One thing that fascinates me is how the less a component matters to sound quality, the more people are willing to fight over it.
Forums are infested with statements like:
"my $275 wall outlets made a transformational difference in soundstage depth"
"my new $14000 network streamer revealed a noise floor of such inky blackness I never before experienced in my 75 years as an Audiophile"
"If you can't hear the difference my digital streamer's $4000 power cable makes, you either bought your crappy system at Goodwill, or you're deaf, or most likely both"
"I had barely plugged in my new $800 linear power supply into my USB switch that my wife ran out of the kitchen asking did you buy new speakers again?" (ever noticed how with these guys the wife always runs out of the kitchen, and never from her PhD dissertation? But I digress)
Etc, etc.
On the other hand, conversation about components that do matter is largely, if not always, pleasant and non-confrontational. There are exceptions of course, but when was the last time you saw folks trading insults over amps or preamps, or having some kind of pissing contest over speakers?
Unlike in real life, in the audiophile world the more worthless the battle is, the more willing people are to fight it. Why is that?
