hp soundings

[Soundminded]

Why would someone who sells a product for thousands of dollars not have it ready for use when it leaves the factory (or garage depending on just how small a manufacturer he is? ) Why would he think that before it gets on a showroom floor to compete against other equipment for a share of the market the dealer will do it for him? Why wouldn't he be concerned that the customer who buys it would be patient enough to wait out the break in period before becoming disgusted and disappointed in the way it works not to return it before it's broken in? And finally what makes anyone think that the physical changes equipment undergoes during a break in period will stop when it reaches a point where it performs the way the customer wants it to and expects it to? Why wouldn't it keep changing? How many manufacturers of equipment who claim it needs a break in period test equipment that has been broken in, that is operating over various time spans to determine exactly what changes have occurred and whether or not they have become stable? Personally, I would not buy any audio equipment that needs breaking in. An automobile engine yes (even that is becoming a thing of the past.) Audio equipment no.

 

[Bill Hart]

So, to get back to HP, I still wonder why he didn't make a call or text to Wilson or Wolf for a review sample in those last few years he was still with TAS. He had a lot of gears as we can see in his music rooms, Scanea, NOLA and Maggies. I think with his reputation, he need not attend a show to ask for a review sample.

I have no idea what the inner workings of TAS have been, but wasn't he relegated to 'emeritus' status; and who really makes the decisions on what to publish and what to review? Is it the editor or product review editor, working together with the reviewers? If that's the case, he may not have had much choice. I suspect, apart from health issues he may have had, that his small role in the magazine these last few years was not necessarily his choice. Pure speculation on my part.

 

[Gregadd]

A lot of people have uninformed opinions. HP went to bat for me on a couple of occasions. No doubt under threat of publishing my complaint. It resulted in a personal call from the offending party and a quick resolution of the matter at no cost to me. I am sure I am not the only one who benefited from his intervention

 

[Soundminded]

A lot of people have uninformed opinions. HP went to bat for me on a couple of occasions. No doubt under threat of publishing my complaint. It resulted in a personal call from the offending party and a quick resolution of the matter at no cost to me. I am sure I am not the only one who benefited from his intervention

I've heard through the grapevine that Secretary of State Clinton hearing of his mediation prowess has asked him to see what he can do about resolving the conflict in Egypt. Once he settles that small dispute, rumor also has it he's going to be the UN's last best hope for peacefully ending the conflict in Syria. Hey, what have they got to lose by letting him try, nobody else seems to be able to get the job done.

 

[Gregadd]

If only the US was serious about settling the Middle East conflict. They could do it today.

 

[Andre Marc]

If only the US was serious about settling the Middle East conflict. They could do it today.View attachment 6918

Oh really? LOL. Clinton offered the Palestinians 99% of their demands during his presidency at
during an intense 50 day negotiation period and they walked away. Arafat did not want to give
up his mistresses, his luxury flat in Paris, and his 100 million that he stole from his people.

Let's got on facts here.

 

[Gregadd]

Arafat is dead. Thanks for proving my point. The football always gets moved. It is a common tactic to offer a settlement that appears reasonable on its face but you know cannot be accepted. See current fiscal cliff negotiations.

 

[FrantzM]

If only the US was serious about settling the Middle East conflict. They could do it today.View attachment 6918

If there is a better example of oversimplification ....

 

[Andre Marc]

Arafat is dead. Thanks for proving my point. The football always gets moved. It is a common tactic to offer a settlement that appears reasonable on its face but you know cannot be accepted. See current fiscal cliff negotiations.

No....those are not the facts.

 

[garylkoh]

If only the US was serious about settling the Middle East conflict. They could do it today.View attachment 6918

Hate to pull the ball out from under you, but IMHO that US would have no chance of settling a conflict that started 750 years before the coming of Christ and culminated in the annexation of lands by the UN in 1947 to re-create the state of Israel - which was supported by neither the US nor Britain by the way.

Many in the Middle East still see the US as Christian Crusaders out to conquer the region again - same way they still see the US as forcing Jews to migrate to the Middle East because the US had immigration policies that excluded Jews before WWII.

 

[Gregadd]

Great minds like Alan Dershowitz and Noam Chomsky debated this issue with no resolution. Classic rivalries have ended. England vs the IRA is an example. The problem is the US treats Israel like a spoiled child, backing any action the care to take. Cut off their aid an see how they react.

 

[NorthStar]

The fact that you think this is all a big conspiracy is laughable.

--- No, that, is your own interpretration of my words. I assure you right now that it is not what I think like you said, "a big conspiracy". So, please erase that from your mind. :b

If you feel that you are an "innocent person that has been robbed without compassion," you really need to do your homework more.

---- Lol, if there is one person here who does a lot of research, I am certainly one of them, I think.

Most reviews miss something. Even when I've spent a couple of months listening to a component, trying this combination and that, I always wish I would have spent even more time with it. But you can't really expect a mfr. to leave a five or six figure component with you for a year.

---- I fully agree with you; that is why the readers, us, we have to be 'above' it. :b

I'm really curious, what "fatal flaw" did you not discover until it was "too late?"

---- It was the bass management of a Blu-ray player by Samsung.
- The reviewer said that it was a great feature to have a 7.1 multichannel analog output for people having a pre/pro or receiver of vintage years, so that they can have the high res audio decoded inside the player and output through that connection, and have the high def picture directly from the HDMI out to the HDMI in on your HDTV. That was a while ago, before I upgraded my components.
He did not check that there wasn't any speaker levels, any speaker distance adjustments in the player!
And Samsung's own website did not mention that either. But I was assuming that if you put a feature like that in a player with a premium price, that it is the least that you can expect. I was wrong! And I felt betrayed.
Not the end of the world, just $400 wasted.

- And another $800 wasted from another product of theirs because they stopped supporting it by not giving anymore firmware updates.
Now that player cannot play several Blu-ray discs, and have big issues with many of my HD DVD discs as well.

And my plasma ($2,000), also from them, has developed annoying 'flashing pixels'. ...Semi-dormant, useless.

All a review is for, even the best review, is to help you, the consumer put something on your short list to
audition and test drive for yourself, to see if it truly suits your needs, works in your system and within your
budget constraints.

---- That particular review (BD player) did not meet its objective; it did not help but it did more harm than good. I'm careful now with this particular reviewer, and also with this particular company. And even more so because it happened before too, and even after.

Please let me know what manufacturer has deceived you. I'll be happy to make an introduction for you at
the next CES. I'm sure if you told them in person, they would happily refund your money.

---- Like I said, Samsung.
But the reviewer is as guilty as well for not checking out.

- I did contact Samsung, and not only for that isssue but several ones too from other products of theirs; one of the worst customer service around!
...No compensations were ever offered to me (few products); the only thing that I got is more aggravation!
I learned a valuable lesson, at my own financial and 'time consuming' and 'emotional frustration' expenses. No more thank you very much.

You sound a bit dramatic here. "Destruction of vital organs?" Really?

---- Just my sense of humor. :b

If all else fails, start your own magazine/website, so you can tell us the real truth.

---- Lol, few people in the past encouraged me to start my own site, but I'm happy here among you smart people. :b ..The philosophies behind WBF are meeting mine just right on.

* By the way, what is your 'real' first name?

 

[NorthStar]

Arafat is dead. Thanks for proving my point. The football always gets moved. It is a common tactic to offer a settlement that appears reasonable on its face but you know cannot be accepted. See current fiscal cliff negotiations.

---- How did he die? ...Wasn't poison involved, and by whom? :b

 

[mep]

Aren't we teetering into the no man's political land here? I thought WBF was supposed to be free of politics even though people tip-toe into those dangerous waters ever so often. Hell, we can't play nice in the audio sandbox without someone wanting to dump sand down someone else's shorts.

 

[Steve williams]

I agree


Bob. You continue to drag threads OT and I am going to ask you to cease and desist

Now unless we get this thread back OT I will close it

 

[TBone]

Now unless we get this thread back OT I will close it

I'd shred it instead, when I read this type of totally ignorant crap ...

"if only the US was serious about settling the Middle East conflict. They could do it today."

... it deserve the garbage treatment.

tb1

 

[Gregadd]

Don't take my word for it. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/noam-chomsky/a-middle-east-peace-that_b_554178.html

Sorry Steve. That's my last word.

 

[Steve williams]

as I said, unless the thread is back OT it will be closed