"Is Audiophile Snobbery Ruining our Hobby ?"

[Mart68]

Snobbery certainly tends to ruin Internet discussions of the hobby, that's for sure. For example did you know that using a $700 amp for $7k speakers makes you an idiot who is not allowed an opinion, but for example a $10k DAC and disdain for blind tests and - as per the video above - not using EQ makes you a distinguished hobbyist?

matching equipment based on its retail price - could there be anything more stupid? But yeah, they do it.

 

[TrevC]

I once suggested on What Hifi that almost any budget amplifier could be used on very expensive speakers and it would work fine. Got loads of crap about synergy back.

 

[Mart68]

The only good think about What*Hifi was the eight page ads from 'Hyper-Fi'. Tons of recently discontinued Jap kit at a third retail. Wonderful.

The Japanese put a stop to that in the end though, too many people twigged that last year's range sounded the same as the new one and there was no point in paying the premium. I think the Hyper-Fi owner bought a boat with the money I spent there.

 

[Vacceo]

I once suggested on What Hifi that almost any budget amplifier could be used on very expensive speakers and it would work fine. Got loads of crap about synergy back.

You saw how psychoacoustics turn into propaganda with classist undertones. A whole anthropological experience!

 

[tvih]

I once suggested on What Hifi that almost any budget amplifier could be used on very expensive speakers and it would work fine. Got loads of crap about synergy back.

Pretty much. My Dynaudio Confidence C1s sound great even with my Topping TP30 DAC/amp/HP-amp from 2010, which certainly wouldn't compare well with current topping offerings measurement-wise. It cost me something like 80-90€ new back then? The speaker amp part is via a tripath chip (TA2024) while the USB DAC is PCM2704. "Hard to drive speakers" my rear end.