The way I see it... suspicion on some head-fiers

[d-cee]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hadden /img/forum/go_quote.gif Come on Tom, that's pretty naive. Advertiser plants are standard in marketing, and it happens here too, regularly. There is more than one Head-fier with huge postng counts I have been suspicious of for a while.

Indeed, that is much harder to detect than someone with no posts and registered the same month and are shouting praise for some product.

Edit: Agree with above post, problem may not be as large as though (ie. not EVERYONE lies) but we mustn't be naive to the fact that it can and may be happening in our own community. Naivety leads to people being taken advantage of.

 

[number1sixerfan]

I have to whole heartedly disagree. Even when members of the trade speak or review or make suggestions they are often very fair to say the least. Most times, people who are publically known to be representatives rarely but in to comment on "my product vs. their product" threads. Usually they may jump to clarify something about their product. I've seen AkZip, Ray Samules, and others do this from time to time and I respect and appreciate it.

You have to remember that people who aren't members of the trade or representatives of a company are often more biased than the ones who are because as general audiophiles we pledge allegiance to the gear we love. You see this everyday on the forums as we tend to recommend the gear that we have.

Also, you take every single review with a grain of salt because ultimately only your ears matter.

 

[tom hankins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hadden /img/forum/go_quote.gif Come on Tom, that's pretty naive. Advertiser plants are standard in marketing, and it happens here too, regularly. There is more than one Head-fier with huge postng counts I have been suspicious of for a while.

I stand by that statement. The fanboys I see and read posts by on this site(myself incluced) fall into one of two camps. Someone who has only heard one or two lowend to midlevel(if lucky) products so pretty much anything they hear is going sound pretty good.
Others have taken the time, spent the money, really made the effort to compare as much gear as they can before coming out one way or another on something. Its up to consumers to tell the difference. Its not rocket science.
I admit I have questioned some opinions here on products from some lines that I have owned or spent consideral time with in comparison with other gear and matched with all kinds of different products, and the fact is they are not good at reproducing music at all. I am talking objectively here, not just personal preference choices. Things like dynamics, soundstage, tone, resolution, etc., etc,
Heck you might be right, on no other site do I see so many opinions, by so many people, who have heard or owned so little.

 

[krmathis]

You will need to make up your own mind about who you trust or not around here. Just like you do in normal life, outside Head-Fi.

Cause I am sure there are people around here who are not what they pretend to be.

 

[mercbuggy]

Maybe some of the well known head-fi'ers are paid actors!!!?

Saw this on BBC news:

BBC NEWS | England | Norfolk | Airline sought actors for flights

There is always a motive behind every post a forum member makes and I for one feel that the vast majority of forum members and posts on headfi are genuine. For the OP I would always look towards consensus opinions when building a case for product selection (if nothing else, to sort through the contradictions). That is why auditioning is the best way to buy hifi/headfi gear, only your ears and personal budget matters.

 

[Hadden]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mercbuggy /img/forum/go_quote.gif Maybe some of the well known head-fi'ers are paid actors!!!? Saw this on BBC news: BBC NEWS | England | Norfolk | Airline sought actors for flights There is always a motive behind every post a forum member makes and I for one feel that the vast majority of forum members and posts on headfi are genuine.

Of course this is true. But it only takes one articulate, likable member to affect significant influence. A marketer woud choose attractive/cool people that others naturally want to emulate -- natural alphas, so to speak. It is subtle. And head-fi tends to be a hype machine at times. It is easy to initiate, encourage to get a ball rolling. I was ripped off by a former advertiser here who received next to NO Criticism on this site. This place has (at times) an unquestioning cheeriness that opens up the door for underhanded practice. I don't think it's rampant. People must be intelligently skeptical, that's all.

 

[tstarn06]

Wow, liar is a pretty strong term, and ridiculous in this context. Having said that, I'd like to thank V-Moda, Westone, Etymotics, Yuin, Penguin, Altec Lansing, Grado, Sleek and any other manufacturer I am leaving out for the boatload of cash and prizes they sent me for buying, liking (for the most part) and eventually selling (in all but two circumstances) their phones and amps. Is joke (about the boatload of cash).

Is it impossible for manufacturers to plant positive news about their stuff on a forum? Of course not. In fact, I have a strong suspicion that a forum I used to frequent (on satellite TV) is not much more than an apologist for a certain company (based on mod behavior, more than rank and file behavior), but I wouldn't call them liars. Just somewhat deluded, and one of the mods in particular admittedly gets free/advance stuff from the satellite TV company in question (and it seems to cloud his judgment).

I will be the first to admit that I am definitely on the lower end of the Head-Fi knowledge totem pole, but I enjoy buying and trying within limits, and will post a feeble review now and again. But the word liar is a whole nother thing. The OP should rethink his/her language, in my view.

 

[tstarn06]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hadden /img/forum/go_quote.gif Of course this is true. But it only takes one articulate, likable member to affect significant influence. A marketer woud choose attractive/cool people that others naturally want to emulate -- natural alphas, so to speak. It is subtle. And head-fi tends to be a hype machine at times. It is easy to initiate, encourage to get a ball rolling. I was ripped off by a former advertiser here who received next to NO Criticism on this site. This place has an unquestioning cheeriness that opens up the door for underhanded practice. I don't think it's rampant. People must be intelligently skeptical, that's all.

"Unquestioning cheeriness"? I don't see that, I see people who may initially like their latest purchase, but eventually sell it to someone else (show of hands, please). But unquestioning isn't the way I would describe Head-Fi. Now, maybe a "questioning cheeriness" would be more apt. I've seen plenty of skeptics posting here, and that's a good thing.

 

[Hadden]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstarn06 /img/forum/go_quote.gif "Unquestioning cheeriness"? I don't see that, I see people who may initially like their latest purchase, but eventually sell it to someone else (show of hands, please). But unquestioning isn't the way I would describe Head-Fi. Now, maybe a "questioning cheeriness" would be more apt. I've seen plenty of skeptics posting here, and that's a good thing.

I added "at times" to unquestioning cheeriness just before you posted. I wish it were as you stated, "questioning".

 

[tstarn06]

Plenty of questioning here, seems to me, cheerful and otherwise.

 

[braillediver]

Read the threads- It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand who is pimping what.

There are numerous manufacturers here that I will never buy from because of the legions of Fanboys and Pimps. They pimp the manufacturer regardless of the question and needs of the OP.

I believe they are doing a dis-service to the manufacturer and chase away at least as many customers as they attract.


Mitch

 

[stewtheking]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hadden /img/forum/go_quote.gif But it only takes one articulate, likable member to affect significant influence. A marketer woud choose attractive/cool people that others naturally want to emulate -- natural alphas, so to speak.

Very true. You only have to look at the praise for Duggeh's giant reviews, and the surrounding interest in the stuff that he talks about. The TakeT H2, for instance, would most likely still be a totally unheard-of product were it not for him. This has happened very honestly though, with commercial interests stated at the appropriate times.

I think that a lot of the more shill-like comments are very easy to spot, those involving new members who join and then instantly eulogize about some obscure thing. A campaign using people of higher stature (maybe my sort of level, who have written some longer reviews and clearly heard a fair(ish) selection of gear) would be obviously much more effective, but a lot harder to put together. By and large members who stay around enough to gain any respect from the community have a respect back, and would hesitate to get involved.

The problem of shilling in this way is similar to those people who go out and buy one product and then rave about it like it's the best thing since sliced bread and disposable nappies. The (conscious or otherwise) idea is to make other people think that the product is good, and therefore validate your (probably fairly expensive) purchase.

A hefty pinch of salt must clearly be taken with EVERY review here , (yes, including my own, I don't put myself above any of this), and if you are acting in that skeptical manner towards claims being made from any side, you are much less likely to fall foul.

 

[Fitz]

I wish AKG would pay me some money, or send me some cool gifts, but I only promote their old products and not anything they currenty sell.

 

[Jaw007]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hadden /img/forum/go_quote.gif Come on Tom, that's pretty naive. Advertiser plants are standard in marketing, and it happens here too, regularly. There is more than one Head-fier with huge postng counts I have been suspicious of for a while.

X2

 

[nfusion770]

I can see how this would be a problem- shills pimping products to those of us who are naive to the audiophile world- only to have those naive members exude praise both out of a genuine, though misguided, enthusiasm, and a desire to fit in/ elevate ourselves into the realm of the respected and experienced. Essentially the Alpha syndrome.

The problem with this theory is, while potentially profitable in the short run, you had better have an outstanding product if you wish to remain viable in a marketplace competitive and close knit as this one. The entire premise is based on manipulating emotion, but as members gain experience, emotion should play less and less of a knee jerk role, especially as ones investment increases. If your products are great and you use shills- outside of ethics- I don't really see a net problem.

Maybe I'm naive and pollyanna, but I believe wisdom will eventually prevail and those dealers/ posters will be vetted to the margins, while the tried and true continue to build strong and reliable businesses.

Anyway, I think the vast majority of promotion on this site is of the fanboy type.