Trouble on the HomeTheater subreddit with a ban threat:

[DeadBeatAnon]

So there I was, happily reading & posting on the HomeTheater sub. On two different threads, where a user specifically asked for audio gear buying advice, I posted this message: “Check the reviews at Audio Science Review (ASR). The founder of the site, Amir Majidimehr is a retired sound engineer who uses an audio analyzer to post objective reviews.”

Then a Chat Request from the HomeTheater Mod hits my mailbox: “Your comment from hometheater was removed because of: 'Rule IV - Self Promotion'
Hi /u/DeadBeatAnon, This subreddit is not to be leveraged for the financial benefit of any user. You may not promote a service, product, or publication with which you are associated. Failure to disclose a financial association will result in a ban. Products provided or discounted in exchange for a post/comment/review constitute a financial relationship with the providing company. Directing traffic to your own monetized YouTube channel or video is prohibited. Your promotion of this website across multiple comments on multiple subs using the same language is suspiciously spam-like behavior of a site owner. Do not do it again.”

My response below:
********************************************************************************************************
A few facts:

1. I am not the site owner of Audio Science Review (ASR).
2. I have zero financial interest in ASR and never received any financial benefits from ASR.
3. I have never received any products or discounts from ASR.
4. I’ve never directed traffic to any monetized YouTube channel or video.

The ASR site simply reviews audio gear, and has been online since 2016. I joined the site in May 2026 and donated $50 bucks. That’s why my ASR account shows “Forum Donor”, like numerous other ASR users who have donated $20 or more. If mentioning a website that reviews audio gear will result in a ban, then I won’t mention it again.
*******************************************************************************************************

I’ve never had a problem posting links on any other sub. I hope this mod never serves on a jury: Assume guilt without a shred of evidence. On the HomeTheater sub, posting a link to this site may result in a ban. WTF.

 

[kemmler3D]

So there I was, happily reading & posting on the HomeTheater sub. On two different threads, where a user specifically asked for audio gear buying advice, I posted this message: “Check the reviews at Audio Science Review (ASR). The founder of the site, Amir Majidimehr is a retired sound engineer who uses an audio analyzer to post objective reviews.”

Then a Chat Request from the HomeTheater Mod hits my mailbox: “Your comment from hometheater was removed because of: 'Rule IV - Self Promotion'
Hi /u/DeadBeatAnon, This subreddit is not to be leveraged for the financial benefit of any user. You may not promote a service, product, or publication with which you are associated. Failure to disclose a financial association will result in a ban. Products provided or discounted in exchange for a post/comment/review constitute a financial relationship with the providing company. Directing traffic to your own monetized YouTube channel or video is prohibited. Your promotion of this website across multiple comments on multiple subs using the same language is suspiciously spam-like behavior of a site owner. Do not do it again.”

My response below:
********************************************************************************************************
A few facts:

1. I am not the site owner of Audio Science Review (ASR).
2. I have zero financial interest in ASR and never received any financial benefits from ASR.
3. I have never received any products or discounts from ASR.
4. I’ve never directed traffic to any monetized YouTube channel or video.

The ASR site simply reviews audio gear, and has been online since 2016. I joined the site in May 2026 and donated $50 bucks. That’s why my ASR account shows “Forum Donor”, like numerous other ASR users who have donated $20 or more. If mentioning a website that reviews audio gear will result in a ban, then I won’t mention it again.
*******************************************************************************************************

I’ve never had a problem posting links on any other sub. I hope this mod never serves on a jury: Assume guilt without a shred of evidence. On the HomeTheater sub, posting a link to this site may result in a ban. WTF.

Lots of Reddit subs are moderated by people who just need to ban or delete stuff to feel alive. It's like cops who pull you over for no reason, the supposed violation is really not the point.

Also sometimes they have automated rules that trigger these things, in this case it's likely posting the link twice raised the self promotion alarm with no human in the loop.

 

[fpitas]

Amir is resented by many snake-oil profiteers. It's just possible that played a part.

 

[Chrispy]

Be more interesting to see if the manager of the reddit sells based on subjective claims....many FB groups are managed by such. Does he have an identity?

 

[DeadBeatAnon]

Be more interesting to see if the manager of the reddit sells based on subjective claims....many FB groups are managed by such. Does he have an identity?

No, there are four different mods on that sub, and the sender didn't identify himself. The sender header info simply states "MOD".

 

[Redacted]

Reddit is a well-known playground for loonies, and authoritarians pretending to be trendy.
Keep well away, and keep them well away from real people.

 

[DeadBeatAnon]

Also sometimes they have automated rules that trigger these things, in this case it's likely posting the link twice raised the self promotion alarm with no human in the loop.

Understood, but my two posts were like a week apart. And I think they were on separate subs. IIRC, my first post was on the Audiophile sub; my second post (a week later) on the HomeTheater sub. It's not like I was spamming a sub daily. It's quite odd that a link to an audio gear review site on an Audiophile/HomeTheater sub would generate that response. If I have first-hand knowledge of a product, then I'll give my own opinion. If not, well...maybe post a link to ASR with hundreds of product reviews.

 

[fpitas]

Understood, but my two posts were like a week apart. And I think they were on separate subs. IIRC, my first post was on the Audiophile sub; my second post (a week later) on the HomeTheater sub. It's not like I was spamming a sub daily. It's quite odd that a link to an audio gear review site on an Audiophile/HomeTheater sub would generate that response. If I have first-hand knowledge of a product, then I'll give my own opinion. If not, well...maybe post a link to ASR with hundreds of product reviews.

I'm not familiar with how those forums work. Do they have advertisers who might not like ASR?

 

[Chrispy]

No, there are four different mods on that sub, and the sender didn't identify himself. The sender header info simply states "MOD".

Could be all four share the opinion that ASR isn't the usual mainstream subjective audio content....I haven't bothered with Reddit in years, particularly their audiophile section.

 

[DeadBeatAnon]

I'm not familiar with how those forums work. Do they have advertisers who might not like ASR?

No, I haven't seen any advertisements on /r/hometheater or /r/audiophile.

 

[kemmler3D]

I'm not familiar with how those forums work. Do they have advertisers who might not like ASR?

Yes but probably not affiliated with the people running the forum. Reddit has ads but it's more like Facebook groups where the group admin doesn't control the ads - and importantly, don't see any of the money from the ads.

The forums are basically run by volunteers, which is where you get the power trip mentality, but also the heavy handed automated warnings and bans, since they can't be super active moderating all day.

I used to spend an ungodly amount of time on Reddit and I lean towards automation on this one. If it was an uptight mod they'd respond with something high-handed and dismissive when OP wrote their own response.

 

[Chrispy]

Yes but probably not affiliated with the people running the forum. Reddit has ads but it's more like Facebook groups where the group admin doesn't control the ads - and importantly, don't see any of the money from the ads.

The forums are basically run by volunteers, which is where you get the power trip mentality, but also the heavy handed automated warnings and bans, since they can't be super active moderating all day.

I used to spend an ungodly amount of time on Reddit and I lean towards automation on this one. If it was an uptight mod they'd respond with something high-handed and dismissive when OP wrote their own response.

Curious, you know of any restriction of the mods of such reddit groups prohibited by reddit to promoting any particular business or audio belief ?

 

[Chrispy]

Did you protest to reddit about the mod?

 

[Keith_W]

That reminds me of the novel by H.G. Wells, "The Country of the Blind". The novel flips around the old proverb "in the valley of the blind, the one eyed man is king". The protagonist stumbles across a hidden village where everybody is blind. When they find out that he can see, they think he has some kind of madness. They want to "cure" him by poking his eyes out. He eventually barely escapes with his life.

In a way, we can "see" things that subjectivists can't. We have measurement tools that can prove or disprove whether a phenomenon is real. So when you go to a subjectivist forum thinking you have something to contribute, be aware that those guys resent you. You don't have enlightenment, you have a dangerous mental illness. They will treat you the exact same way the villagers in H.G. Wells' novel did - they'll try to drive you out.

 

[kemmler3D]

Curious, you know of any restriction of the mods of such reddit groups prohibited by reddit to promoting any particular business or audio belief ?

I don't think there is any such restriction. The only stuff not allowed on Reddit is pretty extreme AFAIK. Businesses often have their own forums.

 

[ShadowBoxer]

The protagonist stumbles across a hidden village where everybody is blind. When they find out that he can see, they think he has some kind of madness.

I wonder if the Apple-TV series "See" was inspired by that? Same idea (Jason Momoa stars). Good acting by the cast.

 

[Red_Red]

That reminds me of the novel by H.G. Wells, "The Country of the Blind". The novel flips around the old proverb "in the valley of the blind, the one eyed man is king". The protagonist stumbles across a hidden village where everybody is blind. When they find out that he can see, they think he has some kind of madness. They want to "cure" him by poking his eyes out. He eventually barely escapes with his life.

In a way, we can "see" things that subjectivists can't. We have measurement tools that can prove or disprove whether a phenomenon is real. So when you go to a subjectivist forum thinking you have something to contribute, be aware that those guys resent you. You don't have enlightenment, you have a dangerous mental illness. They will treat you the exact same way the villagers in H.G. Wells' novel did - they'll try to drive you out.

Hahaha, that kind of slightly outlandish comparison is hilarious!!!! Thanks - seriously - for the epic fit of laughter you gave me!

But then again, in this short story by H.G. Wells, "Nuñez" is also - first and foremost - "blinded" by the opportunism of the situation (as you quoted: "In the Country of the Blind, the One-Eyed Man is King") even though the outcome seems to be dramatically in his favor......

So, regarding DeadBeatAnon's current situation, the comparison is a bit of a stretch... but very very funny!

 

[DeadBeatAnon]

Did you protest to reddit about the mod?

No, I just decided to vent here on ASR and "let sleeping dogs lie". I have a sharp temper and don't want to escalate & risk a reddit ban. I've been banned from a few sites for sparring with a mod. I'm retired and maybe have too much time on my hands.

 

[Flaesh]

only stuff not allowed on Reddit is pretty extreme

Is it extreme enough to consider a home theater setup with 9 or 11 channels like these?: