Observation: Passion vs Obsession

Passion: Crazy things I do to make my system sound “better”.
Obsession: Crazy Things other people do to make their systems “better”, in their opinion. 

I dont see any reason to differentiate. Problem ultimately arises when others start to make judgements regarding the motivations of other enthusiasts. None of us have the right. More importantly why would you want to. Always seems to end with social judgements and pontificating. I see both as healthy pursuits.

vinylshadow, SG200. They are all the same cartridge, all the same preamp electronics, only the stylus and preamp features change. SG200 is the basic one with fixed output. Mine comes with two SGS6 styluses. 

You are right, Soundsmith carts are very interesting. Ortofon had the patent on MI and Peter Ledermann worked on them many years, repairing and improving. Kind of like Mark Baker with Rega RB300. MI has a lot of advantages over MC and MM, chiefly lower moving mass. As with all designs however the design is only part of the equation, there is also the implementation of the design. That is why there are so many different MM and MC carts, they are each a different implementation of the same basic design.

Ledermann by virtue of hard work and experimentation developed and improved MI design, kind of like the way everyone else has done with MC and MM.

Then he did the same with SG. His strain Gauge design reduces moving mass even more, to a fraction of even the lowest mass MC. Unlike all other cart designs the SG is not a generator. It does not generate a signal. Instead, the SG preamp delivers a current to the cart. The cantilever is mounted to a sensor that registers angle of deflection. Not velocity like MM/MC, angle of deflection. The sensor then acts like a valve varying the incoming power according to deflection, and this is the output voltage. 

A very ingenious design and not his but again, doesn't matter what matters is implementation. That we judge by listening to the results, which sure seems to be excellent. And so yeah I'm getting one. 
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/soundsmith-strain-gauge-thank-you

Soundsmith carts are very interesting. Ortofon had the patent on MI and Peter Ledermann worked on them many years, repairing and improving 

 If my memory serves me right it was Bang & Olfsen that had patents that Mr. Ledermann worked with.

A dictionary definition -- a person who purchases goods and services for personal use.  So whether you're a wise and savvy or rapacious fool, you are still just a consumer.  Putting together a well sorted out audiophile system is a step above assembling IKEA furniture, but it's a step below a professional chef creating a meal.  It takes time and effort, but very little creativity.  It's just not that difficult to determine what sounds good to you.