Narrod: I appreciate your equanimity. However, I am only talking about the Tivoli used as a casual table radio -- it goes without saying that no one here would ever consider it (or a Wave for that matter) to constitute the centerpiece of a real system, although there definitely are lay listeners out there who do exactly that (and in fact are usually rather proud of it, and good for them if they're happy in their ignorance -- an audiophile's life should be so simple).
My surprise is at how well-regarded the Tivoli apparently is among many audio perfectionists, when I've heard a number of boomboxes and older table radios I find more listenable. The most flameworthy aspect I suppose I left unspoken: That I suspect the reasons a lot of audiophiles seem to approve of the Tivoli basically boil down to an aura cultivated upon its sedately retro styling, the fact that it's been advertised and reviewed in audiophile mags, and the Henry Kloss legacy -- plus perhaps a touch of the old reliable anti-Bose sentiment as well (imagine the reaction if Bose made the Tivoli instead) -- so the mediocre sound gets justified accordingly.
When I went to audition the Tivoli, it was with the hope of buying. I left shaking my head instead, but maybe I've been spoiled be getting to hear the original KLH and Advent models. Of course even those can't qualify as offering true high fidelity, but I was hoping some sonic progress had been made in 30+ years, not just putting the tuner on a chip and reducing the speaker and cabinet size...
