Essay bashing Primedia, Stereophile - and Audiogon

You gotta love these guys who have most of their "reference systems" gratis from long term loans complaining about sucker audiophiles trying to get the best value for their money by working amongst themselves and cheating reviewers and a fabrictated system of middlemen from stealing their slice. Takes some nerve!

Disclaimer- My comments above are not in any way a reflection on my current local dealer. If everybody treated people like Audio Visions(Strongsville,and Solon Ohio) the high end audio industry would be alot more cohesive. My frustrations are more the product of dealers in the past,and hifi magazines that have crooked motives,and arrogant reviewers who think the readers are either stupid or naive.

Stay strong Citizens............ were making an impact!

Krelldog says "It's all about US". Consumers love low prices, but having Audiogon, an efficient on-line marketplace, functioning today may have a detrimental long-term impact. Don't be surprised if you see alot less bricks and mortar stores and a significant contraction/consolidation with manufacturers. If there's no money in it, then what incentive do corporations have to bring new products to market? Insufficient industry profits could drive the audiophile market back to it hobbyist roots where only small maufacturer's catered to a dedicated few. Some may see this as a good thing and others will disagree. Let's not confuse change with progress. In the end there's no free lunch!

Two years ago,when I knew ZERO about audio,I constructed my first system from pieces touted by Chip Stern in Stereophile.Yesterday I sold the (cue the reverent music) .hghly touted English cd player he is still pimping for--you know the brand ,they're in every issue, for less than half what I paid for it new,retail. Why? Because the Cary 308 kicked it's butt across the parking lot. When it comes to Whoredom,Chip Stern needs to look in the mirror...and DON"T get me started on Sam Tellig.