How's this for a dose of reality???


"Dealers in high-fidelity components, like all dealers, are highly variable in their fidelity to customers' interests. Many are not only well versed in the good and bad features of the equipment they sell, but are honestly concerned to see that customers get the best products for their needs. Others, on the other hand, have a tendency to steer customers to components whose manufacturers have the biggest dealer discounts or offer special sales incentives, whether or not these components represent good value to a customer.
Unless you are certain that you have a dealer of the first kind, you should look with a suspicion on insistent attempts to steer you towards one brand or to switch you away from the brand you ask for. You should look for an unhurried, impartial demonstration of the components in which you are interested and in competing brands if you ask to hear them. And when listening comparitively, insist that the loudness be adjusted to equal levels for the comparison tests.

If the dealer will cooperate in permitting you to listen in your home to the units you have tentatively chosen ( some dealers will do so ), you can then be sure that they will be satisfactory before actually making a final choice."

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Few paragraphs editied out making specific recommendations as to what recordings to use for auditioning gear and what to listen for. This continues on:

--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Magazines which specialize in music and audio subjects publish reports of tests on various high-fidelity components. Despite their best efforts to be honest and impartial in such reports, however, it is extremely awkward for magazines to be openly critical of their advertisers' products. The result is that the reports are often helpful, but to a limited degree; the temptation to rate all components as "best yet" ( or at least to gloss over serious imperfections ) is very powerful.

The reports of general testing organizations whose publications do not carry advertising usually can be relied on to be free of bias. But even these reports vary in reliability according to the skill of the engineers who obtain and interpret test data on which the reports are based. Such variation exists in reports of the same organization.

Audio shows which are held in large cities offer an opportunity to see and hear new products, and to make a preliminary screening of possible choices. Often the rooms or booths at these shows are crowded and do not even come close in acoustic character to a home listening room. Further, the manufacturers of some quite good high-fidelity products conduct deplorable demonstrations, so that their products sound no better at audio shows than do inferior products. Consequently it is unwise to make a final decision for or against any component simply on the basis of what you hear at an audio show."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Anybody wanna guess who wrote this, when it was written and what it came from? I think it will be interesting to see some of the responses : ) Sean
>

PS... If you are CERTAIN that you know the answer, PLEASE DO NOT POST IT. Email it to me and i'll tell you if you're right or wrong. I'd like to see how many different responses / guesses we can get and the different comments that arise from each guess. Those that email me with the correct answer will be "acknowledged" after we've had some fun with this thread. Regardless of who, when and where it was written, it's pretty good, huh ??? : )
sean
Well, I have to guess that it was published in "Consumer Reports" As to the author, I dunno.
Ok,Sean,fair enough.

I have no idea who said it. If no one gets it right and you have a lottery for the prize and I win,I want a slutty brunette with a three digit IQ,sort of a cross between Catherine Zeta Jones, Angelina Jolie, Winonna Ryder, Salma Hayak,and Lucy Liu.

I agree with what the author said but offer this update. I suspect the distance has shortened between low fi and hi fi over the last quarter century and equipment is now reliable enough that it's less of a gamble to buy things unheard(If you have a return privilage.).

If you order a built to order Dell Computer,you know from the specs what you are going to get.

In the same vien,I think that Odyssey,Van Alstine,and Madisound are on to something. You can get good equipment without having to pay for the retail step and commissioned salespersons. The things I want to hear in my room is the speakers and I got lucky with the Maggie 1.6s.
None of the above and nobody has even remotely come close on the private emails either. As i mentioned, I will confirm the validity if someone gets "part" of the answer correct, so the more guesses out there, the more potential clues that you have to figure things out. After all, somebody has to be able to guess at least what year it was published. From there, that might give you a better idea of what "famous" audio personalities were around and on the rise. Don't expect a full answer until late Monday night though unless someone gets it all correct. We've got to give the "i only use my computer when i'm at work" crowd a chance. Maybe those people can actually follow the suggestions that i made too in terms of ONLY emailing if your certain of where the quote came from AND what info should be included in one's posted "guess". Each one of you that sent me a "guess" without knowing for certain that it was the correct answer owe's me a date with Drew ( or a suitable substitute ) : ) Sean
Harry Pearson, TAS, circa 1969? -- Either he or Martin DeWulf of Bound for Sound perhaps a few years later...???

On the other hand, maybe it was J. Gordon Holt of Stereophile in 1971, and that's my final guess!
Wait, I know, it was Robert Harley from: The Complete Guide to High-End Audio! Don't know the year, but I believe it was sometime A.D.