Is live reproduction the goal of audio?

No, the purpose of (specifically) electronics is to reproduce what's on the disk. What's on the disk may or may not reflect a recordist's attempt (successful or not) to capture something that sounds "live". But the recordist may have been after something else.

Now, in addition to reproducing what's on the disk as accurately as possible, the electronics should also give the listener the means to alter that in whatever way he wants, to produce a sound he enjoys.

The goal of the individual is to pay taxes and start wars etc...The goal of hi-fi is to grab your money.

The goal of the engineer is to take his knowlegde and apply it. How many bridge builders graduate and how many actaully build a bridge. Would you let a doctor straight out of school operate on your son ,or would you go with the guy who has actually duplicated the action.

Just because you went out and purchased 1K or 100K worth of equipment , placed it in a very VISUAL pattern, and are now plug and play does not make you an audiophile.

Symmetrical and visual set up systems are great for taking pictures and posting. Rack right in the middle and the speakers all placed nice and all....has nothing to do with sound I'm afraid. You are listening with your eyes and have taught yourself to hear in straight lines.

The goal of individuals is different than the goal of 'audio' because part of the goal of audio is to sell equipment and make a profit.

Lackefrontroad, what I think Boa2 is meaning to say is that we as people who enjoy audio find the route we like when it comes to its reproduction. We all like different sound qualities and natually gravitate towards those products which produce those sounds which we like.

Personally, I think that the goal of audio reproduction is to:

in the case of classical music, give a production that is as close to a live listening as possible. Not only this, but give this reproduction from the standpoint of the conductor's ears.

for other types of music, give an a real-life image of what the ensemble sounds like, be it a rock group, jazz or any other ensemble. I also believe that the audio engineer should do everything in his/her power to place the artist as if they were playing in ensemble accross a stereo soundstage.

Natually with these beliefs, I tend to gravitate twards products that produce what I think to be a completely un-biased un-colored reproduction of sound...So I guess my answer to your question would be, yes, live production is the goal.

the 'ultimate' direction of electronics is to sell more electronics...the 'ultimate' direction of the consumer is to find enjoyment with what they have purchased.