Eldarford; Although I agree with your approach, I think most people gather the specifications of products from the manufacturers websites and read reviews to find out, simply put, if the gear sounds any good since dealers aren't always available.
I just happened upon this quote this morning in the February 2007 issue of "The Absolute Sound". It's a review of the Mark Levinson No. 436 Power Amp by Sue Kraft:
"So it was with much anticipation that I awaited the arrival of the Mark Levinson reviews. I was also quite excited at the prospect of hearing how these $12,500, 350Wpc brutes would mate with the stellar imaging and accuracy of a loudspeaker like the B&W 800D. Would my decade long wait to finally hear a pair of Levinson amps in my system meet my expectations? At the risk of ruining the ending...I'm afraid I knew the answer to that question nearly straight out of the box, and have heard nothing in the months to follow that would change my mind."
Come on. How can anyone argue that blindfolding Sue and telling her to review this amp would not result in a more objective review????? Wouldn't that be more helpful to the above mentioned "typical" reader I mentioned????
I just happened upon this quote this morning in the February 2007 issue of "The Absolute Sound". It's a review of the Mark Levinson No. 436 Power Amp by Sue Kraft:
"So it was with much anticipation that I awaited the arrival of the Mark Levinson reviews. I was also quite excited at the prospect of hearing how these $12,500, 350Wpc brutes would mate with the stellar imaging and accuracy of a loudspeaker like the B&W 800D. Would my decade long wait to finally hear a pair of Levinson amps in my system meet my expectations? At the risk of ruining the ending...I'm afraid I knew the answer to that question nearly straight out of the box, and have heard nothing in the months to follow that would change my mind."
Come on. How can anyone argue that blindfolding Sue and telling her to review this amp would not result in a more objective review????? Wouldn't that be more helpful to the above mentioned "typical" reader I mentioned????