OK, yes, that's all tongue in cheek but I wanted to illustrate some bad trends lately in reviewing products people haven't even been near, let alone listened to. I've seen a lot of trash talking about the Pono player lately based on it's looks, or that (they claim) it can't technically sound better than other players. Mind you, the looks are an aesthetic thing, and people are free to dislike it, but when people who have never heard it (I have) driving good headphones (again, I have) trash it I feel they are doing everyone a disservice.
The Pono player sounds really really good at any resolution of audio. Go listen to a set yourself, and if you don't hear the difference, then the price ($399) for you may not be worth it's value, but for those of us who like that warm, rich Ayre sound, it's a bargain.
The other terrible trend that continues to plague audio and video philes are feature counters. People who evaluate the number of features to compare products without a care to the quality with which they are delivered. Consider counting a Honda Civic as a better car than a Ferrari F1 due to the number of dashboard apps. Mind you, in many cases a Civic may actually be a better car, but probably more to do with the four doors and trunk room a commuter or parent may need on a day to day basis. To merely count features to determine product value is stupid and leaves us who like quality with fewer and fewer choices we can afford.
So to really get back to the HSU, I bought it for 17 reasons. 15" of woofer diameter, great reviews and really awesome, if sometimes overly enthusiastic, customer service. Great job guys. A real review will be coming up after I have re-hydrated myself from moving it into position.
