wht is the difference between good and bad sound ?

plato, i missed the obvious flaw in your first sentence.

you posit the existence of a bad recording and that of an excellent stereo system.

you can't make that ssumption because the term excellent and bad is the result of experience, not knowledge. you are assuming the existence of an excellent stereo system, but that determination would be made subjectively, after listening to many recordings--in theory both good and bad.

if the system were excellent it would not sound bad with a bad recording.

with regard to a recording on what basis is the detrmination of its sound quality. there is no way to know this.

you are caught in a logical dilemma, assuming what you are trying to prove.

if everything is a matter of opinion, the evaluation of a stereo system would be subject to disagreement. a stereo system could be judged excellent and poor by two serious listeners. thus the stereo system is neither excellent or poor, just judged to be and its inherent sonic quality would be unobtainable with objective absolute criteria. unfortunately they do not exist

Hmmmm, well, I can see that nothing gets by you, Mrtennis.

Good sound engages you, and makes you want to stay in the room. Bad sound makes you want to leave the room and go out to play tennis. :) Subjective for sure, but that's audio, like everybody says.

Mrtennis, this thread is starting to remind me of that Monty Python skit, the one in which a man [Eric Idle] comes in for an argument [with John Cleese].

Mr Tennis, I will answer your question as soon as you provide me with a concise definition of your terms. Please define 'good sound' and 'bad sound'. When I understand this I will have a basis for reaching a conclusion about what differences, if any, may exist.