(@01/24/20) I’ve been a dedicated audiophile since 1970 when I finished my tour of duty in the Army. After 39 years in banking and finance I retired in 2009. My critical listening preference is primarily classical with some orchestral film soundtracks thrown in. I also enjoy jazz in its various forms and rock (where my choices are eclectic in the extreme but mostly classic Rock). I don’t listen to non-classical with a critical ear, just for the pleasure and so wouldn’t make a recommendation for other genres. The few live rock concerts I’ve attended over the years were as much audience noise as music making by the musicians, more about the “event”. I have had some great jazz listening experiences in smaller clubs. Accordingly my comments that follow are based on listening to classical music. I attempt to keep my point of reference the sound of live instruments and orchestras heard in 10 different concert halls over close to 50 years and I’m approaching around 200 total concerts. The majority of these at the old Academy of Music in Philadelphia which was originally built for both concert and opera use in the mid 1850’s and refurbished in the early 1900’s, if memory serves. Over the decades I managed to improve from nose bleeds in the Amphitheater to a front row Balcony Box. Now I attend fewer concerts at the Kimmel and usually order my tickets for specific ones in advance. I use to drive for decades but that became a chore and when they instituted Sunday afternoon concerts I started going more frequently and using the train instead of driving. On a side note: I took piano and violin lessons as a kid. The Sirens call to the baseball diamond, football field, and BB court, and ski slopes ended what would not have been a promising career in music making anyway.

My ears are now 73 years old with frequency response roll off, as measured by my audiologist, going down above 8 KHZ, so I am not hearing highs as I did in earlier decades and this will make a difference in my perception compared to others in the highs. But as I understand it my range still encompasses all the fundamentals and most of the extreme upper harmonics of all but 1 or 2 instruments as found in a typical symphony orchestra.

I don’t go by win / lose scenarios when I audition and decide to buy gear, it’s more about differences and if a piece brings something worthwhile to my listening experience and no matter what I’ve heard over the years, including some quarter million dollar setups, nothing beats live for me. While I might not agree with others assessments of the sonic attributes or merits of this or that piece of gear I might have some experience with I respect the right of each individual to find their own sonic “bliss” with regard to the reproduced music listening experience.