I'm all for sharing experiences and knowledge of all things audio online. In fact, forums like this are probably the best way to get impartial knowledge as we know what magazines are all about. Sure there are plenty of attempts to promote dubious products here, but then there are plenty of people prepared to reason against them. We all know who we are.
The great thing about Audio is that for those who are in it for only sound quality something approaching state of the art / high-end is within financial reach of most of us.
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/the-high-end-for-under-a-grand
If, like many audio enthusiasts, you can accept that digital sources, amplifiers, cables all possess distortion levels below the threshold of hearing you can simply focus your attention and funds upon your loudspeakers where they should bring greater sonic reward. Unless of course you prefer headphone listening, but even then you needn't spend the earth to get excellent results as many owners will testify.
The other exception is turntables, where even at $1000 you are still some distance off the state of the art. $2000 will get you close, very close.
For those who want to, and can spend more, its purely a consumer choice and nothing to do with greater sound quality. The analogy with cars is a loose one, because there you can measure noise levels, comfort, BHP, torque, handling, acceleration, and a zillion other things. And let's also not forget status and what your vehicle says about you.
For that very reason I'd think very carefully before deciding to buy a BMW.
The great thing about Audio is that for those who are in it for only sound quality something approaching state of the art / high-end is within financial reach of most of us.
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/the-high-end-for-under-a-grand
If, like many audio enthusiasts, you can accept that digital sources, amplifiers, cables all possess distortion levels below the threshold of hearing you can simply focus your attention and funds upon your loudspeakers where they should bring greater sonic reward. Unless of course you prefer headphone listening, but even then you needn't spend the earth to get excellent results as many owners will testify.
The other exception is turntables, where even at $1000 you are still some distance off the state of the art. $2000 will get you close, very close.
For those who want to, and can spend more, its purely a consumer choice and nothing to do with greater sound quality. The analogy with cars is a loose one, because there you can measure noise levels, comfort, BHP, torque, handling, acceleration, and a zillion other things. And let's also not forget status and what your vehicle says about you.
For that very reason I'd think very carefully before deciding to buy a BMW.