Dave_b..Maybe you missed the "rhetorical question" part of my rhetorical question. I find that I can pick and choose which aspects of the signal I want to harm, and then harm the living crap out of them. Pesky upper mids? I duct tape 1,247 small pieces of 2 day old rye bread to my ceiling and suddenly my system sounds EXACTLY like a concert in the Filmore West in 1972 heard while my girlfriend Shirley was attempting to braid my hair while surrounded by a "tribe" of hippies wearing feathers…just feathers...or to get the sound of Richie Haven's turquoise jewelry banging against the back of my Guild guitar I leant to him at an after concert party in 1970 Honolulu…I sat right in front of him on acid (me, not him…I assume) and to get THAT sound you have to lead a flock of quiet ducks (!) into your listening room and then gently tap your output tubes with a length of sterilized wax coated plumber's snake. Utterly worth it.