Stereophile has a preamble to their ratings list which states that they only review and rate items which are generally available to the public, usually meaning that they have a dealership presence, not just factory direct or mail order. they have made some exceptions, but usually state so up front. Their policy is that they dont want to rate something that is vaporware, or unlikely to be found by their readership for evaluation purposes. that leaves out a lot of cottage manufacturers. Also, they only rate what a manufacturer supplies them with. they do not go out an buy these items themselves. So if a manufacturer does want to supply a unit, it doesnt get reviewed. At least they restrict their ratings to that which one of their reviewers has actually listened to, not just what some internet guru has proclaimed the best. I imagine putting together the ratings is quite a monumental task, but as they also point out, its just a starting point. Listening is always necessary to make an informed decision. And as you get into the Class A components, they are all worthy an get the basics right. The differences at that level are minor, whereas the difference between a class D, which is also deemed worthy, to a Class B is more substantial.
The only Class A items I own are my vinyl front end, and thats only because they were once Class A. I think my Sota Cosmos IV is still Class A, but not my Oracle Delphi V.
The big advantage of Stereophile and Absolute Sound is that they are actually able to listen to equipment that most of us dont have the opportunity to listen, much less compare. It just gives one a starting point, to pare down a list to something manageable or to keep up with current thoughts on building components. The only parts I really read are vinyl related, as well as MF and AD's columns. I have little interest in digital.
