We customers decide almost nothing on which audio item should I buy.
This is bogus and possibly insulting. IME people buy based on the idea that if the manufacturer's, dealer's, distributor's or reviewer's lips are moving, than he is probably lying. IOW, they rely far more on audition and their own ears, not what someone tells them. Audiophiles have been lied to for nearly their entire life ('perfect sound for ever/we make the best'); audition is really the only solution until a particular voice they know gains credibility in their eyes.
The Internet has transformed how audiophiles do things, and the 'AHEE' has had to tag along.