Our Responsibility

@kosst_amojan, great initial post. Well worth a second read.


"This hobby has something in common with religion. Denial of reality. Just like religion, this is a dying hobby, and plenty of folks want to deny it along with the reasons it's dying. I've never seen a problem get solved when the nature of the problem is denied.

A BIG problem, and the basis of the most vitriolic exchanges, is the rabid embrace of snake oil by so many in this hobby. The general public really does think most of this hobby is snake oil and vanity and the kinds of advice I see lobbed at self-described freshman here does nothing to dismiss that perception.

This snake oil nonsense that gets pawned off as "legitimate" audiophilia is distinctly different than the various philosophies on what constitutes a good system. Genuinely different philosophies are based on technical knowledge and personal priorities in what the listener is trying to accomplish. The line gets crossed into snake oil when "tweaks" are elevated to the importance of core technical specifications. For instance, imaging is poor, and rather than address the acoustics of the room (the real problem), idiotic solutions like cables, isolation footers, and fuses get suggested. That not only discredits the hobby, but it inevitably instigates debates to try to disprove and shut those nuts down.

I make it a point NOT to employ such snake oil tweaks so that when I put somebody in this listening chair they know there's no hocus pocus at work. It's nothing but basically competent equipment in a treated room doing what it does. It's not the prettiest, but it sounds really good. The amp doesn't have a top so they can see it's guts and I can explain what it's doing with very simple analogies. The speakers are what they are, Focal 936's on their factory spikes. My gear sits on a solid oak table. There's NO magic beyond ordinary comprehension at work here.

I've had several people in their early and mid 20's here to hear this thing. One guy has been lusting after it ever since, but doesn't have the space. The 23 year old girl was legitimately stunned after believing it couldn't be THAT good for 2 years. We sat together and she seriously listened for almost 45 minutes. She was so into it that she forgot I was even there. When she finished she asked me what everything in the room cost, piece by piece and I told her. She said it seemed "wise" even given the cost. She explained to me that she's spent so much on "frivolous" things like clothes and drinks and jewelry, but I have something that allows me THIS experience any time I want and that seems "wise".

Young people, in my estimation, are groping for legitimate value in this world. All too often they're sold a perception of value. Insanely prices coolers that don't work any better than my Coleman. iPhones that crack and break if you look at them wrong and are worthless in 2 years. Outrageously styles cars that ape the looks of classics or track cars, but made mostly of plastic with their fake vents and scoops. Even their friends are fake digital friends. Put these people in front of something real and legitimate that legitimately moves them and they do not forget.

That's how I cultivate the next generation. Give them an experience. Give them knowledge and explanations they can understand. The first thing I do before somebody listens is have them listen to the room. Let them hear the difference between my listening room and my dining room just talking. It's obvious. They instantly get it. There's no snake oil to it. It's not cheap stuff, but it's definitely worth what it cost in the experience it creates."

"Put these people in front of something real and legitimate that legitimately moves them and they do not forget."

Let me help you guys out a little bit.

First of all you can’t debunk something that’s not bunk. But don’t let that stop you. Here are a few tips.

• Employ vague, subjective, dismissive terms such as "ridiculous," "trivial," "crackpot," or "bunk," in a manner that purports to carry the full force of scientific authority.

• Keep your arguments as abstract and theoretical as possible. This will send the message that accepted theory overrides any actual evidence that might challenge it -- and that therefore no such evidence is worth examining.

• By every indirect means at your disposal imply that science is powerless to police itself against fraud and misperception, and that only self-appointed vigilantism can save it from itself.

• Portray science not as an open-ended process of discovery but as a pre-emptive holy war against invading hordes of quackery-spouting infidels. Since in war the ends justify the means, you may fudge, stretch or violate the scientific method, or even omit it entirely, in the name of defending it.

• Reinforce the popular fiction that our scientific knowledge is complete and finished. Do this by asserting that "if such-and-such discovery were legitimate, then surely we would already know about it!"

I’m not sure why the guy who writes the blog described in the OP is complaining so much about bickering in this hobby. If I can speak frankly, I’m here mostly to watch all the bickering, 🤗

What is snake oil? Who gives the right of 1 person to call something snake oil? For example: who gives somebody the right to call cables snake oil? How about power conditioners? How about room acoustic pieces? Who qualifies as an expert to label a product snake oil? 

This hobby is no different than being into nice cars. 99% of people drive a car to work or to the store and don’t really care too much about quality or technology, same goes for our audio hobby. Let’s call this group the ‘corolla’ group. If I ask anybody in this car group if they would like to buy this particular tire that has helped my Porsche handle better but costs 5x more than the tires they now have, they would think I was stupid to spend that kind of money on a tire. How about a more expensive spark plug, air filter, or a better spark plug coil adding another 10,000 volts to the plug? Same goes with our audio hobby, a guy with a good system or good ears claims that X product makes his system sound better, he is labeled as a snake oil vendor or promoter. A cable is a cable, right? (I’m not talking about con artists that want to charge you a lot of money to change your muffler bearings, there are definitely crooks out there)

There are more people out there that think the $ we spend on audio or cars is a stupid thing to begin with. 99% of all people don’t care about top quality audio systems or top quality cars and that won’t change anytime soon. 

I don't need anybody to tell me (especially if they are in the ‘corolla’ group) if X product is good or bad, I’ll let my ears or if talking about a car, my right foot or the seat of my pants, tell me if it’s good product or not.