Is This the Essence of "The Audiophile Dilemma?

That's why it's called a honeymoon period.

@hilde45 , very rational. I like your train of thought.

Many concerts have terrible sound quality. You have to pick your venues for the best sound. They are either open air or small, perhaps100 people capacity. Still you usually do not get the magical image a great system is capable of. Can a home system match the dynamics of a live performance? This is a tough one. You do not want to damage your hearing but you want to feel the music as well as get the image you get at Venues like Boston Symphony Hall. I think this is possible. I myself am not quite there. Will I go all the way for the USA? Nothing is written in stone.

@mijostyn Thanks. You state, "Many concerts have terrible sound quality. You have to pick your venues for the best sound."

That's exactly right. What is constantly misunderstood in this hobby is the notion of "truth" or, if you prefer, "real." @mahler123 says, ""Therefore since there is no way of getting “The Truth” I have to settle for an illusion of it."

That statement indicates that what he is settling for just IS reality. There is no reality/illusion dichotomy. There is experience and then the question returns to us, "Is this something I like?" There is no metaphysical issue between reality and illusion. It's all real.

If I am sitting in a practice room an a cellist is playing, where should I sit for the "true" sound? Right next to her? Behind her? 10 feet away? What if I'm 100 feet away? One might say that all these sounds are "true" because I am in the room with her. But if I'm 100 feet away and the room acoustics are poor, how will that match up to my sitting in my listening room, 8 feet away from a stereo playing a recording of her that sounds delightful? Won't that sound more "true"? But, someone will say, it's not "live" any more. Fair enough, but if the criteria is "acoustical enjoyment" and not "simultaneity with the event of her playing" then "truth" is different.

If the above made sense, it should be clear that "truth" depends on the "criterion." But for audiophiles, there is often NO dilemma because the criterion is pre-determined to be subjective musical enjoyment.

Being able to verbalize in musical terms helps with reviews. I'd recommend a copy of the' Harvard Dictionary of Music'. I bought my equipment via a combination of listening to pieces at a reputable dealer and by reading reviews via the internet. I've called dealers and have asked them questions about products while explaining what I have and what I'm looking for. Tweaks can also tune a system and I've found a couple of tweaks that made a day and night difference.

I know there are people who want scientific data, meter readings, etc... I don't dismiss that for people who can make good decisions by analyzing numbers and charts but that's not me.

Fortunately I live in a city with a top rated conservatory and a venerated concert hall. Our symphony orchestra is pretty good. The experience of hearing music in a live venue is certainly an advantage and a bit of common sense can go a long way.

@mijostyn , @hilde45 ​​@goofyfoot 

Thank you gentlemen for your worthy posts.