Audio Reviewers & The Music They Use In Their Reviews


At 65, I Have been into high end audio since my very early 20’s. I have probably read many hundreds if not over a thousand reviews on audio equipment and I keep coming back to the same question. Why do these audio reviewers all use music I have. Not heard or do not care for? For example, I am reading a review on a new tube integrated, and the music mostly used was either Choral, Chamber, or Classical. I listen to none of that. My choice is 90% Rock and 10% Jazz. So, after reading a review, I have to read way between the lines to see if the piece of equipment might need a second look by me.

I realize that many of the reviewers are either my age or above and that they were perhaps brought up on Classical, so naturally they would use it in their review. My greatest concern is that the millennials and even the people younger than that will never embrace the high end because they have no reference to the type of music being played, just as I do. Why can’t a reviewer use something by mainstream Rock bands to evaluate equipment?  To anyone that will tell me it’s because Classical, Choral, and Chamber are more well recorded and that if one listens to Rock, they may as well get a cheap mill outlet stereo, I say no way!

What do others think or feel about this?
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I disagree with @phomchick on the assessment of all rock music being of inferior fidelity.

Most reviewers receive their music free of charge, don’t they? At least MF does. For the reviewers that do receive music free of charge, this is an aspect of reviewing that takes their own personal pain (pocket book) out of the equation to the ultimate detriment of any reviewed music that any typical owner deals with. ( I’m referring to vinyl and all of it’s idiosynchricities: IE: off-center pressing, dished, warped, washboard vinyl that we are still willing to pay $50.00 for)
I'm thinking they didn't write the article for you specifically. There might be other readers who have different ideas. Nah, I'm wrong. They probably wrote the article to annoy you, specifically.