For audio advice, which channels, if any, do you think are worthwhile on YouTube?


I've seen several posts by newbies on Agon looking for advice. Great to see a lot of good advice being offered to them, along with helpful prompts asking them for details they might not have considered.

Still, a lot of people looking for advice don't go to audio fora; they go to YouTube. I've now spent 8 months reading fora and watching YouTube channels pretty closely. My sense is that even many of the video commenters with thousands of subscribers on YouTube have significant gaps to their knowledge and experience. Some even accept sponsorship by companies. Such folks are not amateurs; but they're at best semi-professional. Still, their advice moves a lot of product, gets YouTube money, and the machine churns on.

I've learned a lot from YouTubers, but when I compare the average base of knowledge there to what I find in many folks here, it seems somewhat erratic and often thin. (I'm judging this from a semi-newbie status myself, so if I'm wrong please tell me.)

QUESTION: If you were recommending a YouTube or a video site to someone looking to educate themselves about the basics of audio gear and also various commercial products, where would you send someone?

128x128hilde45
very good:
british audiophile tarun
john darko - esp. with digital
audio excellence canada

ok:
thomas stereo - interesting perspectives, great at start, now falling into clickbait trap
zero fidelity - lower end stuff
next best thing - good ears, doesn’t speak well
guttenberg - sometimes - mr clickbait himself

hmmmm:
kevin deal upscale - knows a lot but in full on 'sell you this' mode
perfect pursuit uk - hard to watch
ps audio - paul means well but he is losing it... serious crazy rambling uncle syndrome

as usual, everything with a grain of salt



Excellent thread - long overdue.

For sure there are plenty of entertaining channels out there. I can’t imagine many not liking Craig from Vinyl TV or the Audiophiliac himself, Steve Guttenberg.

However, if it’s sheer information you’re after then 2 channels readily come to mind.


For depth of knowledge it’s hard to look much further than Gene DellaSala’s fabulously informative Audioholics channel.

With his reliable sidekicks Matthew Poes and James Larson you might not always like what they say, (I’m still smarting from Matt’s offhand comments about Tannoy speakers), but you can be pretty certain these guys will tell you like it is.

https://www.youtube.com/c/Audioholics


As for vinyl, my long time favourite has been the HiViNyws channel.

The sheer enthusiasm and explicit honesty from Ian’s reviews are a timely breath of fresh air.

I’m not too sure what else you might need to know regarding real world vinyl playback that you couldn’t find here.

https://www.youtube.com/c/HiViNywschannel
@fuzztone 

totally agree fuzz

hans b on digital is superb... excellent content tremendous knowledge
My fave is "Home on the Range" for general info and entertainment.

Here are a couple of links to highlights of the series...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92ArlxnBAk4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5I7l990jgWs

The series lightens my my mental stress load prior to listening to music (with the same intent).

DeKay
Hans B has a long career and genuine expertise. I also like him for his humility and independence from companies. He’s not a poseur or peacock. 
SG has plenty of experience but lacks some technical knowledge and his reviews are getting too short IMO. 

I like the depth of Sean's reviews on ZF but I question his ears. Personality wise he's not the type I'd want to have a beer with. 

Thomas is my favorite because he seems the most transparent regarding his knowledge and experience. Also has a relaxed, non-pretensious manner of speaking.