It's a nice reminder that people with limited budgets can become audiophiles, too.
100%!
As an example, I once visited a friend who was an avid vintage (mainly wood encased) radio restorer and collector, with a penchant for highly resolved audio.
At a vintage radio sales meet, my friend picked up some duo-cone drivers (I think formerly deigned for jukebox use) and later some random cabinets. After installing the drivers in the cabinets, he drove the speakers with vintage Fisher amps. I don't recall the models or other ancillary equipment. But I do recall appreciating the listening experience. Was it at the level I had become accustomed? No. Nevertheless, it conveyed the music at a fairly highly resolved level and it didn’t detract from my detail oriented enjoyment and certainly it didn’t detract from my host’s enjoyment.
Thus, enjoying a highly resolved system is relative (as most things are). Because reflecting on the beginnings of my audio journey, the enjoyment then, was equal to my enjoyment now with my considerably more costly kit. While better may be better, it isn’t needed, but it’s nice to have. But then again, we could say that about any luxury that is above the necessities to subsist, be safe and survive.
Hence, as you stated: “those with limited budgets can become audiophiles too”. And as is often done, it's invalid to equate dollar values, or equipment manufacturer names with the outcome, or audiophile enjoyment. Hence, my conclusion that I could be very happy with a much more modest 2-channel system than what I presently have.
But knowing that X-system was a 6-figure one and that the Y-system was a 4-figure one, could sure could bias the listener to favoring X, if they weren't in control of their biases.
What you're describing across your Echos, your surround rooms, and your SoundLab rig is essentially a lived version of Eno's argument: different modes of attention are not a hierarchy with eyes-closed critical listening at the top — they are different relationships with music, each valid on its own terms.
The risk in audiophile culture — and I say this as someone who has spent considerable effort optimizing a dedicated room — is that we can turn the focused mode into a moral standard and subtly denigrate everything else. Your son's Klipsch system is not a lesser experience; it is a different one, and possibly freer.
However, I find concentrated attention and focus necessities for what I as an audiophile love to do.
As we’re discussing, the enjoyment of music isn’t limited to, or even equated to concentration levels.
But the appreciation of what an audio playback system is doing, can’t be made without dedicated concentration. It is I believe, what we audiophiles do, compared to those who don’t, because they don’t get the point or feel the need. We often wonder why that is, but we also understand that it just is.
We sit in the sweet spot, focused on how our electronics are presenting the music, yet those who don't, may be equally passionate about music and enjoy it every bit as much as we do. And that brings up the question of why we do what we do, when others don't understand or feel the need?