As someone fairly new to all this - A few comments (thanks to whoever un-blacklisted me for the Duggeh birthday 'wish' )
Full Disclosure: I just sent Larry an amp to 'listen to' (The Cavalli Compact Tube Hybrid - I'm kitting them for Alex - but never asked him to specifically review it, nor offered him anything but filament voltage settings.)
Larry offers his time to listen to all kinds of gear and provides his impressions in his individual system. I think his methodology is part of his charm and enjoy wading through it to pick out tidbits that would lead to directions for me to explore...Like all critics - I establish their level of credibility - then determine the deltas between their tastes and mine. Then find the useful info and what to ignore.
AFA as 'shilling:' Exposure (especially free) is a good thing.It's fun to play with new toys. Manufacturer and reviewer benefit. Maybe someone gets some useful info - and the sheep get FOTM.
Time for my Xanax...