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When a Reviewer "likes" something

... what does that mean in your opinion. I read in one of the last Stereophile mags a comment from Mr. Atkinson where he wrote about the differences in "opinions" in forums or in printed mags. After all he ended with the argument, a component is good when a reviewer likes it.
Isn't is more helpful, when a reviewer knows something about a real tone reproduction? Or is it ok, when he used every month another CD or LP he got for free, a kind of music nearly no one wants to listen to?
Harry Pearson used in the 90's always the same records for his reviews but that was an exception I think.
What is it worth for you when - for example - Mr. Dudley/Fremer/Valin/HP .... "likes" something? Do you have the same "taste" they have?
I know it is possible to like a Turntable even when that unit can't hold the proper speed, or is extremely sensitive to any influences, there are endless recommendations written about such units...what is it worth for you?
Atkinson for example measures units, some have top datas but they can sound very boring, far away from the real thing, some have no top datas, some "tests" are shortened because a unit can reach a area which can be pretty dangerous (see one of the latest Agostino units, just as an example) but they are rated Class A in recommendations anyway....
When someone "knows" what is right or not, then his "liking" is only a personal opinion which is more or less uninteresting or?
Most customers (not all of course) would prefer to know what a unit is really able to do sonically, or not? Would knowledge destroy the joy of Hardware rolling? Or is there a reason why reviewers use low efficiency speakers when they have a tube amp for review (for example Lamm ML2.1/ML2.2 with Magico Speakers)? Is the matching "expensive + expensive" the proper way to show competence?
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manitunc
795 posts
 
Raul,
Some other thread.
swampwalker's avatar
swampwalker
5,138 posts
 
BIF- W the knowledge you got from Ralph's white paper, some of the basic equipment specs and the technical measurements that JA posts in those little sidebars, you can get pretty far down the road of figuring out if a speaker and an amp are clearly mis-matched. JA will frequently even point that out. Of course, every once in a while, there is a product that "breaks the rules" but if you mesh that approach w lots of reading and research, you should be able to get in the right ballpark.

I also think that some of the disagreement w Raul's approach may be based on differing goals. Raul says (I'm paraphrasing, so feel free to correct me, Raul) that his goal is to reproduce exactly what's on the recording. Nothing more, nothing less. My goal is to have an emotionally enriching experience listening to an artist's work. In my mind, if the hardware can deliver exactly what is on the software, but the music does not move me, then so what? It's kind of like living in Manhattan and owning an exotic car. The traffic, stop lights, potholes and pedestrians would not make driving it pleasurable? Taking this analogy further, if Raul is happier/more satisfied knowing that the car he is driving in NYC can go 0-60 in 3.2 sec and push 0.98 gs on the skid pad, more power to him.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,472 posts
 
"Mapman is also a hero of mine."

Always glad to be of service to insomniacs everywhere! :^)
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,472 posts
 
One thing for sure, in the end, no substitute for trusting one's own ears.
bifwynne
2,206 posts
 
Swampwalker, I'm basically in your camp. The point you touched on has also been discussed ad nauseum on the Forum, because I personally do not believe in the notion of "faithful sound reproduction." The very term is either an oximoron or a non sequitor.

We all know that recorded music, regardless of medium, is highly engineered. I suspect that one might even be disappointed by a live music performance versus an engineered sound studio recording. But that is a discussion for another day.

But to the point in your post above, I still think it's better to start on a level playing field regardless of how the final presentation sounds. That is, if a speaker is reported to have a flat FR and have a certain acoustic presentation -- if driven by a SS amp -- but not so if using a tube amp, I want to know that before making a buying decision.

Maybe some folks don't care. I freely admit that a speaker that is ruler flat when measured in an anecheoic sound room will likely not be ruler flat when you take it home. BUT, at least I have some comfort in knowing I'm playing on that level playing field.

And for the record, I love my ARC tube gear. I also think my Paradigm S8s are fine speakers. I'm just a tad rattled because I figured out too late what it really means when one says a speaker is "tube friendly" or "SS friendly," or both.

And since this OP is about reviewer reliability, I think this very important issue should be prominently raised in every tech review.

Mapman, yes in the end you're correct. But if there is a really serious electrical incompatibility between an amp and a speaker, you don't get to the ear part.
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