Should there be guidelines for recommending equipment?

[admin_exported]

I'm in the market for some new speakers and have been looking at the various hifi sites on the web.

I'd be the first to agree that my gear isn't the most common, but I'm hesitant to ask what forum members would recommend as upgrades. Apart from the fact not many would have heard my particular setup either together or individually, I can't help noticing that there seems to be an increasing trend for members to recommend equipment they haven't actually heard.

I can surf the internet with the best of them and have read numerous posts about the speakers that appeal to me (Dynaudio) but really don't understand the point of recommending brand x or brand y unless you have experience of them, and not because someone somewhere said they were good. It doesn't seem to add anything, and may in fact mislead. Everyone knows it's impossible for the average hifi enthusiast to have heard anything more than a small selection of what is available, and that's why we have magazines such as this one to provide a broad range of reviews.

I'm happy to accept there is a "family sound" with some products, of course, but advising someone to buy something unheard is surely not good practice.

Surely there should be a basic guideline that says if you haven't heard a product, then don't say anything about it. I'm as keen to hear opinions as anyone else, but not what is tantamount to hearsay. To me it adds zero to my stock of information about something when I read things like "Brand x is highly thought of in the community" or "People who have brand y really rate them".

Am I off the mark here? Maybe it's because winter is setting in here and the hours of daylight are beginning to shorten noticeably that causes my cynicism.

That said, what would you recommend to replace my Tannoys with?

 

[matthewpiano]

Completely agree. I only comment on equipment that I've heard. Consequently I can't really help you because I don't know your Densen amp.

 

[idc]

So long as you show your reasoning and make it clear you have not heard something, I see no problem with suggesting products that you have not heard personally.

 

[Anonymous]

I understand your point and don't completely disagree. Unfortunately in my experience the advice from people whether they've heard equipment or not is still highly subjective. This includes magazine reviews. Sometimes people have read up on a subject more than you and can offer some interesting input. This is no more or less valuable than a magazine review. Auditioning is the only answer.

 

[carter]

thats why i tend not to give equipment advice as im pretty new to this hobby.but many of the guys have loads of experiance and the bottom line the final choice has to be your decision and i would always demo the gear even if it meant waiting untill i could

 

[idc]

Even if someone does have a Densen with Tannoys, it could still be described by them in terms that you find contradictory to how you find such in your room with your ears. The best you can hope for is a rough guide as what goes well with what and if that means some anecdotal reports, so be it.

I partly chose AKG headphones to go with a Musical Fidelity amp as I saw more kit signatures with that combination than any other.

 

[the record spot]

As someone who does this most of the time (suggest equipment I've not heard) I have no problem with the idea behind it, or continuing to do it. Often it can simply be a case of suggesting an item that's matched what appears to be in line with what the questioner is looking for and they've not mentioned the brand. Sometimes it might be down to functionality offered. And, if you think about it, what works in one review, or in someone's system might well not match up quite so well in another set-up (see the debate around B&W's 685 on another thread on here). It's all valid.

I make it perfectly clear that something "might" suit another's needs/wants, or that an item has reviewed well and appears to fit the requirements. And ultimately, I'd expect someone posting on here to also do their own legwork, decide what kind of sound they like, what equipment best delivers that and research accordingly.

As to your query, hence, I am unable to suggest something as you've not mentioned about budget, what kind of sound you're looking for or whether you want floorstanders or standmount speakers and if you'd buy new only or also consider secondhand.

The C4SE was very well rated in its day from memory - still highly respected now and punched well above its weight by all accounts. One reviewer - whose name I forget - reckoned it was up there with a higher end item that was in the four figure bracket. Can't recall what that was either! It wasn't a case of it being "can't tell the difference" but it wasn't far off the performance. I think it has the Philips 1541 DAC onboard doesn't it? The amp's also a good 'un and the speakers were part of a good range that Tannoy put out in the 90s. They obviously made for a good balance when put together.

 

[carter]

idc:

Even if someone does have a Densen with Tannoys, it could still be described by them in terms that you find contradictory to how you find such in your room with your ears. The best you can hope for is a rough guide as what goes well with what and if that means some anecdotal reports, so be it.

I partly chose AKG headphones to go with a Musical Fidelity amp as I saw more kit signatures with that combination than any other.

great point

i love my rotel and mezzo 2 combo and nobody can doubt there quality but thay arent to everybodys taste.

 

[chebby]

Grottyash:That said, what would you recommend to replace my Tannoys with?

Anything really.

I had the misfortune to own some 631s for a few days once. I took them back and got Mordaunt Short MS20s (pre 'i' versions) instead.

Cheap, nasty finish ('flashing' from the moulding process left untrimmed on the plastic tops and bases) and thin gutless sound.

 

[matthewpiano]

idc:So long as you show your reasoning and make it clear you have not heard something, I see no problem with suggesting products that you have not heard personally.

Yep, agree with this actually. The key is that such recommendations should be qualified.

 

[carter]

chebby:

Grottyash:That said, what would you recommend to replace my Tannoys with?

Anything really.

I had the misfortune to own some 631s for a few days one. I took them back and got Mordaunt Short MS20s (pre 'i' versions) instead.

Cheap, nasty finish ('flashing' from the moulding process left untrimmed on the plastic tops and bases) and thin gutless sound.

check out focal ,some great sounding speakers thay have a open natural sound in my opinion.

 

[jaxwired]

I rarely recommend gear I have not heard. Much of the time I've actually owned the kit I recommend. However, I still don't agree with the OP. Some people are coming here with little or no experience. The hifi nuts on this site can save someone days of research and many of us have decades of experience that makes it possible to give good advice regardless of actually hearing the gear. Most of the the time we are only steering the person to the right gear to demo. And people on this sight always tell posters not to buy blind.

While it's true that anyone can read reviews on the internet, some people might not want to spend days reading dozens of reviews and posts, not to mention back issues of hifi mags (hard as it is for us to imagine

). We are doing people a big favor by providing our opinions after years of involvment in the hobby.

I'm grateful to anyone that has provided me such feedback even if I was too hard headed not to listen about not buying blind (spendor debacle

)

 

[the record spot]

chebby:
Grottyash:That said, what would you recommend to replace my Tannoys with?

Anything really.

I had the misfortune to own some 631s for a few days once. I took them back and got Mordaunt Short MS20s (pre 'i' versions) instead.

Cheap, nasty finish ('flashing' from the moulding process left untrimmed on the plastic tops and bases) and thin gutless sound.

Odd as the 631s I heard when the Philips CD850 were demonstrated to me were impressive for their size I thought. This was on the end of an Audiolab 8000A. Anything but thin or gutless. Quite the contrary in fact.

 

[chebby]

the record spot:Anything but thin or gutless. Quite the contrary in fact.

Quelle suprise.

 

[Anonymous]

Q.E.D

 

[Andrew Everard]

chebby:Quelle suprise.

Quel dommage, je pense que vous trouverez...

 

[the record spot]

chebby:
the record spot:Anything but thin or gutless. Quite the contrary in fact.

Quelle suprise.

Not sure of the point of your post - that you happened to find a pair you thought as you did, or that I heard a pair I thought differently of? Rather proves an earlier point I think.

 

[Anonymous]

Andrew, I think you've accidentally hit the 'French' button on your browser...

 

[Anonymous]

Besides, most hi fi by well known companies offer kits where you can't go wrong , even if you have not auditioned them . Pro hi fi journalists are a great source for direction . As for reviewing music , they absolutely stink . I'm in the midst of selling off some equipment and purchasing a nad pre/power combo with - in the future - a clearaudio emotion se tt . Have I heard it ? No . But I've very seldom gone wrong and no I'm not selling my naim / totem marriage . It's a keeper . I think most people do not want to fuss over reviewing there choices , especially stereo systems because it's not a like a car lot where you have one at every corner of the neighborhood , in North America , anyways

When I purchased my naim kit , I contacted Totem Acoustic and they recommended the naim over the entry level amp by bryston and the bryston is no slouch either .

 

[Singslinger]

I've only ever heard the Densen driving Spendor SA1s, the latter on their dedicated stands - a great combo with a nice, clean, punchy sound not unlike Naim driving the same speakers.

That's about the extent of my experience with Densen though.

PS I think it's OK for contributors to recommend whatever they like because it gives more options to the person seeking help.

It'd be better if the recommender qualifies his statements by saying whether he or she has actually auditioned the equipment but if not, that's still fine with me. Ultimately, I'd like to think I'm savvy enough to trust my own ears and vote with my wallet and not rely on the judgement of others.

 

[Frank Harvey]

Grottyash:I'd be the first to agree that my gear isn't the most common, but I'm hesitant to ask what forum members would recommend as upgrades. Apart from the fact not many would have heard my particular setup either together or individually, I can't help noticing that there seems to be an increasing trend for members to recommend equipment they haven't actually heard.I can surf the internet with the best of them and have read numerous posts about the speakers that appeal to me (Dynaudio) but really don't understand the point of recommending brand x or brand y unless you have experience of them, and not because someone somewhere said they were good.
This is a common thing. I've noticed on another forum that every man and his dog will have an opinion if you ask for help, whether they've heard the products themselves or not. Most opinions seem to be based on what they've read rather than what they've heard. It's a case of taking advice lightly, detecting and overlooking the pretenders, and getting out to some deems to formulate your own opinion - after all, you have to live with what you buy!

 

[ID.]

You'd be surprised by just how many people seem to post a question on the forum without looking stuff up on the web. I also agree with the comment that others may have read a lot of stuff that isn't available online. Personally I've given opinions based on reviews that weren't in English so would probably have sipped under the radar of even fairly diligent Googling.

When I comment I try to include my degree of experience with the kit, or whether I'm just going off what I've been told in-store or read, and hopefully the reader is smart enough to use that when deciding how much weight to give my recommendation. You know what opinions are like? Everyone's got them, so make of them what you will. Ignore them, take them on board...

That said

I've nothing to add about your Tannoys

 

[Alec]

idc:So long as you show your reasoning and make it clear you have not heard something, I see no problem with suggesting products that you have not heard personally.

Agreed, but that is important.

 

[idc]

al7478:
idc:So long as you show your reasoning and make it clear you have not heard something, I see no problem with suggesting products that you have not heard personally.


Agreed, but that is important.



Yes, for example I have suggested the AKG K271 MkII for people who want leak less headphones, based on reviews that they leak less sound than their competitors and not my own experience.

I would also suggest emphasising the word suggest rather than recommend.

 

[Gusboll]

Grottyash:Should there be guidelines for recommending equipment

No, I believe that I should retain the right to recommend whatever I wish with or without the need to justify it. What you choose to do with that information is up to you.

Currently listing to: Mothers Of Invention - Weasels Ripped My Flesh