IMHO, HP was the most relevant audio equipment critic that we have ever had. Unfortunately, his philosophy as a reviewer is becoming less and less relevant as younger audiophiles move further and further away from adherence to certain standards; especially that, ultimately, our gear should sound like live acoustic instruments playing in a real space. What HP always stressed, and what most are not willing to do today, is that we have to make a commitment to familiarize ourselves with that sound by attending live performances (regardless of preferred genre) before feeling qualified to use terms like "accurate", "neutral" and "musical"; if we do, the inevitable question has to be "compared to what?" It is easy to fall back on the lame excuse that because venues, recording/playback gear, engineers' ears, etc. are all different that the standard is not valid. Personally, I don't feel he any longer receives the respect that he deserves, and many are quick to criticize his writing style while missing the forest for the trees. I hope he succeeds in any future endeavors.
