Trade offs?

musicality means accuracy of timbre. an oboe sounds just like an oboe, a tenor does not sound like an alto sax, and of course frequency response is balanced.

it seems obvious to me that if 2 people say: "my stereo system sounds musical", one might disagree with other as to the sound of the "other" stereo system.

what anyone says , in the end, does not matter, as we return to our stereo systems and listen to music.

if each one of us considers his/her stereo system musical, that is all that matters.

as to how so many stereo systems could be considered musical and yet the components within change so much. a stereo systemn can be musical, less musical and more musical, according to the way the term has been used.

"musical" is based upon opinion. let's leave it at that.

as an absoluteist, i think all stereo systems are flawed and not musical, because of errors of timbre.

as for resolution and musicality, from what i surmise of the relativism of terms, i understand how a system can be deemed musical and highly resolving.

it's just words and its all a matter of opinion.

also, it is worth noting that one may be able to fool others, but it is hard to fool one's self.

I think if you play an instrument, musicality's meaning is quite clear and if given, a high compliment indeed. It's not very difficult to play every note correctly with correct tempo, following the dynamics and have a piece not sound musical. I wouldn't say the timbre and its accuracy is the defintion of musical. It wouldn't be right to describe it that way, since you're listening to the live instrument. Yet one can easily hear musicality or not. Muscicality is simply getting the music out of a piece.

Wireless200, I'm with you on that; and luckily, lots of 'musicality' comes through most stereo systems. Many of us Audiogoners are just into refining the playback quality for ever increasing our enjoyment and feel of the music.