Hello to all,
This is AVGURU. I am the originator and moderator of this thread. Over the last two weeks I have received numerous private e-mails from contributors and observers of this thread asking me step in and add sanity to a thread that is clearly out of control! These concerns have come to me from various sources including A-goners, other modders, manufacturers (yes, manufacturers!), dealers and even people associated with the Audiogon staff. There have even been comments from people within this thread at various points asking me to do something.
Additionally, everyone needs to understand that this thread has garnered a lot of attention outside of Audiogon. There are professional reviewers who are aware of it, it has been mentioned on other well known forums, it comes up as one of the first items if you do a google search under Esoteric, etc..etc. Contrary to public belief, free speech is not "FREE"...it does come with certain responsiblities..the biggest of which is to report the truth, have integrity in how you report information, treat other people with respect and lay off the personal attacks of other contributors on this thread. If there is anyone reading this who does not believe they have any of these "responsibilities" then please feel free to leave this thread immediately.
Furthermore, whether true or not there is a real perception out there that this thread contains an underlying current of bias favoring Alex and APL. In revieweing the thread from the beginning to now I can readily see how that perception could exist. I don't believe that was Alex's intent in becomming involved as he was just trying to answer as many questions as possible about his product. However, there is no question that APL has been over-exposed on this thread and there seems to be a general belief from many that his mod is the best one out there. This is a problem and I will address that issue as well as suggest a solution later in this e-mail.
My first responsbility is to re-focus this thread and res-establish its original purpose and intent. I invite everyone to start at the beginning of this thread again. I started this thread by taking home numerous high end cdp's and comparing it to the Esoteric DV 50. Why did I do this? Because the DV 50 had received numerous accolades, rewards and favorable reviews from the audio industry. As such, I was seriously contemplating buying one but first I wanted to find out for myself if all the hype was accurate.
In doing my comparisions I laid out a blue print which I THOUGHT would serve as a basis for others who contributed to this thread. I wrote detailed, concise notes about my listening sessions, using recognized audiophile terms and parameters to describe differences between units, sonic attributes, etc. I also used very descriptive wording that allowed those reading to "visualize" what I heard. I can't tell you how many people commented on how much they appreciated my insights and reviews.
Also, because I actually listened and did head to head comparisions my "opinions" were not really a factor in my writings. I reported the facts as based on my listening experience not from innuendo or others comments. Whether one agreed with my findings or not was not the point. The point was that my findings were based at least in part on empirical data. You had to respect that fact.
Finally,(but most importantly) when I listened to the modded cdp's and it became painfully clear that they were clearly better than the DV 50 (for less money to boot) what did I do? Did I arrogantly stick by my original findings that the DV 50 was the best? Did I look for excuses or reasons why my DV 50 didn't perform well? Did I become jealous, take these listening tests personal and attack others because they thought something else sounded better than my DV 50? NO NO NO NO!!! I reported the truth and I got so much love from those who respected the fact that even though they knew I was orignally biased towards my DV 50 I had the integrity to report the truth.
Now, having set this backdrop it is time for me to point out specifically what is wrong (and what must change in this thread). I am implementing the following new rules to make this a better thread. This will force me to be more active as the moderator and enforce the goals of the thread. Some will not be happy with that but I can't please everyone. From time to time I will have to mention by name those who have strayed from the guideliness. Please realize it is not personal in nature and my only intent is to make the thread better:
1). KANA 813- This thread was set-up and even designed with the intent of using shoot-outs as a basis of providing valuable listening insights and information to others. I'm sorry you don't believe in shoot-outs but please don't discourage others on this site from wanting them. Your comments about the "uselessness" of shoot-outs are not constructive.
2). Everyone, please, no more personal attacks, insults or smart-aleck comments towards others because you think their ideas are far fetched or you don't agree with them. Just leave it at "we have a difference of opinion". This is not kindergarten and there's no need to get in the last word. Those who do not abide by this and continue with this activity will be reported to Audiogon. I'M NOT KIDDING!
3). Those of you who have personal questions for Alex in terms of how his units operate, technical questions about his mods, parts, pricing, availablility, etc should direct your e-mails to Alex directly...not through this thread! This also goes for those who want to solicit his opinion about issues pertaining to other units, his thoughts on various products, topics, etc. This is nothing against Alex as I myself have learned a lot from his comments. But this thread is not meant to be a forum for APL products.
If you want to ask other members who might own an APL unit about their experiences or thoughts on APL product, or if you want to write a review about one of his products, no problem.
4). I've had numerous inquiries directed to me trying to "confirm" that the APL units we auditioned are the best of the modded units. Let me make it unequivocally clear right now to all reading this post that that was NOT OUR FINDING AT ALL. The only person in our group who believes that is 711 Smilin..and quite frankly he has been spreading that message all across Audiogon on different threads.
Right now, we have not finished our listening tests nor have we heard Alex's latest and greatest mod to the 3910. There is no question his unit sounded very good. My personal favorite as of now is the Sony Modwright 9000ES which is an older mod Richard developed 4-5 years ago. But again, that is not the groups final pick as we have not finished evaluating other product. Furthermore, the modded 9000ES does not play cdr's which for me is a big drawback. All of these considerations will be weighed and evaluated in our final analysis.
5). If you are NOT PREPARED to write detailed,specific reasons(based on actual listening observations/comparisons) as to why one product is better than another OR why you prefer one product to another then PLEASE REFRAIN FROM MAKING ANY DEFINITIVE STATEMENTS ABOUT THE SUPERIORITY OF ONE UNIT OVER ANOTHER. We need a lot less "opinions" on this thread and a lot more detailed reviews/insights. One of the goals of this thread is to get people to go out and listen!
There are people out here who for a myriad of reasons are unable to audition these units and are looking to our discussions for help in making a buying decision. Opinions don't mean alot unless based at least partly on solid information. See, nobody wants to take the time to write meaningful analysis. It's hard work but very necessary to add credibility to this thread. What good is any thread if there's no credibility or integrity to it?
6). I am sending out invitations to a bunch of other modders to send me their units for evaluation. There a lot of people out there who are very qualified and doing great mods. I personally think this "niche market" will continue to grow as the performance of these modded units continues to astound and in many cases is vastly superior to stock units. And I would really like to hear from others who have had their units modded by others not mentioned on this thread to contribute their thoughts and findings.
In conclusion, this has been a long but very necessary post as this thread severely needs some maintenance and re-focusing. I have outlined a lot of things that need to be changed and new rules that I'd like to see followed. Obviously, I can't do it by myself and I desperately everyone's help. I have no personal agenda other than to make this one of the most useful, informative and longest running threads on A-gon.
This thread has already brought a lot of joy and satisfaction to many A-goner's and I have the e-mails to prove it. The ultimate goal is not to "direct" anyone to a specific product but to help audiophiles make the best "informed" buying decision possible by exposing them to a wide range of products via unbiased and hopefully accurate listening tests.
However, for those of you who refuse to cooperate or maintain the spirit "persuing the truth" please know this: I will not tolerate a continuation of pessimistic antics and will file formal complaints with A-gon staff on specific members. And trust me, they do take them seriously and you will be contacted. I've seen them do it on many occassions.
Finally, should all fail and no progress be made I will just ask A-gon to shut this thread down. For those of you who are saying "good, we don't need it and I'll just start my own thread or a new one" my answer is fine...go do it. It's not as easy as it looks. There are already members of this thread who have already tried it with little success. We should all be working toward a common goal of persuing the musical truth.
Enjoy the music,
AVGURU
