Legal fund for Reviewers/Erin?

[Emlin]

Really good point! Given the circumstances, I would put my money on this being the case.

With the old saying being: A man who represents himself has a fool for a client.

 

[Robbo99999]

FWIW Tekton's post just made on the Audioholics thread about Erin's review:

There's some real misinformation bouncing around. For the record I am not "suing" anyone and I've never threatened to "sue" anyone over a review.
Would the review be live today if it didn't contain any provable mistakes? Yes- absolutely!
Here are the facts... I am protecting my brand and I have no problem with a review [good or bad] so long as it doesn't contain any mistakes. The review contained a couple of measurement mistakes based on a couple of simple oversights. In all fairness to Erin, the Troubadour is a unique loudspeaker that would throw the best acoustical measurement experts a bit of a curve ball - the speaker is even unique to the point of being allowed a US patent.
The measurement oversights have been talked about between Erin and I and Erin has agreed to remeasure the speaker. I respectfully asked Erin to pull his review temporarily and we're working together to ensure the measurements he publishes are accurate.
I believe we've got everything figured out and expect his review to be published again soon.
Respectfully,
Eric Alexander
Audio Designer
President
Tekton Design, LLC

That's good news! I mean that's how it should be approached, there's not going to be any issues. (not read the later pages yet, so maybe this old news & there's been more developments since.)

EDIT: I've read all the remaining pages. Nope, this is the latest news. Good, there'll be no issues, no worries about a lawsuit happening now!

 

[beagleman]

"The Moab Be's impedance magnitude (fig.1, solid trace) lies above 4 ohms through the midrange and treble but drops below 4 ohms in the upper bass. The minimum value, 2.52 ohms, occurs at 121Hz. The electrical phase angle (fig.1, dashed trace) is often high, meaning that the EPDR (footnote 1), or effective impedance, is extremely low over much of the audioband. The EPDR was below 2 ohms between 27Hz and 31Hz, between 143Hz and 406Hz, and between 1625Hz and 2233Hz, with minimum values of 1.87 ohms at 28Hz, 1.17 ohms at 96Hz, 1.5 ohms at 197Hz, and 1.79 ohms at 1933Hz. The Moab has one of the most demanding impedances I have encountered, though this will be somewhat ameliorated by the high voltage sensitivity."

Tekton Moab Be loudspeaker Measurements

Sidebar 4: Measurements

www.stereophile.com

Wonder if the above impedance comments will come back to bite them.........

 

[Justdafactsmaam]

Isn’t that the thing now? If someone has a product they’re proud of, they submit to ASR (and the others who do objective testing, BTW), and let the product stand on its merits?

There’s nothing to be afraid of, unless you’re trying to sell an inferior product for a premium price.

I don’t think I would feel that way if my product was a dipole speaker.

 

[John Atkinson]

Eric Alexander states that Stereophile shows their reviews to the company being reviewed IN ADVANCE OF PUBLICATION!!

I am shocked at this. This is a journalism no-no. It calls into question their credibility.

If they've been doing this for years we must look at their reviews in a different light.

Stereophile has always sent manufacturers a preprint of the review ahead of publication so that they can send a comment for publication. Regardless of how the manufacturer reacts to seeing the preprint, the text of the review is not changed.

See this article on this subject that I wrote in 1988: https://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/502

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile 1986-2019; Technical Editor, Stereophile, 2019-Present

 

[teched58]

Stereophile has always sent manufacturers a preprint of the review ahead of publication so that they can send a comment for publication. Regardless of how the manufacturer reacts to seeing the print, the text of the review is not changed.

See this article on this subject that I wrote in 1988: https://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/502

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile 1986-2019; Technical Editor, Stereophile, 2019-Present

> JA1 wrote: Regardless of how the manufacturer reacts to seeing the print, the text of the review is not changed.

If this is true, and I have no reason to doubt it, SP is on ethical solid ground and I withdraw any suggestion that it is not.

 

[John Atkinson]

> Regardless of how the manufacturer reacts to seeing the print, the text of the review is not changed.

If this is true, and I have no reason to doubt it, SP is on ethical solid ground and I withdraw any suggestion that it is not.

Thank you. As I wrote in the 1988 article I linked to earlier, "We regard it as axiomatic that our primary loyalty is to those who pay money every month to read our opinions. Stereophile's—in fact, any magazine's—underlying responsibility must be to its readers if it is not to become the poodle of the industry it purports to cover. The readers' needs must always be put above everything else."

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile

 

[Katzz]

Response from the comment about Amir, you can find the screenshoots in page 45 or in youthman comments video from "Tekton Drama Ensues Owner Claims Botched Measurements"

I wonder why Eric thinks that Amir is stopping Hi-Fi reviewers from begin successful

More comments in youthman pinned comment

I will try to update this post it there are more responses from Tekton unless other members post their responses

 

[Multicore]

I wonder why Eric thinks that Amir is stopping Hi-Fi reviewers from begin successful

Maybe he thinks disagreements on the internet are bad for clicks.

 

[AaronJ]

Thank you. As I wrote in the 1988 article I linked to earlier, "We regard it as axiomatic that our primary loyalty is to those who pay money every month to read our opinions. Stereophile's—in fact, any magazine's—underlying responsibility must be to its readers if it is not to become the poodle of the industry it purports to cover. The readers' needs must always be put above everything else."

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile

Thank you for insight John. Why does Eric claim that he needed to "fact check" the review?

 

[kemmler3D]

unless it’s all a cynical con

 

[kemmler3D]

LinkedIn is commonly used by individuals and organizations to validate a person's professional qualifications, experiences, skills, and achievements. It serves as a digital resume and networking platform where professionals can showcase their work history, education, certifications, and endorsements from colleagues or supervisors.

This is Erin’s (Erin's Audio Corner) summary profile from Linkedin:
View attachment 362678
Erin has highlighted that he is an Engineer in the Summary section.

This is Eric’s summary profile from Linkedin:
View attachment 362679
Eric did not provide any details of his education in the Summary section or elsewhere in the Linkedin profile.

The above has been highlighted in previous posts. I just wanted to validate their qualifications for everyone.

So, I did manage to find another profile of his online, and he lists a university in Utah that offers engineering programs. I don't think digging up people's personal details in these situations is a healthy practice so I won't go into more detail, and I encourage others to leave his personal life alone.

That said, I can't rule out that he does have an engineering background. But I can't confirm he has one, either.

 

[DSJR]

Maybe he thinks disagreements on the internet are bad for clicks.

HiFi reviewers, or opinionated influencer wannabes?

 

[testp]

"The Moab Be's impedance magnitude (fig.1, solid trace) lies above 4 ohms through the midrange and treble but drops below 4 ohms in the upper bass. The minimum value, 2.52 ohms, occurs at 121Hz. The electrical phase angle (fig.1, dashed trace) is often high, meaning that the EPDR (footnote 1), or effective impedance, is extremely low over much of the audioband. The EPDR was below 2 ohms between 27Hz and 31Hz, between 143Hz and 406Hz, and between 1625Hz and 2233Hz, with minimum values of 1.87 ohms at 28Hz, 1.17 ohms at 96Hz, 1.5 ohms at 197Hz, and 1.79 ohms at 1933Hz. The Moab has one of the most demanding impedances I have encountered, though this will be somewhat ameliorated by the high voltage sensitivity."

Tekton Moab Be loudspeaker Measurements

Sidebar 4: Measurements

www.stereophile.com

Wonder if the above impedance comments will come back to bite them.........

The what...: Mother of all Breaches, Best Edition -> Moab Be

 

[tomtoo]

At least (it needet a endless feeling while) we know now what the critics are.

1)Wrong choice of acustic center
2) 4 holes for stands that not where closed
3)A evtl. from sun bleached woofer that could be a hint for a older speaker.

Did i got that righ @amirm ?

 

[ahofer]

Nobody listens to "I told you so", but...

Tekton M-Lore Speaker Review

Now we're trolls. Just asking for some science Eric. The only thing that refutes science is better science. In the absence of that, we have conjecture and threats. Got science? Yeah a very classy post. I screenshot it lol

audiosciencereview.com

Yeesh, this thread has been an object lesson for vendors in how not to interact with prospects and influencers. I'd suggest:

• Engage constructively and substantively with the audience, avoid ad hominem.
• Don't lose your temper or get snitty. Don't be seen as YELLING. Avoid demeaning the core beliefs of the audience, but propose alternatives.
• Provide gentle encouragement and persuasion to give the product a try.
• If you can't maintain the composure suggested above, don't post.
• Don't threaten to sue first if you see a mistake, point out the problem specifically and ask for a retraction or revision long before considering any legal action. See if you can turn it into a positive. Threats will harden everyone's position.
• If you still have grounds to litigate, consider whom you are suing (a not-for-profit review site run by a recognized expert) and the PR costs of doing so vs just ignoring the bad press. Also consider what losing would mean.
• Finally, business litigation sucks for everyone.

I should have said "if you THINK you have grounds..."

 

[markus]

At least (it needet a endless feeling while) we know now what the critics are.

1)Wrong choice of acustic center
2) 4 holes for stands that not where closed
3)A evtl. from sun bleached woofer that could be a hint for a older speaker.

Did i got that righ @amirm ?

1. Is just a red herring as the vertical and horizontal polar plot would look just the same. Is there a manual that states the speakers need to be listened to off-axis?
2. & 3. Shouldn't have a massive impact. Tekton simply needs to post their measurements and we would know how much of an impact.

I can only assume they do not have any measurements. Amir's test was posted Oct 17, 2023. Should be enough time to post objective data to refute Amir's findings if needed.

 

[ahofer]

At least (it needet a endless feeling while) we know now what the critics are.

1)Wrong choice of acustic center
2) 4 holes for stands that not where closed
3)A evtl. from sun bleached woofer that could be a hint for a older speaker.

Did i got that righ @amirm ?

All of which @Eric Alexander could have professionally and productively dealt with by:

a) noting these objections privately and requesting that be posted with the review,
b) providing a current model operating to spec, or any model he thinks best represents his best and most current design innovations, along with any user/measurement instructions he felt necessary
c) making any other editorial comment about the design tradeoffs he felt were important in this speaker

Everyone would have been psyched to engage, even if not everyone would end up wanting to buy. Net positive for all sides.

I get it, he "doesn't want coaching", but for anybody else in a customer-facing role...this was literally snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

 

[NTK]

At least (it needet a endless feeling while) we know now what the critics are.

1)Wrong choice of acustic center
2) 4 holes for stands that not where closed
3)A evtl. from sun bleached woofer that could be a hint for a older speaker.

Did i got that righ @amirm ?

Regarding item 1, nowhere in Tekton's website could I find information regarding the reference axes of their loudspeakers. If the reference axis was not specified, the CTA-2034 standard says below. Therefore Amir's measurements were in fully compliance with the established standard.

 

[tomtoo]

1. Is just a red herring as the vertical and horizontal polar plot would look just the same.
2. & 3. Shouldn't have a massive impact. Tekton simply needs to post their measurements and we would know how much of an impact.

I dont know how big the influence is, the point is if there could be a influence even if minimal the critic is valid and a remeasurement should be done.
Not that i like that behavior of tekton nor do i think there will be bigger differences.