Best buy,products of the year,5 stars are they always that good?

[gasolin]

When some speakers, amplifiers and all the other hifi products gets a best buy award,product of the year award or mabye just 5 stars, do you think it's always justified that they get a best buy,products of the year award,5 stars?

 

[Pete68]

In the minds of the reviewers - yes. Whether a particular product is right for you is another thing.

 

[bigboss]

Do not forget system synergy. You cannot assume that combining a best buy speaker with a best buy amplifier will give you 5 star results.

 

[GMK]

^^^ Exactly that. I've bought blind before based on an award winner and regretted it. Synergy is everything

 

[CnoEvil]

They are usually good, but that doesn't mean you will always like them.

 

[BigH]

Too many 5 stars, about 45% of products get 5 stars and about 40% 4 stars, I think it is pretty meaningless and new products are always better than the older ones. It is just a rough guide. Many complaints from people who have bought on the strength of reviews. Remember the gear used for testing and the room will no doubt be a lot different from your system and room.

 

[lindsayt]

Within the context of the review, for every 5 star product I've heard I can understand why they gave it 5 stars.

Of course we can all have our own personal 5 star rating systems and how we personally rate any particular component may be very different to how What Hi-Fi rates them - simply because we're using different criteria and a different context.

 

[lpv]

I got my system based on 5 star rating and after a month of having it and playing around with speakers positioning it sound really good in our living room.. detailed, powerfull with right dose of bass... I even bought USB and RCA cables based on 5 stars rating🙂

It's worth to mention that I really didn't like Rotel RA-11 which I replaced with Marantz and rDac.

 

[matthewpiano]

Ultimately a review is an opinion, so 5 stars won't guarantee your satisfaction, particularly as there as so many variables such as the music you listen to, room acoustics, and synergy within the overall system. What the 4 or 5 star review does tell you is that a product meets a high standard and is well worth exploring as a possibility.

Regarding new products versus older ones, I'm not sure things move on all that quickly to be honest. For example, I've owned several highly regarded speakers (including MA BX2, B&W 685, KEF Q300) and, in my room the 1990s Mission 751s work better than any of them. I've also not heard any other standmounters below the PMC DB1i that produce the same atmosphere as the 751s. If I was writing a comparative review between the 751s and some of the newer options, I'd still give the 751s 5 stars.

 

[plastic penguin]

The OP has to remember, also, that any review is carried out in perfect conditions, where the room has been specially treated, and in real time has little connection with everyday listening.

As others have pointed out system synergy and room acoustics is a major influence on how your system sounds.

A review is therefore there to sort the whaeat from the chaff, not necessarily a reference to a particular set-up, room set-up or ears.

 

[bluedroog]

It’s all about personal preference really so one man’s five star might not appeal to another and vice versa. Star ratings are fine for a second option and gathering short lists but really the only opinion that matters is yours. For me I don’t take too much notice as I tend to think WHF has far too many 4 and five star product ratings which undermines my confidence in the system.

 

[Jame5]

As others have said, a very loose guide to short list from. You can usually find a five star review to reassure yourself about a product you like! The speed with which old models lose their 5 star rating does suggest a pace of tech advancement that I find hard to believe.