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I enjoyed the linked piece by JV on HP. I'd be interested to read any
comments by current or former members of the audio press.
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/harry-pearson-january-5-1937november-4-2014/
Follow Ups:
I was a charter subscriber to TAS and certainly was influenced by HP and his staff.
But I had previously subscribed to J Gordon Holt's "Stereophile" so I am a bit disappointed to read tributes to HP which seem to credit him with creating "hi end audio" and the written criticism thereof to the exclusion of what came before.
At one point HP stated he was influenced by Gordon and held his magazine in high regard. But he was frustrated by the sometimes worse than irregular publishing schedule and felt he could do a more timely job. That part was true.
For myself I hold both of those gentlemen in high regard for their contributions to what has evolved as such a meaningful and enjoyable hobby.
"You can’t know what the “best” is unless you have heard everything, and keep in mind that given individual tastes, there really isn’t any such thing." HP
...the tributes credit him with creating "high end audio" since he used the term to describe equipment which was designed to reproduce real, live music and he copyrighted it.
I haven't read anything that takes away J Gordon being the first observational/subjective audio equipment reviewer.
HP started TAS in an effort to get JGH, who he revered, to publish more frequently.
I'm not sure that Holt deserves that credit. Julian Hirsch was reviewing audio equipment for the Audio League Report while Gordon Holt was still in college. Take a look at the 1956 issue linked below. While the reviews are mostly measurements, there are subjective evaluations of the AR-1 speaker and the Janszen electrostatic tweeter. In the latter review Hirsch even wrote about image size.
OK, I'm old. But not old enough to have been reading hi-fi mags in 1956 (and I couldn't get your sub-link to open). But I did read them starting in the late '60s. However I gave up on the "slick" monthlies once I subscribed to Stereophile in 1971 and TAS when it began publication. Even that long ago many considered "reviews" by Hirsch to be a joke -"I found component X to be representative of other products in its class".
We had a "hi-end" audio store in San Diego in the mid-'70s that some Inmates were familiar with - Audio Directions. Co-owner Ike was known for offering the occasional bits of good advice. One being, "You will only find two examples of worthwhile information in the monthly audio magazine reviews. One is the dimensions of the component which will tell you if you have enough shelf space. The other is the weight which should suggest if your shelf is strong enough to support it." ;^)
Sorry Rob but if Hirsch was doing such wonderful coverage with subjective evaluations then why did JGH feel compelled to quit his job at a glossy mag and step out to begin the first independent subjective audio review magazine? And what prompted HP to feel that was important enough to then also enter the field with an expanded and more timely version?
"You can’t know what the “best” is unless you have heard everything, and keep in mind that given individual tastes, there really isn’t any such thing." HP
In the spirit of the TAS book on loudspeaker designers, maybe, us readers will see a similar product based on HP's writings and his impressions left on other members/reviewers in the Audio press?
The Audio Beat's Paul Bolin and Roy Gregory weigh in with their tributes to the late, legendary Harry Pearson:
http://www.theaudiobeat.com/blog/harry_pearson.htm
http://www.theaudiobeat.com/blog/hp.htm
Just my (adjusted for inflation) $2
John Crossett
___
It sounds like English, but I can't understand a word you're saying.
Agreed-
AB did a nice job as well.
MF's reminiscence of Pearson is less of a hagiography than Valin's, and is more honest about HP's personality. Pearson seems to have been a more complex character than most men, and Fremer captures the contradictions well I think. He praises Pearson's importance to the high end audio world without ignoring his sometimes negative impact as well.
I only met Pearson once, when I attended a party at his Sea Cliff house after it was restored following the fire. In the span of a few hours I experienced Harry Pearson at his best, as a charming, affable, and gregarious host, and at his worst, as an asshole with a mean streak.
Agreed-
MF did a nice job as well.
Let's not turn obituaries into a competition.
Alan
I've never been a big fan of Fremer but I am now. That was a very respectable and realistic obituarary of one who played a significant role in creating an industry.
At the same time of sharing the bright side, Fremer shared the dark side which apparently was a bit more significant than I thought.
In 2005, I exhibited a product at CES that Pearson's right-hand man Garcia came around about 5 different times taking pictures and telling me Harry's gonna' want to see this back at Seacliff. That never happened but I did get a chance to meet Harry at THE Show in Newport Beach 2011 and we talked for about 20 minutes or so. I regret never getting him to hear my exhibiting room.
Anyway, Fremer confirmed perhaps every rumor that I've heard about Harry. Not that I needed any confirmation but I think Fremer used this as an opportunity to all of us to always be the alert and never check our brains off at the door. Something many of us seem to do in this industry as though "high-end" audio is different or protected from the shenanigans that go on in other industries.
Fremer honored the man for who he was, the good and the bad, and managed to do so with the utmost respect for the man. That's not an easy feat.
All I want is truth, no matter how beautiful or ugly it may be. I can handle it. And Fremer delivered.
Next time, I come across a review by Fremer, I will make it a point to stop and read it as finding truth ain't so easy these days.
In contrast, I'll probably skip any JV reviews I come across.
If you would like another reason to be wary of Valin's writing, do a search of Critic's Corner for "Valin Nordost sold".
Oh, yeah. For some reason I completely forgot about that.
The story that always comes back to me about JV is the amp (?) and perhaps other products he keeps on the 10 year loaner program.
JV does have some insight that he can turn on from time to time. For example, around the 2007-2008 time frame, he stated in an article, "We are lucky if even our very best playback systems can capture even 15% of the magic of the live performance." Very few can freely confess that and even fewer are willing to openly admit it, even if it is only once in every 10 years or so.
Thanks for the reminder as that is an important point.
...he knew HP better than the others and what he says is true.It's more honest and heartfelt with a more down to earth writing style.
I felt the same way he describes when I first met HP at Sea Cliff in 1985.
Edits: 11/07/14 11/07/14
d
...regardless of my feelings about Valin, in parts of this he captures the essence of HP and his lasting impact on audio and music reproduction.
Ditto.
If you don't become the ocean, you'll be seasick every day.
—Leonard Cohen
JV did a nice job, IMO.
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