Thin Line Between Critique and Courtrooms: A Dialogue on the Recent Audiophile Drama

The idea that a product, if it receives a poor review, should be sent back to the manufacturer and the negative review erased, is profoundly troubling. It raises the question: what kind of environment are we creating when we’re only exposed to endorsements that persuade us to make a purchase, while critiques that could save us from an expensive mistake are concealed? All this, seemingly to protect (whitewash?) a company’s image? What about the public, the customers? Don’t we matter? And what about the reputation of the rag publishing the reviews?

It’s baffling and strikes me as eerily Orwellian.

@rooze Exactly. It seems some want it only their way.

This especially true since prices in the audio world are going up faster than Elon Musk's rockets. 

Your reply is part of the issue. A good reviewer is there to give information to their audience, not stroke the egos of the manufacturers. That was the way IT USED to be. 

I will use a car review as an example. How would you deal with a review like this?

Her Name Is Rio… And She’s Crap | The Truth About Cars

I remember reading this after I had a Rio as a rental - I totally agreed with it.

How can products improve if no one is there to give honest opinions about them?

@botrytis My reply is simply borne out of experience. I agree with the sentence after that comment; its exactly what I said in my post prior.

Reviewers can get away with things like that in the car industry. Its not likely to bring down the company. A sour review in high end audio can and has. Now the issue isn't whether products will improve or not, its whether the negative review is honest. I listed a number of reasons that I've seen and/or experienced why they may not be.

So if a negative review that is not honest takes out a company that didn't deserve it, is that fair? Its an easy thing for a reviewer to avoid by simply never talking about that product. That way the public doesn't find out about it; problem solved.

The point is, I haven’t seen a negative review of ANY audio product in the press in a long time. It is usually glowing words.

Going to ask an honest question, with a experience of mine from another consumer product. I worked for a whiskey producer, who I won’t name, and before I was working there, they would buy bulk whiskey from a bulk manufacturer. They would bottle it and it said on the bottle, it was not made there, but said the recipe was a family recipe. A reviewer found out and pointed out it was no different than others from the large manufacturer. The company and founder sued to get the reviewer to remove the negative review. So, you are saying that the reviewer was not honest?

I understand protecting a company but it is so over the top now. Understand, I think it is this attitude of the audio companies that are turning people off.

Put shoes on of a consumer, first and look at it this from the outside.

I think you are disingenuous at best. Would you want Boeing/Airbus to do what your saying? I could go on. Look at the pickle Boeing is in now...

@johnk ,

You've missed the point completely, I'm afraid.