TAS is definitely coming up. I agree that Stereophile has gone down since many of it's great reviewers have left. I also think the remaining majority are still very good- Mike Fremer, Sam Tellig, robert reina etc. It's still the most important magazine, perhaps because of the ratings. Those ratings dramatically affect the saleability of a used product. For someone like me who is trying to learn about audio by owning and listening to products, I need to have a certain level of 'guarantee' that something will hold its value. For better or worse, it's much easier to sell a $3000 audio component with their 'blessing' of a class A rating. One interesting thing I have found is that the products they rate 'B' tend to be more interesting. Products that have sonic flaws, but also some extreme characteristic that makes them special. My old sonic frontiers sfm-160 amps were a good example. Yes they had less clarity and a transparency than my vt100 which is why they were a class B. But to compensate for this they had more warmth, considerably more power, and a larger soundstage. A better amp for some people. I thought it amazing that the class B ($5500retail) SFM took 3 months to sell for $1600 on the used market whereas (at the time), the ($5000) vt100m2 sold in a few days for 3200 ! Admittedly age was a factor. The conrad-johnson mv-50/mv-55 amps are another example. Those amps play midrange vocals better than anything I've ever heard. They capture the emotional content of a recording better than any amp I've heard. Class B vandersteen 3's ? Less clarity than my Class A rated Virgo's, but a sense of power the virgo couldn't match. Much better rock n roll speaker. You could tell they were a full range 110lb speaker ! I really like the fact that stereophile reviews things in all price classes. When I was younger I bought things out of their class C and D lists, and found I had a pretty good stereo. You can enjoy high end at all price points. I think the mid-priced stuff is where all the fun is anyway. The ultra-expensive stuff all sounds the same - gold plated perfect, but with limited personality. Kind of like (some) of it's buyers.
Wrong direction?
The few "threads" back, a young man was inquiring about class "A" amp. And of course, most of the responses were in regard to class "A" amplifier, also understood by myself as such. Later, the same individual mentioned if able to "...find amp like that, he would further look for class "A" speakers!" Class A speakers? Well, i was wondering what could that be?...For a second i realized that he is referring to a Stereophile grading of the audio equipment! While i have and will be guilty of buying the audio products, unheard, i sure didn't base my decisions on one reviewer opinion or another! Stereophile sale doubles, and sometimes triples during the months of October, and April. "Recommended components" run those months. And the biggest offender, i think, is What HIFI, which reminds of audio "Swap Meet" periodical, with their little flags of "Best buy", or "component of choice" etc, etc...! Stereophile rates their components in class A, B, C and on.... Let see,... between class A and B, what was the determine factor to place the certain product to one or another? Room, cables...mood? So many variables, and controlled and uncontrolled events to "make or brake" one company, or sway one potential customer from buying the pre-amp, that he thought and felt was the ONE. But just changing his mind to purchase another, which was graded one STAR higher! I think, the magazines would be doing the consumer a favor, if those ratings and grading are eliminated. Let the consumer to decide! Especially audio components.