OK, I'VE GOT something to contribute here, and "I" think it's cool in a weird way. I have a big, heavy, and very good-sounding system in the living room. It's pretty expensive gear, but I built it up over many years, upgrading a little at a time.
But I ALSO have a (miserable in comparison) non-audiophile system in my bedroom-
Teac compact components (8.5 in. wide) driving JBL "studio" 6in. 3-way speakers. Std. wire except for one pair of Audioquest Lapis connecting the CD player. It's not even quite up to Mid-Fi standards. There's no imaging, no stage, no silky highs. But... it's not all that bad, either. Plenty of bass when called for. It's clean sounding up to pretty loud volumes (35W/Ch). It looks nice and can play most any kind of music as well.
Why is it my ears don't discriminate that much anymore? I'm not questioning the validity of the delicate nuances coming out of a great speaker system, but I can ALSO listen to music on just about anything.
Except- an esoteric set of components that sounds unacceptional (but the "Watts" are certainly there if you're hosting a house party). I think we all know the disappointment of hearing a demo and have to be diplomatic with the salesman who wants you to be amazed. Of course the flip side of this is when the store has an irresistibly good sounding system that costs four times what you can afford, but you "know" that's the kind of gear you always dreamed of having.
The overall point here is that satisfaction is a complicated emotion- and what if all you want to hear is Black Sabbath at concert volume? Who can say what kind of system "you really need" to make you happy?
