They make mistakes as well. But they are better than whatever comes next. They are the most reliable single source of info on audio stuff.

But their most valuable contribution is to give you some idea of the relationship between price and quality; in the case of speakers--not much. The Nov 03 tests showed that the top half of the speakers cost only 20% more than the bottom half. That isn't much, considering that the total range of prices varied by 8:1. IOW, you don't get what you pay for. (But you might pay for what you get.)

What CR tests tell me is that you can get a damn fine pair of speakers for $100. This doesn't surprise me; mine cost $60, and they sounded better than NHT SuperOnes.