jackd - "Cost no object" is exactly what I meant. Some of my favorite,
albeit rare, audiophile experiences have been what some might refer to as
“blind shootouts.” Not just A/B sessions
with similarly priced, similarly designed audio components, but true variety
pack shootouts between significantly varied designs and price points. These experiences have been healthy cleansing
reminders for me to avoid listening with my eyes (or my wallet), and keep my
ears on the music. In the May issue of Enjoy the Music, Roger Skoff offered a
candid explanation as to why each of us is ultimately the “expert” when it
comes to defining the two primary determinates of audiophilia: “What’s good?” and “How can you tell?” The common response to this of course is one
most of us have heard countless times: What
do your ears tell you? The clarity of
this response lies in the inherent subjectivity of audiophilia, that each of us
has a formed opinion as to what the end-game in musical sound reproduction
should be. Sure, we might all agree that
a common denominator would include an accurate representation of the recorded
event from every possible sonic parameter. Still, there’s that sub quotient to the
equation whose formula is deeply personal and can only be known to the
listener, who, upon hearing it, recognizes it instantly. Audio personality is what makes this
crazy infatuation go-round. So, to answer the question, "What is the purpose of this exercise?" I'm simply curious what speaker designs caught the EARS of fellow audiophiles as truly impressive, without the baggage of $, eye candy, or other distractions. I could have let it go at that, but was curious specifically to floor standers w/ a small footprint.
