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Why do Audiophiles feel the need...

Why do so many audiophiles feel the need to post opinions on gear they've never owned or had such limited experience with that their opinion is valueless to the OP? Not only here, but on other audio forums, at least 50% of the posts (and I think I'm being generous) start with: I've never heard the XYZ but...

When I was participating in an auto detailing forum, teaching myself the finer points of achieving an exquisite auto finish, if someone would ask about brand X polish, I would never see a post stating: "I've never used it, but..."

My opinion is that many people spend so much time dreaming about this stuff that they've convinced themselves they know what it actually sounds like. I know it's only a hobby, but I think a poster who asks about a specific piece of gear is better served by opinions of those with experience with that gear. Maybe it's just me. Sorry if I offended anyone.
chayro
bob_bundus
1,834 posts
 
Marc no; it's not just you. And this phenomenon (opining in ignorance) is hardly limited to the fundamental hardware per se. Some examples...

"I have never experimented with upgrade AC cords, interconnects, speaker cables, line conditioning, dedicated AC circuits, fuses, NOS tubes, but undoubtedly they all sound the same".

"I never sampled various racks, shelving, cones, footers, contact cleaners, record washes, static neutralizers, room conditioning, but undoubtedly they all sound the same".

"I have never tried x,y,z, because how could that possibly make any difference at all? It can't because I said so".

And I always like to sum it all up with my standard rebuttal: "All Doubting Thomas's sound the same".
mrtennis
3,295 posts
 
look at this issue another way.

i would say it is not sufficient to own a component and provide an opinion.

here is my dilemma:

suppose one configures a stereo system. after , say, one year, can one describe the sound of the amplifier ?

one listens to the stereo system which contains the amplifier.

how does one ascertain the contribution of the amp to the sound of the stereo system ?

at best, if one introduces another amplifier, one can compare the difference in the sound of the stereo system when listening through each amp. such an explanation does not tell you definitively the sound of the original amp.

what i am saying is that one can compare the sound of two components in the context of a stereo system, without knowing what a particular component sounds like.
moonguy
148 posts
 
Great topic. My beleif is that if you haven't used it , you don't have an opinion.I get a chuckle out of people voicing opinions on equipment and acessories that they have never heard, let alone used in their systems, what a joke!!
ajackson1
156 posts
 
This discussion or any other is not going to stop folks from responding to topics they know nothing about. If you have an issue with it, then don't post a topic.
stevecham
3,340 posts
 
We're all largely advocates and my sense is that we would benefit by increasing our inquiry to advocacy ratio. Anyone else share this sentiment?
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