How We Review
Two scoring scales, real bylines, affiliation declared: the method, in full
Every record reviewed here has been listened to in full, usually more than once, by the person whose name is on it — not an algorithm, not a summary of other people's reviews. But "listened to carefully" doesn't explain how we get to a score, so here it is in full.
Two scores, because they answer two different questions
An album review and a turntable review are answering different questions, and we use two different scales on purpose.
For records, the score is the average of four axes: musical quality (the work itself), historical importance (its weight in the canon), recording quality (the original sound, independent of the format) and how it performs as a vinyl pressing. A record can be a musical masterpiece recorded badly, or a technically flawless pressing of a minor album — the four separate scores tell you which one you're holding, instead of flattening everything into a single number.
For gear — turntables, cartridges, phono preamps, amplifiers — the practical scale runs from 6 to 9: below 6 we don't publish it (it's not the right product for a buying recommendation), above 9 almost never. A 7 is solid and competent, the honest baseline of a product we genuinely recommend. An 8 is clearly above the average for its class. A 9 is the reference point of the category, or a price-to-performance ratio that doesn't come along often. And a score can't contradict the verdict: if we say a product is the most musical in a comparison, it needs the highest sound score of the group — otherwise the scoring is wrong, not the text.
Who writes it
The bylines under every piece — Sergio, Mike G., John, Emma — are the real people who listened to that record or tested that product. Sergio writes under his own name. Mike G., John and Emma chose to write under pseudonyms — a common choice in music and audio journalism, often tied to day jobs in the industry that would make it awkward to put a real name on an editorial verdict. Their expertise and their listening are real; the anonymity is on the person, not on the judgement. Profiles are on About.
Affiliation, without dodging it
Many pages carry affiliate links to Amazon or eBay — if you buy through them, we earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. We don't accept payment for a positive review, don't receive products in exchange for a pre-agreed score, and a mediocre product gets a mediocre score regardless of who sells it.
If we find an error, we fix it — and say so
A wrong catalogue number, an outdated price, a historical fact worth revisiting: get in touch. Pages are corrected and carry an updated date.
Why two different scoring systems?
Because they answer two different questions. For records the score is the average of four axes — musical quality, historical importance, recording quality, pressing performance — and the four separate scores tell you what you're holding. For gear the practical scale runs from 6 to 9 and is built for a buying recommendation: below 6 we don't publish, and a score can't contradict the verdict.
Who pays for the reviews?
Nobody. Many pages carry affiliate links to Amazon or eBay that earn us a small commission at no extra cost to you, but we don't accept payment for a positive review or products in exchange for a pre-agreed score. A mediocre product gets a mediocre score, regardless of who sells it.
What happens if you find an error?
We fix it and say so: the page is corrected and carries an updated date. A wrong catalogue number, an outdated price or a historical fact worth revisiting can be reported to hello@groovilla.com.
