Tango said:
And 853guy. You don’t need to rap to me about who has skin-in-the-game and who is not. Audiocrack once said that I am one of the “diplomatic” commenters. I don’t mean no harm to people who sell audio for living. In fact I view myself as one of the supporters of this industry because I am the buyer… Quite a few people in this forum know very well I chose carefully what info I should release and what not in public just because I don’t want to be in the way of their business. Read my past comments and try to find one that I be so absolute to say product a beats product b, or product b knock out product c.
Hello Tango,
Pleasure to make your acquaintance.
My comments were directed at spiritofmusic’s posts, and his posts specifically, which is why it was his posts I quoted in my replies. Up until post #177, I had made no mention of you, and only did so because PeterA asked whether there was a closeted inference I believed you were spreading disinformation, which I believe I clarified definitively with my response to him in that same post.
I do not know, and do not pretend to know anything about you other than what you write on this forum. Therefore I cannot know what you choose to disclose and what you do not, nor your reasons for doing so, and have no interest in trying to guess. I believe I referenced this in my reply to PeterA when I said:
853guy said:
“As to Tango's and Joshua's intentions... I would never dare speculate, and especially so for two gentlemen who I've never met.”
As I believe my posts in this thread are testament to, taking sides in forum disputes is of no interest to me, and idly guessing about the motivations of individuals I do not know is a waste of my time. I have no reason to doubt the veracity of your comments - as I just posted to spiritofmusic in post #180, I consider all opinions worth holding lightly, and I attempt to evaluate them on a case-by-case basis relative to the content of the post, not the personality of the poster.
Nevertheless, I stand by my skin-in-the-game comments. To repeat what I said for the sake of clarity, skin-in-the-game is always relevant apropos accusations of misinformation - but that was neither a veiled accusation toward you, nor toward Joshua. When I said in post #172:
853guy said:
My point is and remains that we would perhaps do well to discuss any reports of “fake news” in the context of harm rather than vested interests. In the specific case mentioned above, the small, boutique manufacturer was far more vulnerable to potential downside from misleading comments made on an online forum than the poster who made them.
...please note, the line “…the specific case mentioned above… ” is a direct reference and response to spiritofmusic’s comments re: the propagation of fake news and a recent apology he made to a manufacturer who is not the topic of this thread, i.e., NOT you and Top Wing.
Again, that is not to justify Joshua’s responses to you, as I believe I made clear when I said further:
853guy said:
I may not share nor endorse all of Joshua’s posts, and I’m certainly not defending him (nor do I believe I need do so), but skin-in-the-game is always relevant apropos accusations of misinformation.
Note, I specifically said “relevant apropos accusations of misinformation” prefaced by numerous questions that suggested irrespective of whether one is a dealer/distributor/manufacturer or an anonymous punter/blogger, we are all ultimately responsible for ensuring we are not party to the propagation of disinformation, and much more importantly, especially in cases in which it has real potential for harm (see footnote (1) at the bottom of post #172). This is of course especially true for those that have more to lose than those who have less to lose. That was the context for my skin-in-the-game comments - no more or less than that.
As to absolutist comments and “product a beats product b, or product b knock out product c” I believe the bolded part below adequately deals with my own personal preferences apropos subjective cartridge evaluations:
853guy said:
Does that invalidate Tango's subjective impressions? No, but on the other hand neither does it justify Joshua's responses. Both Tango and Joshua seem confident in their respective perspectives. It just means we are currently devoid of some information allowing us to better contextualise their comments - i.e., specific, repeatable, directly-comparable set-up variables which as with all things analogue often have large scale impacts on how one perceives performance.
I hope that clarifies things somewhat.
Tango said:
You people who sell audio products should appreciate people like me and so many others in this forum.
This will be my last post in this thread. But allow me to say I do not sell hi-fi in either capacity as a dealer or distributor, online or via brick and mortar, am not a manufacturer or designer, do not work for a print magazine or online blog as a hi-fi reviewer, and have no plans to do so. I derive zero income from the hi-fi industry. Like you, my income is derived from pursuits completely unrelated to the hi-fi industry, though also like you, it has received a generous portion of it, and will so again in the near future. Whether I’m appreciated or not is of no interest to me, I just buy what I like.
Best,
853guy
) in the mm input and a step up which we will have more debate whether my step up is a good match or not. Until now I haven’t said once that this cart is beaten by my other carts. I have not yet find a cart that fit all my preferences. What I have said about this carts were it’s strengths and some sound attributes that I found not as high as the other two carts in comparison. Joshua just got so jumpy about it and react in such a way that only get him into quick sand imo. 
