Are future improvements in Amp/PreAmps slowing to a crawl?

kosst

Practically everybody who builds one applies some positive phase second order distortion through the NFB loop balance to warm the sound up and open up the stage.

There is your red flag.

kosst,

He doesn't know what a 100% distortion-free amp sounds like. He's never heard one.

I thought that was the whole purpose of his visit.

Unless he has calibrated microphones for ears, oscilloscopes for eyes, and a distortion analyzer for a brain, he cannot substantiate your claims.

My gear is built for humans to enjoy. No cyborgs.
Our ears,eyes and brain are far better than man made test equipment when it comes to making observations.
I'm surprised that someone so deeply embedded into specs like yourself would swallow some pride and go for the added distortion needed to make it tolerable. What's up with that?

I never had a customer call me and ask if I could give them a knob on the front panel so they could add a little distortion.

Quick interrupt. If he really was a liar wouldn't his pants be on fire? 🔥