Dealer Ethics? - Anonymous disparagement

Good one cornfed.

I know of an 'unannounced' dealer here on audiogon who continually rips the chief competition to his product lines. Grains of salt... Like all of us, I've been suspicious of several reviews that are just a little too enthusiastic. My favorite is this one dealer who keeps starting chat topics asking if other's have discovered his little known product lines: "Has anyone else heard the fantastic new .... Reference ....". America !

Swampwalker - that's exactly what I mean by unannounced dealer. Someone who appears to be a non-commerical person but who is actually a seller of a competing product. I guess the immorality comes about when it reaches a threshold and when a competing product is dishonestly criticized. I don't like that at all. A dealer can be a guy who believes in his product line & comment favorably on it. No problem. It's a gray area to be sure, especially when accounting for personal taste.

I've recommended components that I happen to have for sale without making a notation. It's still my honest opinion. The obvious moral of this thread is Buyer Beware. I trust audio magazines a lot more than chat rooms. They have a vested interest in maintaining a perception of consistent objectivity. Some of the regulars here who have consistent open minded opinions are very valuable to me as well. Thanks guys!

Hey Swampwalker & cornfed. Thanks for the +1's. Makes me happy, even if it's only in the name of science.
Really, the reasons I don't always disclose if I happen to selling something while proffering a positive opinion are: A) I don't want to bother, B) I feel it is not relvant to my point, and C) it looks like an advertisement. Nothing more, nothing less than that. Besides, I usually express my opinions in qualitative rather than quantitative terms.
RESOLUTION AUDIO CD PLAYERS RULE !!!!!
I would guess a similar pattern is true of some dealers. It's a suspicion of mine that most high end dealers are in it for a love of the game. Sometimes it is nice to 'hide' and be an individual too. Alternatively, I do notice that some industry luminaries get into the 'celebrity' of things a bit too by always using their full name rather than a handle.

- John Landau