Home Critic's Corner

Discuss a review. Provide constructive feedback. Talk to the industry.

RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (Stupidly, Painfully Long)

> Your rave [of the Mark Levinson No.38S] is still up on the Stereophile
> website, but Harley's dismissal of the original version is MIA - all that
> is linked are photos of it. Is that deliberate or accidental?

It appears to be accidental. The Harley review is still listed in the
solid-state preamplifiers section - see link below - but the link does
indeed lead to a photo of the No.38 that a reader posted in our website
galleries in 2010. I suspect that when he did so, it overwrote the review
entry. I have retrieved the text and graphs for the Harley review from my
archive and will repost it tomorrow.

> I couldn't help but notice that TAS gave the same amp a rave review . . .
> except that particular review was done by Dick Olsher. DO used to work
> for Stereophile for many years, but has diverged down his own weird path.

Dick left Stereophile in 1997 to work for Fi, then he followed Robert Harley
to TAS. The difference between the two magazines' reviews of the Linear
Tube Audio amp is that we stuck with the manufacturer-recommended tubes,
but Dick rolled the tubes until he found some that he liked. This is
against our policy but not those of TAS.

> And even though the ZOTL40 manufacturer was allowed to defend himself in
> the "Manufacturer's Comment" section, all we got was some mealy-mouth,
> "Thank you for the review. We've heard our amplifier sound really good
> before. We urge your readers to listen and decide for themselves." So who
> holds the power here?

Please note that I never censor what manufacturers submit for publication.
"Manufacturers' Comments" is their space to say what they wish, and as you
note, Roy Hall has lambasted us on many an occasion. Him doing so doesn't
have any effect on what we write about his products.

Other than these clarifications, I have nothing to say about your other
comments, Charley. We both do what we feel is best for our ventures.
Oftentimes, our actions coincide; sometimes they don't. No harm no foul.

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile


This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
  Parts Connexion  


Follow Ups Full Thread
Follow Ups

FAQ

Post a Message!

Forgot Password?
Moniker (Username):
Password (Optional):
  Remember my Moniker & Password  (What's this?)    Eat Me
E-Mail (Optional):
Subject:
Message:   (Posts are subject to Content Rules)
Optional Link URL:
Optional Link Title:
Optional Image URL:
Upload Image:
E-mail Replies:  Automagically notify you when someone responds.