Dear French fries, I think you stepped in it when you inferred that lots of dollars should buy lots of power "for most speakers". That reasoning is flawed on many levels. Still, I take your point that $5000 is a lot of money for an amplifier.
Dear Manitunc, Of course we don't expect reviewers to buy everything they review. It is expected that manufacturers will loan the equipment. That's all well and good, and if it takes 6 months or a year to review what was loaned, I think that's reasonable as well. However, rumor and hearsay have it that "some" equipment is never returned or paid for by "some" reviewers. Even that, if it is true, does not really bother me; it is a matter for manufacturers and reviewers to work out. The way in which such practices affect the review process is that it biases toward companies that are willing to "lend" equipment and then look the other way, in hopes that their investment in the loaned equipment will pay off in a favorable review.
Dear Manitunc, Of course we don't expect reviewers to buy everything they review. It is expected that manufacturers will loan the equipment. That's all well and good, and if it takes 6 months or a year to review what was loaned, I think that's reasonable as well. However, rumor and hearsay have it that "some" equipment is never returned or paid for by "some" reviewers. Even that, if it is true, does not really bother me; it is a matter for manufacturers and reviewers to work out. The way in which such practices affect the review process is that it biases toward companies that are willing to "lend" equipment and then look the other way, in hopes that their investment in the loaned equipment will pay off in a favorable review.