Dealers hijacking the discussions

IMO,  the real issue here is dominating the discussion, getting argumentative, or obvious shilling.  Industry people who post should identify themselves as such (most do and most of us know who they area), provide their input quickly and succinctly and then step aside.  In some cases, they have very detailed technical knowledge and can offer valuable education to many of us who do not have that technical background. 

A similar issue is associated with concealing one's identity.  We've seen it happen but most times, someone is able to discern that and alert others. 

In general, I agree with those who say to ignore the posters who annoy you for any reason, but I agree that it can be difficult some times if they dominate a thread.  Perhaps a feature could be added to allow the OP to request that a certain person not be allowed to post to their thread.  OTOH, we're all free to ignore anything we want. 

With my new PC and Mc power cables, dealer bias is automatically filtered from all forums. 

+1 @swampwalker very reasonable idea and great points.

I also agree with swampwalker's comments. I welcome input from dealers when they offer valid advice without promoting specific items. They live this hobby, unlike me who only dabbles. I take a dealer's perspective with a grain of salt as anyone's recommendations. If I think something is a valid option then I do extensive research and arrive at my own conclusion. As long as a dealer identifies himself as such then I have no problem with their input. Just like anything on the web, I don't believe anything until I do my own research.

IMO, there is a huge difference between providing advice versus an infomercial for a brand that one "coincidentally happens to carry". I also get annoyed by certain dealers who say a specific piece of gear sounds better than what I currently have (even though they have never heard said piece of equipment).

There was one clown dealer on this forum a year ago who was referred to me by a certain importer and when I contacted him, he gave me 30 minutes of verbal diarrhea about another brand that he had in stock that I had to buy. When I told him I wanted the brand I asked for, he insisted on selling me the other brand, put me on hold and got the importer of the other brand to try to help him sell the amp. Needless to say, I took my business elsewhere. I’m not a big fan of high pressure sales.

For the most part, dealers are a great resource for most of us but when the advice turns into a sales pitch, it can be annoying.