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Reviewer : Michael Fremer

I'm not against expensive hi-fi but the engineering and build need to have some correlation to performance.

Having exhibited at some of the worlds top Hi-Fi shows I can whole heartedly agree with that comment!

80%-90% of todays Hi-Fi is more about branding, exclusivity, technology and very little to do with audio performance and what will make recorded music sound more realistic in the home environment.
 
He doesn't come across as either very decent or provoked in the link I posted earlier.

The Randi thing was interesting because despite being a non-scientist he doesn't seem to have checked with someone that understood home audio before setting the conditions for the initial cable challenge. If Fremer had made contact with someone that understood home audio he would have been $1 million better off plus lots of audiophile cred. I am pretty sure Randi's back pedalling was because someone told him how to pass his challenge.
IIRC the Randi thing boiled down to the two cables having to be electrically equivalent, hence they will sound the same, unless something paranormal is occurring, which wasn't an acceptable condition for Fremer. Impasse essentially.

The saga does confirm that Fremeresque cablephiles concur that cables don't have a sound for surprising reasons. I'm not sure they've thought through what that implies for the $30000 a run jobs.

But I enjoy reading him, and his video was very entertaining. It's clear what comes first. Not so sure about the reviewer phenomenon though.

Paul
 
IIRC the Randi thing boiled down to the two cables having to be electrically equivalent, hence they will sound the same, unless something paranormal is occurring, which wasn't an acceptable condition for Fremer. Impasse essentially.

Randi came across as the shyster here; he made a huge huff, puff and bluster arguing it was impossible to tell audio cables apart, and then as soon as Fremer rose to the bait with examples he quickly changed the rules of his test only to include identical measuring cables. Which audio cables obviously aren’t, thus making the test of no relevance whatsoever to the audio industry. Fremer pwned him IMO.
 
Perhaps, but cables that are different may sound different, no surprise, and no need for $30000. Randi is about paranormal. If cables are normal then the challenge isn't applicable.

IOW he's not going to give you $1m for hearing the adjustment of a tone control.

The conclusion about the expensive cable industry though is obvious. It's prime Randi territory, but it requires a believer, a foo cable supplier and an engineer to duplicate the foo for pennies. And the former will not accept the latter.

Paul
 
IIRC the Randi thing boiled down to the two cables having to be electrically equivalent, hence they will sound the same, unless something paranormal is occurring, which wasn't an acceptable condition for Fremer. Impasse essentially.
Not quite. IIRC he required the cables to be electrically equivalent over the audible frequency range and allowed the use of any audiophile hardware. Under these conditions someone with a reasonable knowledge of how audio equipment works could arrange for audible differences to arise. I strongly suspect being told about this is what changed Randi's behaviour from baiting and provoking cable pushers (he was not interested in cable users) to backpedalling.
 
...IIRC he required the cables to be electrically equivalent over the audible frequency range and allowed the use of any audiophile hardware. Under these conditions someone with a reasonable knowledge of how audio equipment works could arrange for audible differences to arise.....
How? Shielding to ground at only one end etc are NOT electrically equivalent
 
This one is hilarious.

He's clearly a very good comedian, when he said 'slut' vinyl as opposed to 'virgin' I almost fell out of my chair!


It was the German rectangular inner sleeve description that gave me a great Sunday morning laugh.
 
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Randi came across as the shyster here; he made a huge huff, puff and bluster arguing it was impossible to tell audio cables apart, and then as soon as Fremer rose to the bait with examples he quickly changed the rules of his test only to include identical measuring cables. Which audio cables obviously aren’t, thus making the test of no relevance whatsoever to the audio industry. Fremer pwned him IMO.

Randi never intended the test to have any relevance to the audio industry. He has always gone after the scamsters who claim paranormal powers - and in this case, people who claim "there is a difference, but science doesn't know how to measure it".
 
One approach would be to use a nonlinearity in a frequency range where the properties of the cables differ to alias different information into the audible frequency range. To get energy into this frequency range one could add, for example, ultrasonic tones to a high resolution "audiophile" recording but this is a bit crude. An alternative could be to use instability in a boutique "audiophile" amplifier or design/modify one for the purpose. One could work with an "audiophile" plasma tweeter to do something acoustically. I expect there are a number of other approaches that people who know something about home audio could come up with.
 
Didn't think much to the story re the guy who had a stroke. Juvenile bordering on supremacy imo :(

I think you might have missed the point -- to me, his impression of the chap who'd had the stroke was tragic, in that the chap is probably trying to tell his family: "What are you doing, that's a first pressing SXL and is worth 100s not $1!!!!" but can't. Made me think, I really must do the same with my kids...
 
That’s how I heard it too. I’m certainly not a huge fan of impersonating the handicapped, but he made the point well.
 
I was actually being serious, not facetious, I genuinly find him funny in a nice way.

I found him entertaining and he reminded me of Woody Allen. My thoughts were; what a mess? how many records! and you paid what for cables!!!

I have to agree that vinyl wows more than digital.
 
OK, changing the subject, we're now onto the second Fremer video (the DVD I think he wants you to buy). He extols the virtues of the British vinyl and derides the American "slut" vinyl. Whether it's "slut" or not I can usually tell an American pressing from the 60's because the edge is not sharp so it's nicer to handle.
 
I agree with him on the poor vinyl quality of many American albums, especially in the 70s when it got very noisy due to being recycled etc, but the cut and cover quality tends to be truly superb, e.g. original Impulse, Blue Note, RCA Living Stereo pressings etc. No UK album has ever had a cover as nicely made as a 60s Impulse. It is interesting comparing UK original jazz vinyl against its American counterpart, the vinyl is lovely and quiet, but the sound is often dead in the water compared to the US original cut. I assume due to being a tape generation or two later given it is an American musical form and that is where most of it was recorded. Blue Note, Impulse etc also had the advantage that Rudy Van Gelder did the cut as well as the recording so the original intent is undiluted right through the process. First pressing from country of artist origin remains the best rule of thumb.
 
Do the American reviewers operate under the " cooks perks" philosophy that our hi-fi press seem to ? In the UK I would generally know who writes reviews for SME and some Italian products and who I would expect to review Roksan products etc.

I doubt any reviewers home or way pay full wack anyway.

Personally I found the Stereophile video's enjoyable but reckon that Fremer needs to live about 150 years to play all that vinyl.
 
Personally I found the Stereophile video's enjoyable but reckon that Fremer needs to live about 150 years to play all that vinyl.

I was touched when he related how he helped sell a friend's record collection, who died young. His widow didn't know the value of some of the records.
This lead him to think of the fate of his own collection.
I thought he may have over valued the Brian May signed copy of Queen's first LP, with covering letter. It obviously had great value for him,but on the open market?
 
Those Wilsons should be really good. The guy has tons of audio stuf but just one pair of speakers?!
Very true what he says about streaming, every cd or vinyl I bought reminds me of a time in my life..
 


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