Archive-name: AudioFAQ/part12
Last-modified: 1995/12/7
Version: 2.01

19.0 The Press

19.1 Which magazine should I read?
	Which ever one you like.  None are absolutely objective.
	Here's a list of some common ones:

		Audio Amateur ($20/yr 4 issues) (Do-it-yourself)
			Box 576
			Peterborough NH  03458 USA
			603-924-9464
		Audio Critic (US $24/yr 4 issues) (High-end)
			PO Box 978
			Quakertown PA  18951 USA
			215-538-9555 or 215-536-8884
		Audio Magazine (US $24/year 12 issues.  Mid-fi)
			Subscription Office: PO Box 53548
			Boulder CO  80321-2548 USA
			800-274-8808, 303-447-9330
			Editorial Office: 1633 Broadway
			New York, NY  10019
			212-767-6000
		Audio Observatory (US $15/year 12 issues)
			22029 Parthenia Street
			West Hills, California  91304
		Audiophile Voice ($18/year 4 issues)
			Subscriptions: Michael Tantillo
				132 Beach Avenue
				Staten Island 10306 USA
				Phone 718-351-9365
			Editorial Office: 2001 Palmer Ave Suite 201
				Larchmont, NY  10538-2420 USA
				Phone 914-833-1417
				FAX 914-834-4070
		Bound For Sound (US $18/yr 12 issues) (High-end)
			220 North Main St
			Kewanee IL  61443 USA
			309-852-3022
		Car Audio and Electronics ($19.95/year 12 issues)
			Avcom Publishing Ltd
			21700 Oxnard Street
			Suite 1600
			Woodland Hills CA  91367 USA
			818-593-3900
		CD Review (Music Reviews; all tastes, only CDs.)
			$19.97 per year 12 issues
			PO Box 588
			Mount Morris IL  61054 USA
		Glass Audio ($20/yr 4 issues) (Do-it-yourself, tubes)
			Box 576
			Peterborough NH  03458 USA
			603-924-9464
		Hi-Fi Choice (Mid-end. Comparative reviews with graphs, 
				tables, and subjective commentary; 
				'Buying Guide' section)
			Dennis Publishing Ltd.
			14 Rathbone Place
			London, W1P 1DE, UK
			+44 71 631 1433
		Hi-Fi News and Record Review (Broad. Good new record 
				reviews. Good equipment measurements)
			Subscriptions Department
			Link House Magazines Ltd
			1st Floor
			Stephenson House, Brunel Centre
			Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK2 2EW, UK
		Hi-Fi World  (Friendly, lower-mid-end magazine)
			(reviews and "how things work" articles)
			Audio Publishing Ltd
			64 Castellain Rd
			Maida Vale
			London  W9 1EX, UK
			+44 71 266 0461
		In Terms Of Music  (Emphasizes music reviews, new)
			PO Box 268590 
			Chicago, IL 60626  USA
			312-262-5918
		International Audio Review (US $38/yr, 12 issues?)
			2449 Dwight Way; Box 4271
			Berkeley CA  94704 USA
		Positive Feedback (US $25/yr 6 issues) (high-end)
			Oregon Triode Society 
			4106 N.E. Glisan
			Portland OR 97232 USA
			503-235-9068
		Sound Practices (US $20/yr 4 issues) (Do-it-yourself)
			Box 180562
			Austin, TX   78718
			(512) 339-6229    Voice/Fax
			72411.533@compuserve.com
		Speaker Builder ($25/yr 6 issues) (Speaker projects)
			Box 576
			Peterborough NH  03458 USA
			603-924-9464
		Stereophile (US $35/yr 12 issues) (High-end)
			208 Delgado
			Santa Fe NM  87501 USA
			800-238-2626 or 505-982-2366
		Stereo Review (US $6.97/yr 12 issues.  Lower end/mass 
				market)
			Subscription Office: PO Box 52033
			Boulder CO  80323-2033 USA
			Editorial Office: 1633 Broadway
			New York, NY  10019
			212-767-6000
		The Absolute Sound (US $46/yr 8 issues) (High-end)
			Subscription Center: Box 6547 
			Syracuse NY  13217 USA
			800-825-0061
			Editorial Office: 2 Glen Avenue
			Sea Cliff, NY  11579
			516-676-2830
		The $ensible Sound (US $20/yr 4 issues) (Mid/High-end)
			403 Darwin Drive
			Snyder NY  14226 USA
			716-681-3513 or 716-839-2199
		Ultra High Fidelity (UHF) (High end, no advertising)
			Box 65085, Place Longueil
			Montreal PQ  J4K 5J4  Canada
			514-651-5720
		What Hi-Fi (Mid-to-high End; comparative, subjective 
				reviews. Contains it's own buyer's guide 
				with recommendations)
			Haymarket Trade & Leisure Publications Ltd
			38-42 Hampton Road
			Teddington, Middlesex, TW11 0JE, UK
			+44 81 943 5000
			US Enquiries should go to:
				Eric Walter Associates
				Box 188
				Berkeley Heights NJ  07922 USA
				201-665-7811

19.2 Which reviews are better?
	Some reviews are so colorful and exciting, that they 
	make great journalism and fun reading.  Lets ignore 
	these for now, even though they have their place.
	
	Beware of reviews from magazines that advertise the same 
	product.  The likelihood of bias is too high. Unfortunately, 
	that rules out 99% of the reviews in magazines.

	Stereo Review has a bad reputation for loving everything 
	made by every advertiser.  Even high-end journals such 
	as Stereophile and The Absolute Sound can be influenced.

	A classic example of misleading reviews occurs with equipment 
	submitted to a magazine for review.  The manufacturer may send 
	the editors a carefully built, adjusted piece for review.  The 
	magazine will honestly rave about it. The manufacturer will then 
	send the design off-shore for more economical manufacture and 
	assembly, and the quality will suffer.  Lower quality components 
	will be substituted for prime parts.  Adjustments will be made 
	to wider tolerances or will not be made at all.  The design may 
	be completely changed to make it more manufacturable.  You will 
	unknowingly get a completely different piece than reviewed.

	Home auditions with one or two candidates from each of a few 
	dealers are your best guide to be sure that you get what you 
	want and pay for.

19.3 Is Consumer Reports right?
	Consumer Reports is the most objective testing lab we have ever 
	found.  Unfortunately, they are also the world's least 
	specialized testing lab.  They market their testing to the 
	average consumer.  The average consumer will not hear some of 
	the subtle differences which audiophiles hear.  For that reason, 
	Consumer Reports ignores issues that others feel vital.

	Consumer Reports also insists on basing their audio testing
	predominantly on lab measurements.  Although lab measurements do 
	tell many differences between devices, interpreting lab 
	measurements for best sound is difficult or impossible.  For 
	example, it is very hard to compare two speaker frequency 
	response curves and tell which will sound better.  Some $3000 
	speaker frequency response curves look worse than some $600 
	speaker curves, even when tested in the same setup.  On the 
	other side of the issue, Consumer Reports has improved its test 
	methods, and will continue to improve.  Expect the accuracy of 
	their reviews to improve with time.

	The Consumer Reports frequency-of-repair data base 
	is larger than any similar data base published and 
	can be trusted as well as any statistic.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE
The information contained here is collectively copyrighted by the 
authors. The right to reproduce this is hereby given, provided it is 
copied intact, with the text of sections 1 through 8, inclusive. 
However, the authors explicitly prohibit selling this document, any 
of its parts, or any document which contains parts of this document.
-- 
Bob Neidorff; Unitrode Corporation  |  Internet: neidorff@uicc.com
7 Continental Blvd.                 |  Voice   : (US) 603-429-8541
Merrimack, NH  03054-0399 USA       |  FAX     : (US) 603-429-8564