TAS new look-the end is near?

Interesting. I picked one up on the newstand the other day and noticed the difference. But for me it was, "hmmm.... maybe I should consider this mag now." I always discarded their monthly 'free issue' promo's as I found HP's Holy-er than anybody else on the planet attitude, akin to the abrasive treble in a CD player that otherwise had a rich lucious sound. A lot to like, but just couldn't bring myself to buy it.

Right on Rcprince! If they aren't profitable, they aren't there. And If we the readers aren't smart enough to read between the lines or are too lazy to listen to the equipment and decide for ourselves, then we deserve what we get. (for better or worse)

RCprince, you are so right. This is a business and has to be run like a business. I've been reading TAS for decades wondering all the while how it could survive as HP's playpen. The answer is obvious. I hope I'm not the only one wishing Harley and crew a lot of luck.

It all seems inevitable with the high end mags. You can no longer expect a three year subsciption to be fulfilled because either they go under, downsize, or change in such a way that you really have nothing to read about. Home theater has been a big culprit of the demise in a sense that people have to spend the same amount on 5 or 6 speakers as we use to spend on two thus our 2 channel mags become Stereo Review at best and even that couldn't survive. If Ultimate Audio merged with Stereophile and TAS we would have a great mag once again. Dealers and companies cannot afford to advertise in several mags and hang on. We thus have less advertising or they go off to the HT mags for more exposure and we find Denon and Sony as the mainstays of our mags instead of some of the higher end companies.

I bet that JA is happy that Harley left Stereophile for more than one reason now : ) Sean
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Ljqj - I must be the ultimate example of what you're saying about gambling on subscriptions. When I had picked up a few issues of FI and liked it well enough to bite, I bought a two year subscription, looking foward to a welcome break from Stereophile's hegemony. They then promptly went under, and I never received an issue - or my money back! A thought: With Audio just a memory, and a technically competent new editor at the helm, TAS might do well to become the other high-end rag that performs test measurements (maybe they could even employ a former Audio tester or two). I haven't seen the new issue, but I can understand the need to scrap the "journal" image. I had let my subscription run out last year before the editorial shake-up, but I think it's time for me to check 'em out again. Don't get me wrong, I didn't dislike TAS v.2 (or actually enjoy Audio, for that matter, or feel overly charitable toward Stereophile), but HP was spinning out of control for sure, and a few of the others also needed bringing down out of the ether. (Now if I can only get some of those ex-FI'ers around TAS to belatedly honor that bum subscription I paid them for....)