Simple snake oil detection


Hi there were soooo many posts asking af any given device, toy, tweak or component is snake oil.
I’m not considered to be disbeliever or engineering guru at all. All I know and use is elementary math.

If an amp worth more than new Bmw, I can kinda take that with grain of salt, but if a wire is worth more than stainway grand, I am DEFINITELY sure snake oil is there without even questioning if this particular product makes sense 

So now any audio device can be plugged into the detection formula above to truthfully define snake oil. All you need to know is product name, description and asking price.

czarivey

Being newish to HiFi I research every claim that I am interested in. The latest was about the quantum diffusor. The claim on this one is one of the funniest examples of "snake oil" you will find. A knowledgeable and trustworthy gent explained to me that the Schumann resonance is simply the natural resonance frequency of electromagnetic waves which circle the earth-- if you compute the wavelength vs path length, you come up with around 8Hz which is what this box claimed to emit electromagnetic waves to nullify acoustic feedback! This magic box, of not inconsiderable expense, couldn't acoustically nullify itself if it tried.

So there are valid examples of "snake oil" that the inexperienced could be lured in to purchasing, but having said that, look up the subject here and there will be pages of posts howling one way or another.

Find someone you can trust and ask.

amg56
Being newish to HiFi I research every claim that I am interested in. The latest was about the quantum diffusor. The claim on this one is one of the funniest examples of "snake oil" you will find. A knowledgeable and trustworthy gent explained to me that the Schumann resonance is simply the natural resonance frequency of electromagnetic waves which circle the earth-- if you compute the wavelength vs path length, you come up with around 8Hz which is what this box claimed to emit electromagnetic waves to nullify acoustic feedback! This magic box, of not inconsiderable expense, couldn’t acoustically nullify itself if it tried.

Actually, no such claim is made for the box. They do, however, claim the device improves video as well as audio. And the last time I looked video is not an acoustic medium. Have you considered checking the credentials of that knowledgeable and trustworthy gent? Oh, dear, this is all so confusing!
I used to be the same as OP before I built better audio systems. :) 

I will explain the problem. Audiophilia is not simple arithmetic (elementary math), but rather Boolean Algebra. 

I'm glad I could clarify that for everyone.  :) 
Czarivey, Yogiboy's snake oil wouldn't set off your SOD. Nor does a product need to cost as much as a BMW; do you recall the Tice electric clock?