Perhaps it's time to state my position and what I think this thread is really all about:
I am, and have been, for the last 50+ years, a subjectivist. I listen, not measure. And then I listen to (and read) the opinions of others I respect. Then, I make changes, listen some more, and make more changes. I have had some EE/Audiophile friends/mentors who have helped me understand what I have heard, and understand why. I have attended many high end audio shows and heard some great systems. Through this process, my system has evolved to an extremely high level, IMHO, world class. It includes many tweaks which the "objectionists" would dismiss as "snake oil". Nonetheless I believe my system has evolved to where it reproduces recorded music as close to real as possible. I regularly attend live music in San Francisco at Davies Symphony Hall, SF Jazz Center, etc., and actually prefer my home system because I don't have to suffer crowds, distractions, poor PA, and other issues.
In the early days of high end audio (1960's) Julian Hirsch (
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Hirsch) was a respected audio critic and writer. He was an absolute objectionist. He believed measurements were everything. If it measured well, nothing else mattered. "All the good gear (which measured well) sounded the same." Today, he has been totally discredited. "It was his technical approach that at times drew disfavor from other experts, who asserted that he so admired each new line of speakers or amplifiers that he ignored the aesthetic quality of the sounds coming from them. It was, his critics said at the time, like judging a wine by chemical assays." Measurements are only as good as their inherent limits. I trust my ears, and the ears of a few others. I believe my system exhibits the results. The pleasure I enjoy from listening to great music reproduced well is the all the reward I need.
Thus, I believe the audio skeptics amoung us are missing out on what can be achieved!
Amir's op was an attempt to discredit subjectivists with a link to pure snake oil.
I object!