I hate to seem confrontational, but can you explain what the elephant in the room exactly is? I'd honestly love a transparent conversation without all the passive aggression. It's also worth noting that the reviewers involved in this conversation so far have either purchased/been loaned more than they've been given, or have been heavily critical of free review units in the past. If you have beef with reviewers who glorify products just for the free stuff, this ain't the place, bud.
My remarks relate to something I've already said very openly and clearly. This was then followed by others discussing multiple facets of subsequent conversation, but not the elephant in the room, which I had pointed to, and which (unsurprisingly) some people feel very awkward about acknowledging. It's endemic on Head-Fi and other head-based Hi-Fi sites.
However, it's important to reiterate that what I said was
not aimed at any single individual,
or any single manufacturer,
or any single thread. The fact that I happened to mention it here in the EE thread was not premeditated or by design - it was spontaneous, as an off-the-cuff response to the endless (and unwinnable, by either side) debate about burn-in - that will be apparent to anyone who wishes to retrace the beginning of the topic. It is interesting that the first reply to that original post was so reactionary, and that others subsequently danced around
tangential remarks that did not address what had really been said. That combination of responses is 'interesting', in itself.
I'm not looking for a long debate - that wouldn't be fair to Jack or the thread. I'm quite easy-going, generally. I just raised a point which I feel is legitimate, but quite a few others clearly feel isn't legitimate or should be swept under the carpet, or, at the least, danced around but not acknowledged. Although few Head-Fiers are willing to stick their necks out and publicly state their concerns, I know I am not alone in feeling a growing sense of unease, in recent years, as the
'free-sample-for-an-unbiased-review' mantra has become almost the rule, rather than the exception, in the world of head-based Hi-Fi. I know this because I periodically get PMs from other members, raising their concerns.
Apologies to Jack for the intermission, and, again, this is not in any way singling-out EE.
