Brian, enjoyed reading your perspective. Your style of communication is near-poetic and the report was quite fresh and insightful. Thanks.
The resale numbers are actually a fairly common occurrence among new-on-market/new concept audiophile gear, esp one that has generated this type of buzz. There is not and never will be the one perfect component for everyone. I suspect many buy to try and expect miracles, then are let down due to overly stretched expectations. More of a psychological phenomenon really than a physical or auditory one.
What I have learned in the few years I have been rotating gear in and out of my system is that there is no 'absolute sound' and some things are just a matter of taste. Also many (most?) audiophiles enjoy simply trying these things out. Look at the feedback numbers of some of the posters in this thread alone, self included, and it is evident that many of us treat this Audiogon as a 'library' of sorts. You go in, borrow a book, read it through or get bored with it halfway, and trade it in for a different book with a different story. Does this diminish or raise either book? Of course not, although preferences do emerge with enough experience.
The resale numbers are actually a fairly common occurrence among new-on-market/new concept audiophile gear, esp one that has generated this type of buzz. There is not and never will be the one perfect component for everyone. I suspect many buy to try and expect miracles, then are let down due to overly stretched expectations. More of a psychological phenomenon really than a physical or auditory one.
What I have learned in the few years I have been rotating gear in and out of my system is that there is no 'absolute sound' and some things are just a matter of taste. Also many (most?) audiophiles enjoy simply trying these things out. Look at the feedback numbers of some of the posters in this thread alone, self included, and it is evident that many of us treat this Audiogon as a 'library' of sorts. You go in, borrow a book, read it through or get bored with it halfway, and trade it in for a different book with a different story. Does this diminish or raise either book? Of course not, although preferences do emerge with enough experience.