“Faithful to the recording”

Giant Killer.

Snake Oil.

Those 2 are complete turn-offs usually used by people who have no idea what they’re talking about.

I don't necessarily hate them, but a lot of the descriptive terms  become subjective when used to describe sonic qualities.  So they may not mean the same to me as they do to the writer. 

I despise when reviewers use those words in describing a piece of equipment unless they were, quite literally, at the recording. Once those words are used, I pretty much stop reading since IMO the reviewer is full of BS.

If they compared the input (recording) to the output from a speaker or amp, like with a graph, then it can make sense.

Otherwise it is hyperbole when used subjectively..

If the step function, or impulse response, of the speaker is not textbook, then it is hard to claim it is faithful.

I agree, but I'd still rather hear 'faithful to the recording' than 'faithful to the performance', which I've always found to be an absurd concept.

Perhaps such terms of praise are best viewed as a measure of the reviewer's enthusiasm rather than an accurate description of what is occurring sonically, although given that each listener perceives and judges sound differently, I'm not sure there is an "objective vocabulary".

Brings to mind the Les McCann lyric "Tryin' to make it real compared to what". . . as in, what would you all rather hear from reviewers?