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After reading Stereophile and other lesser publications for the last decade, what advice could I need? Now most people ask ME for advice. They don't always take it, but they do ask (or do I just tell them?).
Audio experts can come in all shapes and sizes: a great dealer, an audiophile friend or relative, an audio consultant---even a magazine writer. How much do you value their opinions?
I have a great dealer, John Rutan of the Audio Connection, who has a great ear and is incredibly concerned with helping me get the best sound from my system. He has installed every piece of equipment that I own, whether I bought it from him or not. He has also kept me from spending money on useless tweaks and upgrades, and he remains dedicated to helping his customers get the best possible sound quality from the equipment they own. He also takes the time to make sure that the equipment you buy works well with the equipment that you already own, a rarity among high-end professionals.
I value the comments of better reviewers because they have the opportunity to expose themselves to an enormous variety of equipment under usually very good conditions. Hence they can get quite a good sense of a product's relative value and relative capability. Those are two primary questions for me when evaluating a purchasing decision.
Even though I see myself as a knowledgeable audiophile, I have come to the conclusion that even the most knowledgeable among us do not know everything, and sometimes even we seek advice/opinions from others. For any audiophile, it's a natural way of life. Should've seen me 16 years ago.
I value an audio expert's opinions as much as that expert respects my sensibilities. Sometimes that means that I value the opinion, but more often then not I can not pay any credence to the opinions of an expert. There is one exception---the only audio experts I unfailingly trust are my two ears. They will lie to me far less than anyone else.