Takedown of pricey servers, streamers OCD HiFi guy

Someone who is not a computer guy takes his rudimentary knowledge to produce a homebrew server for $1,500 in a one off production volume that sounds just a good as a $10,000 model from the specialty brands in a $100,000 system.

Now that is something I am glad to know. Something to take into consideration, or something to dismiss if I don't end up agreeing.

Problem for you, this opinion is an inconvenient contradiction to your premise that we pay for the knowledge and know how, along with low production that makes these uber high priced items worthy of their cost. It's a good take, worthy of consideration.

You have your opinion, cool. He has his opinion, cool.
I read these forums often and most times end up clicking off because the differences in opinion are handled with character assassination, and snark that take all the fun out of the discussions. As a neutral observer trying to learn, I found your brand of banter lacking when confronted with a simple difference of opinion.

Rego -  your comments make a lot of sense. I appreciate those that reminded us of the cost of R&D. What if, after testing many parts over months or years, the Asus parts SOUND the best. Should they substitute a higher-cost part for image purposes? We all know the role synergy plays in our hobby. You can buy a hamburger for $2 and one for $35 depending on the chef and the service that accompanies it. Is the cost of the bun meaningful? The taste and atmosphere when you eat it provide the value. We each find our price/value point and it’s so cool when we share our experiences about the process without passing judgement on one another. That make these forums so powerful for me. Thanks for all who shared here. 

This ocd guy is amusing at best. He bashes well known top quality components but assures everyone that what he has is the best. For example, the new dac he is promoting has a Bluetooth antenna and he claims this is groundbreaking technology, which is probably the worst interface to use. Then he goes over the remote and claims groundbreaking technology again. Pretty much a Waste of time watching his videos

See a recent video, here: https://youtu.be/wUtbVrYDQuo

He wants to have it both ways. Everyone else is out to scam you, but he doesn’t because he’s not like everyone else -- they’re all selling but he’s just loves audio and wants you to love your rig.

The problem is, that he’s selling too. But rather than make a video explaining the mutual relationship between (some) magazines and (some) companies, his take is, “They’re all out to con you. Don’t trust reviewers.” Doesn’t matter what they write, how carefully they contextualize or justify their claims. It’s all a scam.

On the other hand, there are the forums. Oh wait. They’re all narcissists who know nothing. Don’t listen to them.

So, who’s left in your corner? Mikey. He’s the only one who cares. He knows quality, he’s been around, he cares about sound. And, ok, he’s selling, too -- but just ignore that. Everyone has to make a living.

My take on this guy is that he probably does know quality and he works hard to demonstrate it on his channel, and he’s probably built a very loyal customer base.

But his argument jumps the shark, if you will. Why? There are other dealers and reviewers out there who are also honest and know that in the long run, customer loyalty must be earned and not connived.

Given the above, IMHO, the video comes across as desperate and swinging wildly. He should probably take it down *for his own self interest.* It’s not going to age well.

Here are a few excerpts from his transcript:

"i am here to let you know more about the bs that happens in our industry. i know you see that a lot from me but you know what i have no vested interest um tied in and no in cahoots with the magazines nor any other manufacturers i am solo rogue ocd mikey and um i’m here for the people..."

"...i think you should first of all get it straight that the magazines out there and the media that’s out there regarding hi-fi does not give a about the end user okay they don’t care if your rig sounds good or not they care about selling pieces period..."

"beyond that okay here’s another one this is very important the forums okay here’s something that is it is like um it is no longer what it used to be you look at the forums when they came out okay it’s just like the magazines and you take it ten years forward and now you look at the forums now they’re not the same thing okay they’re not at all the same thing your forums are cooked okay first of all first of all it’s every bozo in the world that thinks that they know about hi-fi or wants to feel empowered will go on to there and bark like a little dog okay they’re gonna bark bark bark bark bark okay so we need to find out who’s got the bite okay the most valuable people in hi-fi do not go near the freaking forums we won’t touch them with a 10-foot pole okay let me say that again the most valuable people in hi-fi avoid the forums..."

OCD guy pretty much like most humans. Recently heard the average human tells ten lies a day. Does that mean I should no longer trust any human? No, I'm willing to listen, there may still be accurate information to be gleaned, in which case its served me well to learn from those who sometimes lie.