R.I.P. Guitar Player Magazine

[Sonik Wiz]

Stereophile, itself has been around for decades. I'm sure @Kal Rubinson could maybe tell us how long. I'm thinking about '69/'70?
Love it or hate it, it's survived.

Wiki says founded by J. Gordon Holt in 1961 or '62. That's further back than I thought. IIRC Holt was also writing the stereo column in Popular Electronics. His article Hafler vs Scheiber: 4 Channels on Disc 1970 propelled me into the world of Quad.

 

[SeanSKA01]

I looked for the final Guitar Player issue at Barnes & Noble, but all they had was the November issue with David Gilmour on the cover. Has it not hit the racks yet or is it only available on their website?

Update: I see it comes out 10/15.

I saw it at a B&N in NYC last Friday

 

[SeanSKA01]

I think it’s been alluded to in some of the last-issue editor pages that the advertising just isn’t there like it used to be. That money is going to online advertising where it’s easier to track results and pivot quickly. So there’s just not enough money from ads to sustain always-increasing printing costs, mailing/distribution costs added to the fact that more and more people don’t see the need to pay for print material when so much is available online for free or next-to-nothing.

In the case of the guitar magazines, it must be tough to own so many titles and try to get enough advertising for each one. It would be neat if they’d take all those properties and create a mega-guitar magazine that had bits of all of them. But they’re probably better off investing in their web, YouTube and social media presence. It feels like for print, Guitar World will be the focus, but who knows how long that one will last.

Another thing... I assume Future is accountable to shareholders or at least is more corporate-centered than music-centered. If it isn’t making a good profit, it has to be killed. I’m guessing that applies to their non-music titles, too.

My guess is that they made the calculation that the US and the UK could only support one guitar magazine in each territory

 

[barfle]

I believe my first magazine subscription was Popular Electronics when I was in high school, back in the early 1960s. When I discovered Audio magazine, I subscribed immediately, and loved it for as long as it lasted. I imagine I continued with whatever it folded into (lost to time and age) and I don't believe I was without some sort of hi-fi or TV magazine until now.

This sucks.

 

[knifeman]

As a subscriber to Sound & Vision, I’m with you there. Stereophile reviews equipment that costs about the same as typical home in Idaho, and they have boring reviews of boring music

I gave Stereophile a try, and I agree with you on the tests of equipment that most of us can't afford. Some of their music reviews were decent but when my subscription ran out, that was it.

 

[watsontr]

Very sad that this is now the way of the world. I did learn so much from GP. Loved all the Craig Anderton stuff, circuit diagrams etc. I remember building preamps and installing them in my guitars in the late 70s. Just another memory that will fade away just like us. Unfortunately some kids may never know what it feels like to hold a book in the hands. I bought my children and grandchildren Kindles (fine piece of gear IMO) but make sure that I buy them real books as well. I've told them since they were little that books make you imagine and think for yourself whereas movies etc you get to experience someone else's view of something. They all read a lot now so I think that is one of my finest achievements
PS ~ I think that I still have Electronic Projects for Musicians somewhere!

 

[Sal1950]

Korvettes.

OMG, now that brings back memories of Chi Town.

 

[Sal1950]

As a subscriber to Sound & Vision, I’m with you there. Stereophile reviews equipment that costs about the same as typical home in Idaho, and they have boring reviews of boring music

Well dang, I just got my last issue out of the mailbox today, I only glanced at that "last issue" front page thinking my normal year was running out, time to send money again. NOT & NOT
I already have a sub to Stereophile and after decades and decades have been thinking about letting it lapse next renewal date. Stereophile has just gone off the deep end over the millionaire luxury level gear. What little "affordable" gear they do review, they make you feel dirty about maybe buying, like "ok if this is all you can afford it's alright but you really should be more willing to step up to XXXXX".

 

[barfle]

Well dang, I just got my last issue out of the mailbox today, I only glanced at that "last issue" front page thinking my normal year was running out, time to send money again. NOT & NOT
I already have a sub to Stereophile and after decades and decades have been thinking about letting it lapse next renewal date. Stereophile has just gone off the deep end over the millionaire luxury level gear. What little "affordable" gear they do review, they make you feel dirty about maybe buying, like "ok if this is all you can afford it's alright but you really should be more willing to step up to XXXXX".

I don’t fit Stereophile’s target market. How many turntables can one person use, and how many can he or she afford?

I get their monthly email that is similar to the daily one I get from QQ, and I generally browse their linked articles, along with the ones for S&V and Analog Planet. Rarely do I see anything that calls my name.

 

[Shermatz]

Wiki says founded by J. Gordon Holt in 1961 or '62. That's further back than I thought. IIRC Holt was also writing the stereo column in Popular Electronics. His article Hafler vs Scheiber: 4 Channels on Disc 1970 propelled me into the world of Quad.

 

[Shermatz]

I have been a subscriber to both Stereophile & S&V for 15+ years, and after I got over my indignation at the insanely expensive gear they reviewed & advertised, they both won me over with some EXCELLENT writers, and really, about as diverse viewpoints as one could hope for from a specialty hobby mag. Both Stereophile and S&V gave plenty of time & attention to "entry level" gear without being condescending. I made peace with the $60k speakers, firehose speaker wires & $5,000+ phono cartridges, and even came to appreciate just HOW wildly exotic the stereo geek could get to be. Obviously they had to try to cast as wide a net as they could for readers. I'm not happy that S&V got erased, or that Stereophile now goes phantom as an online-only echo of itself, but I realize that "things change." I'll stay on board with the onlinine only Stereophile, hopefully a few of the S&V writers can board this liferaft & continue to do at least some AV reporting/reviewing into the future.

 

[Sal1950]

I don’t fit Stereophile’s target market. How many turntables can one person use, and how many can he or she afford?

The sadest part is that the "transition" of S&V to Stereophiles internet site just means of all intent and purpose there will be nothing left of S&V. No way will Stereophile start reviewing the latest in video tech or the newest LED & OLED TV's, video coverage is DEAD. Mostly the same for the AVR market, they're not going to pick up that ball. In fact if you've read Stereophile as I have every month for decades you know that they have only distaste for the surround sound market and aren't about to take interest in it now. Gordon left Stereophile because John Atkinson refused to take any interest in it. The short lived "In The Round" by Kal Rubinson was the only time they ever showed any interest in multich of any type.
I could go on but no need, the coverage of Video and Multich audio as covered by S&V is history.

There is Widescreen Review, a mostly excellent network magazine.
I really miss their printed version which also died about 2 years back, it was a beautiful high class act with color printing artwork better than I ever remember seeing.
https://www.widescreenreview.com/

 

[SeanSKA01]

The sadest part is that the "transition" of S&V to Stereophiles internet site just means of all intent and purpose there will be nothing left of S&V. No way will Stereophile start reviewing the latest in video tech or the newest LED & OLED TV's, video coverage is DEAD. Mostly the same for the AVR market, they're not going to pick up that ball. In fact if you've read Stereophile as I have every month for decades you know that they have only distaste for the surround sound market and aren't about to take interest in it now. Gordon left Stereophile because John Atkinson refused to take any interest in it. The short lived "In The Round" by Kal Rubinson was the only time they ever showed any interest in multich of any type.
I could go on but no need, the coverage of Video and Multich audio as covered by S&V is history.

There is Widescreen Review, a mostly excellent network magazine.
I really miss their printed version which also died about 2 years back, it was a beautiful high class act with color printing artwork better than I ever remember seeing.
https://www.widescreenreview.com/

The only existing print option is the UK magazine Home Cinema Choice, which in many ways has been a better publicist than S&V. The only difference is that HCC does not really cover music (though they often use both movie and music tests in reviewing audio gear)

 

[Sal1950]

The only existing print option is the UK magazine Home Cinema Choice, which in many ways has been a better publicist than S&V. The only difference is that HCC does not really cover music (though they often use both movie and music tests in reviewing audio gear)

Biggest problem in my experience has been the cost of overseas magazines.

 

[MidiMagic]

I believe my first magazine subscription was Popular Electronics when I was in high school, back in the early 1960s. When I discovered Audio magazine, I subscribed immediately, and loved it for as long as it lasted. I imagine I continued with whatever it folded into (lost to time and age) and I don't believe I was without some sort of hi-fi or TV magazine until now.

This sucks.

Me too with Popular Electronics and Audio. The problem is that when they ended, they continued my subscriptions with magazines not related to audio (a classical music magazine and a CBer magazine).

 

[SeanSKA01]

Biggest problem in my experience has been the cost of overseas magazines.

True. Home Cinema Choice is about $15 an issue if you buy it here in the USA

 

[Petr Kropotkin]

How many turntables can one person use...?

None. Zero. Naught. Nada.

At 65, I never want to, or will, use one of those things ever again.