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flinkenick's 17 Flagship IEM Shootout Thread (and general high-end portable audio discussion)
Jul 14, 2021 at 5:27 PM Post #33,886 of 39,414
Precogvision said:
Hey, it's understandable that you think there might be some ulterior motive behind my reviews. It's unfortunate, but reviews are often used as tools to drum up hype and to dictate sales in this industry. However, I encourage you to take a look at some of my other reviews, such as the following:
  • Here's my HD800S review where I straight-up say it's a critical review and go on to criticize it more than any other review I've seen on the internet.
  • Here's my Focal Clear review where, again, I criticize it more than any other review I've seen.
  • A
Click to expand...
The reviews don’t always hurt you sales though. For me if IEMs are not recommended by you or Andrew , they will probably work for me. Because of differences in taste and hearing I guess. So it useful even if we don’t share opinions.
 
Jul 14, 2021 at 5:37 PM Post #33,887 of 39,414
Precogvision said:
Hey, it's understandable that you think there might be some ulterior motive behind my reviews. It's unfortunate, but reviews are often used as tools to drum up hype and to dictate sales in this industry. However, I encourage you to take a look at some of my other reviews, such as the following:
  • Here's my HD800S review where I straight-up say it's a critical review and go on to criticize it more than any other review I've seen on the internet.
  • Here's my Focal Clear review where, again, I criticize it more than any other review I've seen.
  • A&K SE180 review where I say I flat-out can't recommend it.
  • 64 Audio U18s review were I say just go buy the U12t. Remember, the U18s is a thousand bucks more.
  • Kilobuck shootout where I say the Sony IER-M9, the IEM that we don't sell, is objectively the best IEM out of the bunch.
  • 64 Audio Fourte review where I basically say I can't recommend it.
  • Campfire Dorado/Vega 2020 review where I flat-out say I don't recommend them.
  • Campfire Ara review where I say the Ara's tonality is borked and I don't really recommend it.
  • Moondrop B2 Dusk review where I say the Dusk is better than the B2. We don't sell the Dusk, we sell the B2.
  • My middling review of the Empire Ears Hero where I call the treble harsh and uncontrolled.
  • My middling review of the Audeze LCDi4 where I say it's a niche product that won't work for most people and that it sounds broken without DSP.
  • My middle review of the Thieaudio Monarch where I recommend it, but say that it's not for me personally.
  • My review of the Campfire Solaris 2020 where I straight-up say I recommend the Andro 2020 over it. Remember, the Solaris 2020 is more expensive.
These are all products that we sell (except for the couple times I recommended a product we don't sell over ones we sell). Something else you'll notice quickly is that even for products we do sell that I have given a positive review, mine are almost always the most critical one that you'll find. I don't get paid depending on whether my review is positive or negative. I simply write as true to what I hear as possible.

You might wonder how it's possible for us to operate like this; after all, we've lost sales and brands because of our reviews in the past. That's because unlike a lot of other review sites or retailers, the goal here isn't to make a quick buck. Sometimes that means taking a hit in the short term. We're comfortable with taking that hit because the trust we establish with readers - and future customers - in the long run is much more significant, something that can't possibly be quantified by short term sales numbers. Furthermore, educating consumers on good sound means better products for everyone in the long run! So yes, there's absolutely a motive behind my reviews. But it's never been an ulterior one, and I'm always happy to explain what we're all about.
Click to expand...
You are a great reviewer. You pull no punches. In an industry where hype rules the day. we need voices that give the critical side of things. We need to know both the good and the bad of a headphone or IEM to make a good purchase decision. As I said somewhere else, I expect you to hate everything. So, if you say anything good about a product, chances are it is damn good in that area. My guess is you lose a lot of opportunity to hear products because some manufacturers don't want the negative criticism. At the end of the day, you still gave the Oriolius Traillii an 8 out of 10 which ranks it in your top 10 of over 100 IEMs you've heard. When we are talking top 10 material, it's a matter of taste to get to a final ranking. I appreciated your Traillii review because it gave me another perspective on the sound that I hadn't considered before.

Edited to note: I just checked and see that you actually rated the Traillii a 7. You gave the Blessing 2 Dusk the same rating. I own both and there is no universe where these 2 IEMs are equal. I think if you give it another listen, you will either move it up to an 8 or at least create a 7 and a 7.5. This is the issue with creating a linear scale for ranking IEMs when they have far more than 1 relevant dimension.

As an aside, my son took over my Focal Clears which didn't meet my need and I was going to sell when I replace them with the Focal Utopia. He loves them and thinks they are the best headphones he's ever heard. He watched your review on them and concluded you were a terrible reviewer given how much he perceived you trashing a great headphone. I told him that was a good review for @precog and to not take it personally. He ignored me.

Anyway, don't change what you do. Just stay consistent. Then, I can triangulate to see if I might like something. Your review on the Elysian Annihilator makes me want to blind purchase it or the X. I hope you get a chance to review the X.
 
Last edited:
Jul 14, 2021 at 6:33 PM Post #33,888 of 39,414
Last edited:
Jul 14, 2021 at 6:48 PM Post #33,892 of 39,414
Jul 14, 2021 at 6:50 PM Post #33,894 of 39,414
HiFiHawaii808 said:
You are a great reviewer. You pull no punches. In an industry where hype rules the day. we need voices that give the critical side of things. We need to know both the good and the bad of a headphone or IEM to make a good purchase decision. As I said somewhere else, I expect you to hate everything. So, if you say anything good about a product, chances are it is damn good in that area. My guess is you lose a lot of opportunity to hear products because some manufacturers don't want the negative criticism. At the end of the day, you still gave the Oriolius Traillii an 8 out of 10 which ranks it in your top 10 of over 100 IEMs you've heard. When we are talking top 10 material, it's a matter of taste to get to a final ranking. I appreciated your Traillii review because it gave me another perspective on the sound that I hadn't considered before.

Edited to note: I just checked and see that you actually rated the Traillii a 7. You gave the Blessing 2 Dusk the same rating. I own both and there is no universe where these 2 IEMs are equal. I think if you give it another listen, you will either move it up to an 8 or at least create a 7 and a 7.5. This is the issue with creating a linear scale for ranking IEMs when they have far more than 1 relevant dimension.

As an aside, my son took over my Focal Clears which didn't meet my need and I was going to sell when I replace them with the Focal Utopia. He loves them and thinks they are the best headphones he's ever heard. He watched your review on them and concluded you were a terrible reviewer given how much he perceived you trashing a great headphone. I told him that was a good review for @precog and to not take it personally. He ignored me.

Anyway, don't change what you do. Just stay consistent. Then, I can triangulate to see if I might like something. Your review on the Elysian Annihilator makes me want to blind purchase it or the X. I hope you get a chance to review the X.
Click to expand...
Price plays a huge factor in Precog's ratings I think - I personally thought his initial rating of 8 was fair for the Traillii.

Otherwise I agree with what you say - keep going Precog!
 
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