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To tell you the truth, I really like to look at the ads. It's also a very special day when Stereophile arrives with a DVD or CD with the issue.
Some like to think that ads corrupt an audio magazine, while others trust the editor and find ads a great source of information on new products and dealers. Do you find ads in audio magazines useful?
Ads are about American business. As a member of the business/music community, I frequently advertise and see nothing wrong with manufacturers advertising their wares whether it be in Stereophile or in any other periodical. Ads promote business. Business is good for America, and good businesses are beneficial to the American populus in that it affords them the opportunity to browse, buy, and even dream of those products that they might lust over, if not need. What's wrong with that?
Are there ads in audio magazines? I long ago trained myself to read publications of all types while completely ignoring the ads. It became so automatic that I often don't even notice them. Once or twice a year I make a point of focusing on the ads in my audio mags to see what's new that didn't make the reviewer's threshholds, and occasionally find something that interests me enough to check deeper.
I am glad to see high-end retailers with websites. They can't always ship to me because of territorial restrictions, though. I also find interesting the small retailers in the back who I might not hear about otherwise. Magazines like Stereophile are all about what to buy and the ads are just one more bit of that information.
Except the Gilmore audio ads: the most tastless I've ever seen. Couldn't their product stand on it's own merits without being buoyed up (pun intended) by some siliconed honey in a g-string? I think it casts considerable doubt on the worth of their product.