I think most just don’t waste their time or print. Luckily I’m told it’s quite rare to get a product that’s really poor these days. It does happen sometimes though.
Back in the day of course you had UK magazines like The Flat Response (which then became Hifi Review) which could be quite brutal and slaughtered a few sacred cows such as the Audio research SP8. Hifi Choice and What Hifi didn’t pull their punches either when they got in something that was found really wanting.
Yes.
Thinking about it, when those tennis pros sit down between sets and matches. I think they resemble the Toby jug with their bottle and blanket/towel.
Also that amazing mullet!
I forget who it was that commented here on this subject, possibly a HiFi press bod, that a magazine that devoted a significant amount of space to reviews that gave a poor verdict would soon go out of business. People want to hear about the good stuff that they might want to buy, not the dross. There’s little to be gained by gloating over something that sounds bad.
I think it depends.
YouTube has shown the way for some of this - clear reviews that say how things really are drive authenticity and subscribers, and this creates value. The other model is that advertisers provide income and so you don’t slate their products, but this relies on your audience trusting you enough or liking your other material enough to keep buying the magazine…
So I think actually it’s nowadays the genuine article that gets a loyal following that gets the stuff to review, etc… Of course, this is often the case initially and then ‘sells out’… chest la vie.
I’ve never seen Stereophile review the ND555, the Stageline, or the NAP300. They never win product of the year or are listed in their buyers guide. So do I conclude that they terrible products?
Well, another factor to bear in mind is that magazines tend to not want to step on other magazine’s toes, so if something has already been well reviewed in one or more other mags, there’s less interest in another review of the same product - better to dedicate precious space to something different. Also much will depend upon who is writing on the magazine and how well a particular brand will work within their particular review system. Naim sources are will work great in most systems, but you can’t just plonk a Naim pre-amp or power amp into any old system and expect to get the best from it.
Do you conclude that if something isn’t reviewed in Stereophile then it’s a terrible product? No, of course not. These products have been reviewed by a number other revered publications, even some Stateside (see Tone Audio), and I think you’ll quickly release they are anything but terrible.
As for Stereophile itself, Art Dudley was their “go to” guy for reviewing Naim as he had a good understanding of what the brand is all about. He’d actually started reviewing the new streamers (see ND5XS2 review in Stereophile) but sadly Art passed away last year.
See here for the thread about Art on the forum;
What HIFI is not trustworthy. Someone summarised all reviews 2 years back and more than 75% or so was 4 stars or higher. It’s not reality of course. It’s business.
Cd555 and 552 were reviewed by Michael Fremer on Stereophile. Also Cd5xs, Nait 5i, Nova, Nd5xs2, Atom HE, and even NAC 62, Nap 140, all by Stereophile.
I do take most hifi reviews with a pinch of salt for one simple reason. I have never seen a product get less than 3/5
What Hifi - they have got to be the worst hifi. magazine. They never seem to give any bad reviews.
How does one make sense of reviews of the same type of gear by totally different reviewers.
The reviews use pointless and meaningless terms such as “lacks a little inspiration” “needs more poise”. What does that mean?
Noticed the possible bias to UK manufacturers?
I’m pretty sure the buying decisions have moved from those magz to forums and other ways of communication without the business involved. Which in reality is more close to the source/truth. The magz and their reviews are mainly clapping each others back. When Naim gets 5/5 awards from say What Hifi it means less to me than an unknown single users feedback on this forum.
Just flicking through the December issues of HFN and they have reprint of Martin Colloms original NAP500 review. Quite an interesting read.
I do read a magazine from time to time; always the digital version. Notice (and I perfectly understand) that magazines tend to focus on their « home-brands ». To get the broadest overview, I therefor occasionally purchase StereoPlay (very good music feviews) or HifiNews.
Furthermore I have a subscription to The Absolute Sound: suprisingly cheap, a ton of advertisements, lots of ultra hifi, but the reviews itself are good. I do think though their music reviews are less good
Iver
Thanks again all for the comments. I have bought a few back copies of HiFi Critic reviewing some Naim gear (NDX2 which I own and NAP300 which I want to own). Think Santa clause will get me the annual subscription 
You profoundly misunderstand the publishing business, and how it works. Who is this “someone” who “summarised” the reviews? I doubt they exist, or the “summary” for that matter. And how were “someone’s” stats compiled?
This smells like anecdote to me, not proof of anything. And even if this “someone” did exist, and their “summary” did say that 75% of WHF reviews were four-star, it means nothing, because WHF can only review a tiny amount of the product that comes out each year; and because their resources are limited, they tend to write about the good stuff that people might want to buy - they are a magaine of recommendation, after all.
Oh FFS!
Now that needed more poise! 
Here’s my idea for a new business. Please tell me what you think:
I will publish a hi fi equipment review magazine. I will aim to identify poorly performing gear and then publish reviews of it. While my process might not be perfect, I would aim that at least 50% of the reviews would be 1 or 2 stars out of 5.
Because I think that there is pent-up demand for people to read reviews of poorly performing gear.
Very helpful knowing about HiFi Choice - now subscribed!
Also agree about Tone - mostly just fun. The vintagey vibe is great. Holding down the US PNW.
