Steve Hoffman site Beatles discussions?

True. Unfortunately, may of the "opinions" on hardware are self serving in nature. And many are disguised as being "expert" opinions.

Sad but it is the same (or much worse) with audio magazine reviews. This is why I prefer to buy audio equipment based on the User List rather than a review or a testimonial or even my own often all too short auditioning experiences. Sure I will audition stuff and keep trying to stay informed about the latest gear but the variables are so great that I prefer to just select what people I respect use => what is tried and true and has staying power in the market (measured in decades rather than seasonal product offerings). For example, if it is good enough for Pink Floyd then it'll probably be good enough for my tin ears...

Nevetheless Audiogon is a great way to share technical information and chat about our favorite subject. If you really find Audiogon is just self-serving opinions then why do you post here?

Cam3366,

Let me put it another way - many people have answered your posts requesting for information - including myself. Kind of what hobbyists do _ guess - share ideas and advice. Surely it was not all self-serving opinions and a waste of your time? Or did some people contact you through email trying to push something on you or sell you something?

That has happened, yes. But I agree it is not all that way. I saw quite a bit of it recently so I am a little spring loaded on the subject I admit.

Well.....the Beatles remasters  have been a source of endless discussion on Steve Hoffman's site.

A kind of consensus has formed but it depends upon how hard-line you want to be.

If its CD then the 87 issues bar the first 4 albums seem to be the way to go. The 2009 remasters are only interesting to the purists in the mono form.

Personally I feel that the recent 2014 US box is better than the 2009 effort. Sean Magee and co have an awful lot to answer for. Its hard to imagine how they could have done a worse job.

Giles Martins efforts are better but I'd always go with Steve's view that we want restoration but not retouching, remixing, screwing up, desecrating etc.

Historical integrity is worth preserving as far as is humanly possible.

Regarding vinyl it is felt that the 2014 mono vinyl release is the sane way to go if you want the best sound up til the White album. The 2012 stereo is best forgotten.

Again from a personal view I think that either of the 2 vinyl box sets, MFSL or the Blue Box BC-13 are better options. Both are difficult to get but worth seeking out. Then there's the madness of locating the original UK vinyl releases.

Don't go there, I beg you.

I'm a pretty regular participant on the Hoffman forum and The Beatles are an endless topic of discussion. I think there is some consensus:

the early tube cut copies are preferable to the later masterings- rather than try to sort through this thicket at some cost, I found a first series UK Blue Box that gave me a easy point of entry- many of these sets were bought as gifts or simply forgotten. There is nothing "special" about the pressings- they were simply pulled together from the commercial releases at the time. There is a website dedicated to the various boxes issued in different countries. My box was largely unplayed.
The relatively recent mono reissues are quite good, and a great way to listen to those vaunted mixes- I'm not set up with a dedicated mono playback system, but these records still sound great.
I bought a few of the earlier (82) Japanese mono pressings- I think the recent Mono set makes these unnecessary (except for completists). 
The German Horzu -2 pressing of Die Beatles is a well-known anomaly that is worth owning- it is a basically a flat transfer of the two tracks without any added reverb or mixing. Everything is hard panned left or right, but hearing The Beatles "unvarnished" is pretty cool. Some folks find the spread annoying- at a minimum, it's a novelty, and a cool record to own.
I have a few other odds and ends I picked up over the years, one of the white vinyl White Albums (mine is a UK that I believe was made for export; the German white vinyl one is, I believe, a DMM). 
You can go as deep as you want on any band or album. The Beatles are an obvious motherlode for those obsessed with the details. Though I like to sort through pressings to find the best sonic representation, I consider myself a piker when it comes to The Beatles pressings and as @cd318 said, that way may lie madness. 
Generally, though, the Hoffman site is worthwhile, particularly some of the older threads and posts by certain members who have owned and compared a variety of pressings of modern pop, hard rock and psych. There is also a trading forum open to members who have reached a post threshold, and I've purchased a few desirable copies at reasonable prices there.