A real review

To Doug Schneider,

Re: “Xtremely Unappealing” on SoundStageGlobal.com

Thanks so much for a real review! Price is so often mistaken as an indicator of sound quality! A good example is the time I switched a Walkman CD player into a friend’s system while he was in the bathroom in place of about $3000 worth of DAC-upsample-black-magic stuff. We listened the rest of the night and after three hours he still couldn't tell the difference! Boy, was he pissed when I revealed the switch. Good to see someone tell the truth.

Patrick L.

Not all high-priced equipment is a rip-off but, certainly, some of it is. You’re also right that higher prices are often associated with better sound quality when, in fact, many times the opposite is true. I've written articles about this in the past and will likely write more in the future.

For me, what’s unsettling is that too many reviewers aren’t calling foul on these high-priced, ill-performing products. Instead, many are turning a blind eye to them or, in some cases, actually endorsing overpriced junk. Over time, though, I think this will backfire on them because the only way credibility can be established and maintained is to not be afraid to speak your mind and to say what’s true. . . . Doug Schneider