Perception

You have to take others opinions with a grain of salt. Listen to them because there could be some truth to them & it could help you out.
It could also be misinformation.

I was in a store & a younger guy was raving about a dac & spouting technical specs. He would not be able to comprehend that my 90’s era tube dac would crush it. His math proves him correct.

People have predetermined opinions & usually not personal experiences that they’re confident that my preamp brand is unreliable & my speaker of choice does nothing great, but everything well.

This is all subject to their components, tubes if applicable, cables, recordings, etc.
Limitations there have a direct influence, perception & opinion.

I was once skeptical of spending money on cables. I have since upgraded to reference level cables. It has unleashed the capabilities of my components.

I was almost there...
I had this one last thing that I considered upgrading.

My preamp has 6 tubes. Two are gain tubes & four are buffer tubes. I had upgraded the two gain tubes to my favorite brand NOS. Those are supposed to be the main ones that make the difference & have the most benefit.

The consensus is that preamp buffer tubes make a difference, but not as much as gain tubes.

That may be true, but my system has been transformed by upgrading my preamp buffer tubes to my favorite NOS tubes.

I’m now done with my system.
I clearly realize that the people that have opinions about my speakers have not driven them with the right components, cables, or tubes. It’s a shame because they are truly spectacular if driven as I have.

Opinions are completely relative.
Trust your gut...

Thanks Durkn...

Your wise words completely describe my own opinion but better expressed than I was able to convey it...My best to you...

Indeed we must added to your audio systems peculiarities, room properties, ears individual physiology, all the tweaks that are fundamental to improve all that....Indeed it is my own experience and I only add weigh to your experience...Thanks...

rvpiano:
"I don’t think I’m a unique case. So much of what we perceive in audio is controlled by our psyches."

Hello rvpiano,
     I think this statement from your opening post on this thread is a very good summation and a fundamental truth that most involved in our hobby have discovered themselves along our journeys, and a useful point for those that do not yet realize this truth.
     I believe that everything we perceive in the world throughout our lifetimes are controlled by our psyches. The high quality reproduction of recorded music in our homes is especially susceptible to our perceptions, IMHO, because our senses or feelings of what sounds good to us are so highly personal, unique and subjective. The reality that there are virtually an unlimited number of paths, when the various permutations of component choices along with other factors are considered, to achieve our goals of high quality music reproduction that doubts or insecurities about our individual choices and the overall sound quality results are likely inevitable.
     Even once we subjectively determine our constructed systems sound very good, it seems like it may be our human natures to continually turn our attentions to how we can somehow make it sound incrementally just a bit better. Some of our psyches will perceive this obsessive journey as a curse and others as a joy.
     I believe our psyches are not static entities beyond our control and that we’re all, ultimately, who we choose to be.  Personally, I’m more interested in enjoying good music reproduced by a high quality audio system than contemplating all the psychological mumbo jumbo and thoroughly understanding exactly why I enjoy it. I may be shallow but I’m just happy when listening to my music.

Enjoy,
Tim

rv,

We all have a reset button. When the mind gets too cluttered to function objectively, may be time to press it and start over anew.

Mapman,

That’s exactly what I’ve had to do.