Stereophile doubles down on the snake oil!

[Mart68]

See no evidence for that. People might say that speakers and amplifiers meet a saturated market, but seemingly not stuff like cables. People who have everything still like to tweak and fiddle with accessories.

I'm suggesting this sudden push by Stereophile to promote expensive cables might be evidence that it is?

I agree that, traditionally, cables have been a less expensive way to fiddle with the system rather than swap boxes or, god forbid, just use the damn thing to listen to music.

It's not impossible that the advertisers have requested a push on this front due to sales sagging. We aren't likely to be made privy to that data, but in recent years the existing paradigm of 'everything matters' has been shaken, if not overturned, due to this forum and other sceptical platforms.

Of course it might not be and it's just some random subject picked arbitrarily to pad out the editorial content. I sort of doubt that's the case though.

 

[Mart68]

They seem to have changed their minds, based on stupidly expensive cables with their name on them now.

Naim also changed their stance on cables. Really, as a commercial business, they'd be fools not to. Customers queueing up to hand over their money and you've no product to sell them?

 

[TLEDDY]

They seem to have changed their minds, based on stupidly expensive cables with their name on them now.

Damnation!! Totally unaware… at least the pricing i see online is at the bottom of boutique wire.
A reprise: http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#gordongow

 

[Juhazi]

Out of curiosity, has anyone read his book? Is it worth reading?

No, but just read a critical review https://www.theabsolutesound.com/ar...igh-fidelity-loudspeaker-systems-7th-edition/

"Much of the book, especially in the latter parts, reads as if it were descriptions of what would be provided in the way of concrete information if in fact concrete information had been provided. This is seriously unsatisfying. Omissions of this type go on and on. Assertions are made, sometimes quite surprising ones, but are not supported nor illustrated by measurements or even technical explanations in words. (Example: On page 603, there is a mention of the “lack of clarity of many amplifiers.” Oh really? How about a specific instance or two and some technical demonstration that this lack of clarity actually exists?)"
etc.
The status of Stereophile magazine is overrated, and especially with the latest editor in chief. But I understand the challenge from business stand point... Still, with some filtering I respect their tradition and trackrecord, including their other magazines/sites

http://www.avtechmediausa.com/mediakit.stph.pdf

 

[Soniclife]

Damnation!! Totally unaware… at least the pricing i see online is at the bottom of boutique wire

4k for 3m of speaker cable is the bottom of boutique!

McIntosh CS 3m pair - Jordan Acoustics

Trade-in and 0% finance available. Please call us for further details on 01202 911886.

www.jordanacoustics.co.uk

 

[Soniclife]

Naim also changed their stance on cables. Really, as a commercial business, they'd be fools not to. Customers queueing up to hand over their money and you've no product to sell them?

Naim were always nuts, they just changed from our relatively cheap cables are best, to we now have very expensive that's even better. But when things were sensible priced they had things like cable shakers in the factory to improve the sound, and lots of weird advice about how to plug them in, and check the direction of internal fuses etc.

 

[Mart68]

Naim were always nuts, they just changed from our relatively cheap cables are best, to we now have very expensive that's even better. But when things were sensible priced they had things like cable shakers in the factory to improve the sound, and lots of weird advice about how to plug them in, and check the direction of internal fuses etc.

They were never sensibly priced, not that I recall. Twice the price of the Japanese amps, for less features and poorer performance.

The original owner was fairly sensible despite that his amps were not good value, which is why Naim didn't go down the rip off cable route until after he died.

 

[Soniclife]

They were never sensibly priced, not that I recall. Twice the price of the Japanese amps, for less features and poorer performance.

I was only talking about the cable prices.

 

[boxerfan88]

Bling bling cables = high gross margin.

Let’s get real…It will NEVER go away.

 

[Keith_W]

No, but just read a critical review https://www.theabsolutesound.com/ar...igh-fidelity-loudspeaker-systems-7th-edition/

That is a surprisingly good critical review coming from TAS, along with references to studies! That review reads like it should have come from ASR. Well, apart from the similar assertion about cables making a difference. But TAS, of all places ...

 

[teched58]

"The seemingly high cost of good cable is an inevitable consequence of often-arduous prototyping followed by a costly manufacturing run."

Ah, no. When we had our retail operations, cable companies would constantly visit us. Their first sentence on why we should carry their line? "We give you 65% margin!" I have had detailed discussions with cable companies at audio shows with my "dealer hat" on, discussing bling factors of cables and what sells and what doesn't on that front. Folks are so naive here....

SCENE: In the Godfather, the heads of the families are sitting around a large conference table:

Don Zaluchi: I also don't believe in d̶r̶u̶g̶s̶ cables. For years I paid my people extra so they wouldn't do that kind of business.
Somebody comes to them and says, "I have cables; if you put up three, four thousand dollar investment, we can make fifty thousand distributing."
So they can't resist.

 

[Purité Audio]

You think they made Colloms an offer he couldn’t refuse!
Keith

 

[Mojo Warrior]

I don’t understand why Stereophile just doesn’t sack those old buffoons.
Get rid of the lot of them Editor down.
Surely they must realise that no-one believes their BS anymore.
Keith

Subscriptions are way down and readers are way down from its peak years.
Essentially, they are playing their "greatest hits" to the choir. Only the most hard core "subjectivists" will read the article.
You know, the usual flat earthers, tin hat conspiracy lovers and Big Foot/Sasquatch.

 

[mhardy6647]

You know, the usual flat earthers, tin hat conspiracy lovers and Big Foot/Sasquatch.

so... wait...
what's the implied conspiracy? That there's a shadowy cabal of objectivists who are trying to save people money?!?
Heinous!
Such utter, diabolical evil.

 

[Pearljam5000]

I believe in Nordost

 

[BeeKay]

Why keep people clever enough to have a large disposable income to burn from doing stupid things, proofing they maybe less clever or, at least, very vain?

 

[JiiPee]

Maybe we should take a more positive view on this. While it is unethical for the conman to bilk thousands from the dim audiophool, chances are that he may invest the ill-gotten money more wisely. We could look at the whole thing as a nature's way to redirect capital to more productive targets.

 

[TLEDDY]

4k for 3m of speaker cable is the bottom of boutique!

McIntosh CS 3m pair - Jordan Acoustics

Trade-in and 0% finance available. Please call us for further details on 01202 911886.

www.jordanacoustics.co.uk

Not on the McIntosh site…

 

[Soniclife]

Not on the McIntosh site…

I don't get prices on their site when I visit, might be because I'm in the UK, but Cruchfield has them for 3K a pair. Are they much cheaper direct?

 

[Sgt. Ear Ache]

View attachment 452871View attachment 452872
I believe in Nordost

wow! That's got to be the most expensive pair of suspenders I've ever seen!



I didn't (and won't) read the cable article in question but judging by the various bits quoted from it in this thread it's hard to believe it's not written from a purely satirical point of view. It honestly reads like a joke.