The Audio Critic

A rarity in Audio. A man of absolute integrity. A honest researcher and truth seeker. A breath of fresh air.

When the voodoo priests and snake oil crowd took over Audio, his days were numbered.

The fact that he causes 'audiophiles' to foam at the mouth and howl at the moon is proof that he speaks the truth. Ranks right up there with Julian Hirsch and Len Feldman.

Try to find copies of his magazine and keep them as a reference to be consulted whenever you feel as if you are drowning in BS.

Cheers

*****It must be quite the burden being the only sane person in a world full of delusional people.******

Lord Yes!!

Cheers

Integrity:
1 : firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values : INCORRUPTIBILITY
2 : an unimpaired condition : SOUNDNESS
3 : the quality or state of being complete or undivided : COMPLETENESS
synonyms see HONESTY

The hostility towards Pete is based on ONE issue. Has
nothing to do with reviews or company ownership. He has to
be trashed because his truths, and his courage to state them,
threaten the entire con.

He didn't play right, so he has to be expelled from the
sandbox. If he was not a man of integrity, he could have
been one of the most celebrated gurus at any of the 'high-
end' rags. All he had to do was say, I can hear WIRE, and
All amps have their own unique sound, and humans can hear
that uniqueness.

I am not an 'audiophile' nor an engineer. I have normal
human hearing. My thoughts and questions are as follows:

Wire is the simplest of electrical components. IF, a person
can hear the differences between Wire, shouldn't that
person be able to hear the difference between something
loaded with devices and as complex as an audio amp? of
course they would be able to do that.

THEN, If you can hear wire, shouldn't you be able to hear
the difference between the two channels in a stereo amp?
Lot more stuff there to affect sound than found in wire.
Surely you would be able to hear the difference between
mono blocks. What about amps on the same assembly line,
serial # 1 vs Amp serial #2 ?? The differences there are
surely greater than between two pieces of wire.

My point is, if you can hear wire, you should be able to hear
EVERYTHING!!

Of course you can't. It's called self-delusion. But, you can
make some quick cash, one million, by demonstrating that you
can hear amps and wire. That money has been of the table
forever.

BTW, if you know of someone who has demonstrated he can
hear wire and amps, inform us please. The statement "I
can hear a difference" don't count.

But the reason I even bother is that, I just hate to see a
bunch of loud mouthed know-nothings trash the founders of
this hobby. They were there when it was a real hobby. Guys
built their systems. Ordering a ready made mega buck
stereo component, is not a hobby.

Cheers

Geoffkait:

I am not saying you, you personally, cannot hear wire. I am not saying any particular individual cannot hear wire. I am saying IF, they can, why don't you/they demonstrate that ability? This whole so-called debate in audio, would and could be ended forever. In 20 minutes tops. Just ONE PERSON has to demonstrate they can hear wire or amps.

No one is OBLIGATED to do so, but I cannot imagine why they would not want to do so. Not to mention the million bucks.

Also, since you can hear wire, it seems a given, that you should be able to hear ANY Component more complex than wire. Can you? Ever owned mono blocks? Did you hear a difference in the two? Can you detect a difference between stereo amp channels? Can you hear a difference between two amps of the same brand and model ?

I would think that a person with the hearing acuity to hear wire should be able to hear all of the above, and more. It also seems to me, that person would be miserable as an audiophile.

Question: When you change wire, why do you do so. Is wire sold stating the changes it will make in your system's sound? If not, how do you know wire to buy? What claims are made by the wire makers? What do you listen for after installing a new wire?

Thanks

Cheers

*****It is amazing that he continued to publish so long given that the only message was that it really did not matter and one is wasting money when buying anything but the cheapest stuff out there-*****

The last review of a power amp I recall seeing in TAC, was on the Parasound A-21. MSRP, $2500 USD. Hardly the cheapest out there. Does he own Parasound also??

He gave it a very positive review. Measurements were outstanding. Build quality excellent. Said it had that "High End" look and feel. How did he say it sounded? It had no sound, just like any other well designed stereo amp.

Sorry. Better luck next time.

Cheers