Write to: Editor CA&E, 2400 E. Katella Ave, Ste. 1100, Anaheim, CA 92806
There's on old economic idea: quantity changes quality. One of the ways in which it's true is that as the former increases so does the latter. That is, the average quality goes up. Consumers can find decent quality with practically any brand, the key word there being "decent." And many manufacturers will gladly continue to make mediocre product for profit and leave it at that. The problem with having so many outfits content with that approach is that it adversely affects those companies that are striving for innovations and higher levels of quality. If they're busy fighting a price war with the competition that is focused on only the bottom line, then it's not a fair fight. Pitting a top welterweight against a so-so heavyweight won't always result in victory for the fighter with the most pure skill.
In the last few years our audio and electronics market has grown by billions and may reach 10 billion in 2008, according to Fredonia, but the manufacturers that are putting money into research and development may or may not prosper as they should. We like to think that the best survive in a free market system, but that's not necessarily true. People don't always want to pay for the best.
No one could put the blame for this problem on consumers. We are all consumers and we all have to consider price when making a purchase. But that should be just one of various aspects we look at when buying something. Ultimately, what we need is more information. Ironic, given that we live in the information age. You can go online and find something on whatever you have in mind, but that doesn't stop the incessant e-mails we get asking for product recommendations. There's a ton of unorganized and random information online and no one to tell you whom or what to believe. Which subwoofer, amp, component speaker set and so forth are the best, or the best for the money? You could follow multiple pages of a thread on your favorite forum and still not have a firm idea.
That's why every year now we put together this "Best of..." issue, in which we the staff and our expert contributors present a selection of products we've tested, evaluated and determined to be our favorites. Treat them as our recommendations, if you will. We can't respond individually to every letter or e-mail we get, so this issue will have to serve as our response to our readers. Of course, this list isn't meant to be comprehensive. Or rather, I have to say that since we can't test every single product in the industry, we can't say that our picks should be interpreted as absolutely the best. And as regards audio, perhaps it's impossible to determine that, as an opinion on how something sounds will always be affected, even if to just a slight degree, by personal taste. We could probably all agree on what generally sounds good; it's a lot more difficult to say what's closest to audio perfection.
Related to the last paragraph, I want to address a topic on 12vinsider.com, where some industry people were arguing over which company had the best subwoofer. Part of the discussion was about our Top 10 list we published some time ago, covering the best scoring subwoofers in the magazine. It was expressed that the list was "garbage" and also that I agreed with that. It's unfair to say that it's worthless. It is what it is, a list of the products we reviewed and what they scored. But I agree on this: As the listening tests were done by different reviewers, the list shouldn't be regarded as an absolute scale of what was best. Our reviewers may all be experts but they don't all share the same expert opinion. To read the scores without reading the full review is unfair to the company that made the product and to you, the consumer considering a purchase. Numbers help to indicate something; they don't necessarily determine anything definitely. There have been more than a few occasions when we've had products do well in objective testing and do poorly in listening evaluations-and vice versa. Having said that, here are our choices for the "Best of 2007."
Next Month,It's the issue we take to CES. Look for a special on subwoofers, with a review of the first sub by Morel. We'll have results of the Trifecta Finals from SEMA, where all the competitor cars will be on display for the entire automotive aftermarket to see. We'll also be profiling sound competitors, especially the winners from IASCA Finals and more.ben.oh@sourceinterlink.com