Quote:
Sam Tellig very much liked the Micromega CD-30 CD player and the IA-180 integrated amp in his November 2009 review. Yet they are not in Recommended Components. Why not?

In the introduction to our "Recommended Components" listings, we write "The listing . . . takes into account continued experience of a product after the formal review has been published. In particular, we take account of unreliability and defects that show up after extended auditioning. The fact that a product received a favorable review cannot therefore be regarded as a guarantee that it will continue to appear in this listing."

In the case of the Micromega components, there were indeed reliability issues that raised their head with longer-term use. Sam felt, as a result of that experience, that the components should not be included in the April issue's listing.

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile