Interesting theory, although Japan is home to some of the most hardcore tube/horn fans around - they are also leaders in audio bars where people go to hear giant horn speakers with vinyl and tubes in front of them.
I tend to think it is the affinity for ‘artisan’ products in a mass-produced world.
"A prophet is not without honor except in his own home."
You are right on the mark for with your second comment. This is part of the "high-touch" reaction to high-tech. People would rather see flawed engineering from actual humans than perfect engineering from what looks like a machine producer. This is why so many brands have turned their designers into rock stars. Even here, would Topping get the respect it does in this forum without John Yang's active involvement? Does Topping's lower regard in the subjectivist forums stem from John Yang not being known there? Would we revere (correct word) the Hypex and Purifi products so much without the humanizing presence of Bruno Putzeys? Do the inexpensive Pioneer SP-BS22LR's sell as well as they do because they measure well (for $100 speakers) or because of Andrew Jones? I confess that the story of Victor Campos (RIP) and Walt Jung made the Adcom GFP-565 much more appealing to me. Isn't the Adcom GFA-555 respected in part because of Nelson Pass? A decade ago, there was still a strong fan contingent for SAE's amps of the late 70's. Surely Jim Bongiorno's (RIP) design of the early Mark amps has much to do with that. And where would Advent have been without Henry Kloss? And what is McIntosh but an institution founded on the principles of guiding visionaries--as much Gordon Gow as Frank McIntosh. Didn't Morris Kessler's acceptance of Class D architecture at ATI do as much as any pile o'measurements to bring real credibility to the concept? Would we believe the research done at Harman were it not for the compelling personalities of Floyd Toole and Sean Olive to humanize and validate it?
It goes on and on. These names and the stories that go with them bring humanity to the products, even if they were stuck together by robots and slaves.
People buy story as much as they buy products, and many (to be honest, including me) would rather have (slightly) sub-optimal equipment if it comes with a good story. Examples abound in all industries that cater to luxury buyers (including just about all of us, protestations notwithstanding).
The cynic would restate my prior paragraph and say people buy
brand as much as product. But those stories, personalities, and brands all provide the same thing: A surrogate measure of quality.
The problem with prophet-based endorsements, however, is that there are false prophets out there, both among designers and producers, and among those who opine about them. That's where measurements come in--they validate the credentials those names imply (or not).
The failure of the Japanese conglomerates in the 80's (and as companies they did not fail at all--they just moved on to other things) was that they did not bring the buyer into the human connection. That's important even to their domestic buyers, I think. Note that Marantz has sold really well in the recent past at least in part because of their signature line associated with Ken Ishiwata, whether or not the data-driven among us think that is a good thing. And Pioneer's affiliation with Jones. The Japanese companies are learning.
(This is not new. I can think of examples from at least the last 50 years, and could probably go back further if I was older.)
The one thing the audio press has done, and magazines like
Stereophile have been brilliant at it, has been to bring the leading lights of the audio world to their readers. When Sam Tellig wrote about the Adcom preamp, for example, he started with Victor Campos calling him on the phone. That, more than any amount of subjectivist-vs.-objectivist dogma, has promoted the boutique direction.
Back to the thread topic, with this in mind.
We love our heroes, and that's what makes it harder to maintain civility. It's not a question of whether Topping's DAC with its 120-dB SINAD is a good DAC, but whether a negative review of it attacks one of Our Heroes. We are all subject to that. When I read a statement that that Adcom preamp is garbage on another forum, my respect for Campos and Jung hears the challenge and looks for the flamethrower. It's not actually about the damn preamp! (Which I've replaced recently with a B&K of similar vintage, not without some pang of regret.) When Amir reviewed a Schiit something-or-other poorly, wars were fought. Schiit more than any new brand depends on its story, and that's what makes Jason Stoddard such a great marketer (despite the cheapness of the trick of his brand name).
Some here have crowned Amir as the new Our Hero, but I sense that part of him at least recoils a bit at that. When people come here from other forums (and it's my view that it's a planned cabal, sending antagonists over here maybe once a week to kick the anthill and then run away laughing) and challenge Our Hero, our respect for Our Hero gets stung we bring out the torches and pitchforks. Congratulations! That makes us all too human after all.
For those who are innumerate, though, that's all they have, and those here who are not innumerate have backing (if we use it) and can even
change our minds! But I contend the most hardened data-driven scientist among us is not immune to the power of a compelling story or personality.
Rick "people need their heroes, but heroes never quite live up to the worship and eventually disappoint us" Denney