashedly admitted he had a $150,000 Continuum Turntable. Howard quickly asked did you pay that and he said as he is "in the business" as a reviewer he did not pay that price. Quickly Howard quipped 75 k but less than a minute later he admitted it was more like 50k. My point of this discussion is that this type of relationship oozes of profound pressure to write a very favorably biased review. I think all of us know reviews should be taken with a kilogram of
Salt but a 2/3rd price reduction on equipment is reprehensible and violates all integrity of the magazine. I know my ears , AS members and not pro reviewers will serve me better in the future. BTW it was Michael Fremer but I am sure the vast majority of his cohorts have similar deals.

Nick
 
Nick, Fremer might be an example that is glaringly obvious of special treatment on one end of the scale, because he knows what he is talking about. I mean to say that for the people in the know with vinyl, they would definitely want him to be using one of their tt's. I do understand your slant with this though & are in agreement, just some more so than others
 
I've been missing Howard the past few weeks; bababooey must have been beside himself w/ Fremer there. I love it when Fred drops the vinyl effect over him. I also agree wholeheartedly with your point. But, forum members' opinions must be tempered for other reasons (excitement, bias, etc...). This is usually easier to see through, however, than a "review."
 
How is a reviewer biased if they discuss the terms of purchase of a component after a review is completed and handed in?
 
My analogy is medical researchers making conclusions not based on objective data but rather on kickbacks from companies biasing there conclusions and recommendations. Also I don't ever recall any reviewer giving disclosurers like all medical lecturers and researchers usually do about what other companies they are on payroll for being a consultant or researcher. It would be very refreshing to have a audio reviewer include such details of a good or bad review that they were given X turntable for free or 70% off after or prior to a review being posted. I am very OK with full disclosure so we all know whether or not reviewer might have been influenced. BTW MDKIM, Howard did a great 4 hour live interview with Billy Joel including covers of his songs by Pink, Idina Menzel, Boys to Men, Melissa Ethridge and Tony Bennett. You can hear it on youtube.
Cheers,
Nick
 
I really don't think that the price that a reviewer can get a product influences (in most cases, there is always an exception) the review.

BUT - Obviously, the price that they can get a certain product influences greatly their decision of what to buy. Which is why, looking at what equipment any reviewer has doesn't mean that he thinks that it is the best. Only the best value for what he pays for it.

A LOT of manufacturers also give dealers/salesman a special deal for their personal stereo. Even below the dealer's cost. Why? Because they know that if the salesman has their product, its a great sales tool to sell more product to the customer. Is this bad? I personally don't think so.
 
I think integrity of reviewer is something I do not want to question. Great free stuff or great discounts should be fully disclosed. No downside to this-readers can draw their own conclusions both with their ears and the reviewers biases.
Nick
 
Well every reviewer is required by PFO to list their equipment and what they own and what they have in house for review.
 
In my personal opinion, I think most reviewers are shills or biased. However, as much as I may not understand Mr Fremer, I also don't think we can lump him into that catagory of being biased in the sense of his profession. Having spoken with someone who actually knows Mr Fremer, I found out that he never asks for special pricing and sometimes insists on paying what everyone else pays. That speaks well to his integrity of not being bias. (Like the rest of us he of course has personal bias, but he properly tries not to let that color his work).
Let us also factor in the possibility that the folks whom he purchased the table from wanted to give him a deal. How many of us would hate to get a deal on a piece of gear?
Personally, I don't think he should have said anything about it (I would not have if it was me), but I also understand that he was in a situation where it was brought up in public and forced on him so he had to do some type of damage control or save in an effort to show that he is being honest by revealing what he paid. Sadly, this could also prove damaging to the dealer or company that sold him the table. I'm also thinking he may have not appreciated it being brought up in public.
 
veindoc said:
My analogy is medical researchers making conclusions not based on objective data but rather on kickbacks from companies biasing there conclusions and recommendations. Also I don't ever recall any reviewer giving disclosurers like all medical lecturers and researchers usually do about what other companies they are on payroll for being a consultant or researcher. It would be very refreshing to have a audio reviewer include such details of a good or bad review that they were given X turntable for free or 70% off after or prior to a review being posted. I am very OK with full disclosure so we all know whether or not reviewer might have been influenced. BTW MDKIM, Howard did a great 4 hour live interview with Billy Joel including covers of his songs by Pink, Idina Menzel, Boys to Men, Melissa Ethridge and Tony Bennett. You can hear it on youtube.
Cheers,
Nick
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The reason you don't see it [consulting] is verboten. That was one of the hard and fast rule when I wrote for TAS. Reviewers were kicked off the magazine even if they bartered for equipment.

As far as prices go, most manufacturers give a 50% discount on equipment. Remember you are paying for what the equipment cost, not the dealer markup. Also bear in mind, that review equipment can not be resold and may have actually been around the block a few times eg. having made the round of reviewers. Further, reviewers aren't getting rich doing reviews; typically I spend three months with a piece of equipment including write up. Personally, I always felt my reference system needs to be up to the task. You don't want someone reviewing a say $5000 or $10,000 cartridge with a $1000 or $2000.
 
Penthouse-D said:
I can't remember reading a bad review. Ever....
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Jim - check out Fremer's review of the Anthem M1's and Mark Levinson No.53's. He single handily killed those two products. Both, by the way, are exceptionally good. The 53's can go toe-to-toe with Soulution and Constellation. The M1's are insanely good at their price point and are loved by the HT guys.
 
I can't remember reading a bad review. Ever....
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You need to know how to read between the lines. Of course, you also need to read the major publications every month. They are courteous enough to not state "It sucks", but the lack of praise basically means the same thing.

Bryston 7B SST<SUP>2</SUP> monoblock power amplifier | Stereophile.com

Whether bad reviews shows bias in the opposite direction is fodder for the conspiracy theorists.
 
I remember reading a bad review for the ARC DAC8.

Most reviews are positive for the most part. Sometimes there are problems with pieces of gear that needs to be addressed by the manufacturer but in the end the review is still decent. When you look at how much some of this gear costs that is reviewed you realize that for the money said product better sound good. Hell everything can sound good in and of itself. It's when you start comparing gear that the differences appear. But just because something is different doesn't mean it's better or worse. It all depends on what your own preferences are. Many times, reviews are best when you read in-between the lines.
 
Mike said:
Jim - check out Fremer's review of the Anthem M1's and Mark Levinson No.53's. He single handily killed those two products. Both, by the way, are exceptionally good. The 53's can go toe-to-toe with Soulution and Constellation. The M1's are insanely good at their price point and are loved by the HT guys.
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That's actually another thing that gives a reviewer an air of integrity, the willingness to call a spade a spade. If the product is not up to snuff to the claims, then it's good that a reviewer points it out as long as it's factual and not based on personal bias.
As to the example you reference, I would not know the first thing about the equipment mentioned and am not defending any slip up, error or sin. So I'm not using it as a point of reference in particular. I'm speaking in general terms.
It partly why I don't read or trust professional reviews for the most part of any piece, because so many times they seem so one-sided or lopsided towards trying to sell the product rather than highlighting both the good and not so good. In my opinion it's good to know both the pros and the cons as it allows for one to make a better decision and make up their own mind.
 
What you have to remember, is that there are real people behind these products. Trust me, there is lots I would like to say, but like others, I "massage" the wording a bit because I don't want to hurt anyones feelings. If people are serious about something, they can PM me. I was pretty hard on the Polymer guy for example. BELIEVE ME, there was a lot more I wanted to say.....my tongue is a little raw from all the biting. :)

But at the end of the day, these are all just opinions and opinions are like....well, you know.

Sure...do your research, but listen for yourself, and ultimately, decide for yourself. I am constantly amazed at how many people would prefer to spend money, then time.
 
I don't know, but if he forked US$ 50k for the thing, he must've liked it, no? So, of course a positive review would come out of it. It makes zero sense to pay US$ 50k for a product, then find all sorts of faults with it in the review. And if you kept reading his reviews, you'd see that he actually prefers other tonearms (like the Kuzma 4Point) over the one that he actually bought with the turntable...
Given that he could've gotten any other turntable with a similar discount, the fact he chose to pay for that is more positive than negative, in my view.
The long term loans are way more perverse than a reviewer paying for his own reference gear...


alexandre
 
Aren't sales numbers the ultimate reviewer?

I've always said, ignore the reviews and just watch what people BUY. When it comes time to put down all their hard earned cash, what are people BUYING? I read lots of brouhaha about Rockport for example....but I sure don't see lots of folks BUYING them. Just saying....
 
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