Ambient noise is a number one priority with me. I’ve been in some very nicely constructed radio station studios, and have been amazed at how quiet, quiet can be. There’s a radio station studio that I sometimes still step foot into, and I’m always completely blown away by how quiet it is (without question, it is the quietest place I know of on this earth). I was not involved with construction of it, but I know they went to great lengths to soundproof it - you can’t even hear the air conditioning in action. If I somehow step into a very quiet public space (like maybe a museum of some sort), my ears and brain immediately recognize this, and bask in all of its unintended glory. Many of us just don’t realize, on a daily basis, how we’re constantly bombarded with noise.
I too try and strive for quiet home listening environments, and even though I’m most times able to achieve that (thankfully most times my neighborhood is quiet too), I still prefer my headphones when critically listening. I even go a step further, and darken my listening environments. Many times I will also close my eyes when listening, and try and tune everything out, except the music I’m listening to. It’s not always easy creating a quiet home listening environment, but with all of the great sound systems many have assembled on this site, attaining an ultra-quiet listening environment should *also* be a top priority.