What is most important part of a system?

I guess there are many different opinions on this topic!
I agree with the above well described weakest link theory. But to my logic and ears, speakers will impart the biggest personality influence on sound quality. Yes, lousy room acoustics, poor recording and distorted amplification will ruin sound quality and it goes without saying that these weak links must be removed in order to have even decent sound. With none of the weak links present, a change of speakers will have the biggest impact in sound. Spending extreme sums on cables, cords  and other minor influences prior to getting speakers, room and source right is a fool's folly propagated by ultra high end manufacturers who make serious profits. Speakers and room, if done right, are unfortunately the most expensive part of the equation requiring the most time, money, effort and wife acceptance. Cables and cords, to my obviously tone deaf ears, don't make much difference relative to the cost. I have heard great speakers with average electronics and have been wowed but have been underwhelmed by great electronics paired with sub par speakers. 

Speakers.....60%
room............20%
source/music/ amp.....15%
all else.........5%

Estimated margin of error 5% depending on component combinations and sound preferences.

The above is my ball park assessment of importance relative to achieving sound quality. I too cringe when I see a virtual system with a  large fortune spent on components with no attention paid to room, furniture and acoustics. Take a look at Fabio's $500k system with marble floors, glass walls and no acoustic treatments (he must have no upper end hearing if he thinks that echo chamber sounds right). In the end, to each his own.

Audiophiles seem to be under the impression that in the best case scenario, with excellent equipment, excellent cables, excellent room treatments, even vibration isolation and CD treatments, that the sound thus obtained is only 5% or 10% from The Absolute Sound. Audio Nirvana. In other words, there is this concept out there people seem to fall for that there’s some magic ceiling above which audiophiles are forbidden to go. As if it were mathematically impossible, that Sound Quality Is some sort of hyperbolic function and once SQ gets to a certain point on the curve it cannot be improved without heroic effort. As if the laws of physics and mathematics cannot be broken. All of that, dear friends, is totally untrue. You've been hornswoggled. That’s the big can of worms I was talking about. Hel-loo! I hate to judge before all the facts are in but it certainly appears audiophiles have been following the wrong sheep.

Interesting that a violin builder puts the most time and attention into the body which gives the tone, not the strings which sing. That could be translated as the source transmitting through the speakers. Then the auditorium (the room) determines whether the sound can rise and decay accurately, without getting screwed up. Kind of reminds of you of the three most important parts of your rig..

Lol, Everyone is right. I think also your ears are the most important part of any system.
If I’m deaf, I could spend a 100k on a system but to no avail will it make a difference.
Your ears determine whether you are happy with the playback or not, I probably have a joke as cost of a system. But the more I tweak it the more my smile n heart of music is brighter. My preference is pure 3D sound maybe because I’m older now, whereas back in my drumming days loud was the primary pt. Enjoy your Music....