How competitive are you with your system?

@rvpiano 

Why do they bother responding to this thread if it didn’t occur to them at some point how others’ systems sounded.

I very much doubt there’s anyone here who has never considered how others’ systems sound. I thought the whole focus of your thread was whether it matters and to what degree. For some of us, it simply doesn’t matter much.  And now you’re saying that somehow disqualifies us from participating? Weird. I’ll know to steer clear next time. 

@rvpiano 

Why do they bother responding to this thread if it didn’t occur to them at some point how others’ systems sounded.

Curiosity is different from competitiveness. In addition, I believe one can enjoy improving their system based on what gear and new innovations are out there, as well as their own budget, without viewing it as a competition with others.

@lanx0003 said,

In my opinion, your goal should be to assess how closely your system can reproduce the sound of a live performance on stage.

Certainly to each their own but, my goal is for my system to sufficiently allow me to enjoy listening to music in my home.

Weird. Yes I agree. For myself I have a listening environment that gives me much enjoyment, relaxation, fun and something I look forward to do, listen to music in all its wonderful glory and nuances. Why would I want to bring competition into it? It seems to me…to be counterproductive. I have been part of groups including other audiophiles who are really tremendous and cool. We listen and enjoy and sometimes share advice, often we offer unfamiliar artists and songs to explore new music. Above all we enjoy our time with the music. If I were really into competition or ranking, I wouldn’t really be able to enjoy the hobby the way I do. As for others who have a competitive nature, try something different and just enjoy the music??

devinplombier

@mihorn   In the YouTube listening exercise laid out in your above post, the recording of the Thiel 3.7 sounds closest to the Original, followed by the recording of the Avantgarde.

Indeed, Thiel and AG are very good. And I hope you like Wavetouch too at fraction of their price, size and constraints. I won't argue here which is closer to the original and pleasant to listen to. Everyone has his opinion. Let's back to the regular scheduled program. Alex/Wavetouch audio

@lanx0001 

Conversely, perhaps the inability of  your system to properly decode those tracks reveals a deficiency in your system.  Mercury Living Presence recordings are considered revelatory by most audiophiles.