This is an article purely on the execution of rating and ranking systems of various websites, though of course also critiquing the overly-positive vibe of many publications that may be leading our hobby to its downfall if not corrected.
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TL;DR
You gotta read between the lines.
WhatHiFi: Statistically, only 5-star awards are worthy of consideration.
SoundGuys: A score of 7.5/10 is statistically average, and only those rated 8/10 are truly significantly ahead of the pack (top 25%).
Headfonics: Virtually nothing is rated under 6/10, and the average is set at roughly 8.4/10. The worst of the bunch in terms of rating skew and bias.
Headphonesty: The best of the bunch, but still terrible. 4/5 stars is the average rating, so really only those rated at 4.5 stars and above are worthy of consideration.
MajorHiFi: Distribution puts a “B” grade at the median, with the highest grade being “A”. Statistically speaking, only A-rated models are worthy of consideration.
https://crinacle.com/2021/07/06/why-most-ratings-suck-an-analysis/