@newton_john I think it could be argued that musical involvement isn't necessarily an all-or-nothing experience. Both the degree of involvement can be variable--I think--as well as the number of recordings that can elicit involvement.
So, this past year I upgraded both my streamer and DAC. Both were significant upgrades, not merely lateral changes. Now, I find I can enjoy more CD-quality streams than before, not hearing as many faults.
I agree with others who have said that upgrading speakers and improving room acoustics are sensible priorities over other changes. I've gone as far as I'm willing to go in those areas, and I'm satisfied with what I have. My speakers and core components are good enough that I can hear changes from other components, including cables. I'm not suggestible enough to hear differences from all changes--e.g., lifting my speaker cables so they don't touch carpeting didn't make any difference I've noticed, and my speaker cables are over 20 ft. long.
There is a virtue to being satisfied with what one has; I'm afraid many audiophiles lack that ability. And probably many make changes in the wrong areas, like changing cables, adding tweaks, etc. when the biggest flaws in their systems are their speakers or room acoustics.
