I plan to have no cosmetic embellishment. I like everything exposed, or naked if you will. :-) Not having a spouse helps. But if that's an aesthetic issue for some people, I understand. I am the kind of audiophile who ALWAYS loses the screws on an amp or preamp because I am always tinkering with the inside, such as changing caps, tubes, etc,... so the covers are always off.
I like things neat and organize just like next guy but I just can't sit still for too long so I always end up messing up the sound. LOL. However, when listening to music I am like a zen master, completely immerse myself into it, even AM radio. I guess there's a difference between listening to music and listening to sound. The day when sound and music become indistinguishable then that's the day I stop messing around with gears.