What exactly is textural density??

Herb is describing a richness of sound and detail accentuated in some pieces of music and lost or retained by certain combinations of gear/cabling/AC purity, I think. Interesting to note the musicology of his terminology, but no need to fault him for his resourceful prose, even if not textbook.  I always enjoy his reviews as much for his prose as his clear lack of corporate sponsorship.  We also seem to have similar tastes, so it makes finding good value gear easier.

Good post and I agree. His attempt at a description points, once again, to the issue of harmonic truthfulness (timbre).

The use and better understanding of terms (“resourceful prose”) that are rooted in musicology to describe the perceived sonic qualities of audio gear is not only appropriate, but is something that, were it to happen more often in audiophile parlance, would reduce the level of confusion we often see in discussions like this one. I have always found it interesting and not a little ironic that there is often a disconnect between terminology used in audiospeak and well established terminology in musicology when, in fact, the actual parallels are many. After all, it is music that audio is dealing with, no?

More than a simple wise post indeed!

Thanks...

@frogman 
It would be great if more reviewers and consumers knew more musicology so they could help connect the worlds of music appreciation and audiophilia with greater accuracy and depth.  I feel like we're always just reinventing the wheel with our amateur descriptions.  An audiophile-focused glossary of music terms would be fun to use.

When a speaker pressurizes the air in the room effectively it causes a density change o the air in the room while listening that is hard to describe but when you get that you will not want to listen to a light thin sound ever again.