"The Truth in Audio" -- according to www.commonsenseaudio.com

[kexodusc]

My head is still spinning

No, you're not "with me" at all. Not until you come to accept the basic truth that auditory perceptions are created by each listener as a direct result of his/her personal ABEs. They function totally independently and with no regard whatever for any scientific facts or "truth"!

Oh, I'm totally in agreement with that. I haven't heard any system that can make polka sound good.

I can't help but wonder if you're not factoring in the "excitement factor" of a live performance (which is undeniable) into your evaluation of the sonics of the performance venue?

This is an excellent point, one I often use myself in such discussions. At a live venue, I dare say sight, sound, touch, and even smelling senses are used, often with some adrenaline pumping, etc...less so at home.

My personal preference in music listening is for the reproduction of it rather than the live performance (with rare exceptions).

Really? I suppose there are numerous benefits, specifically control of conditions, that support your preference. Interesting take.

Finally, your statement that ..... "At present time, nothing even comes close." throws you solidly into the negativity camp of those that I call CONEs - a position that does a disservice to those that fall victim to it, IMO. It strikes me as more than a bit curious and bizarre why anyone would choose to go through their life looking intently for everything that's "not good enough" when the opposite attitude is available to put smiles on your face to replace the frowns.

I think my emotional response has been misinterpreted, my fault. I am by no means a negative person, nor do I approach this hobby as a a pessimist. I spend about an equal amount of time listening to music on my system and live in person. I do admit I prefer live music, and, having not heard every possible component combination, I inaccurately said that reproduction does not sound as good as live performance. I should have said in my biased opinion, my system (and almost every other one I've heard) does not sound as good to me. But acheiving the "live sound" if this state exists, has never, ever been my goal when buying audio equipment. Making my favorite albums sound as good to me as possible, withing my budget has.

I think fundamentally, much recorded music does sound different than live music, as it has many luxuries (over-dubbing, effects, post-equalization, etc) live performances do not. At least many of the recordings I listen to certainly do. In many ways, this makes the recording a superior listen (both technically from a musician's take, and sonically).
Trying to force this into some semblance of a live event may be considered "alteration" in many cases, and might be desireable for some, but not for me. If it's meant to sound live, or was recorded at a live show, it should be reflected in the recording, no? Maybe it depends on the fundamental definition of what "live music" sounds like. I imagine everyone's definition is a bit different.

Besides the psychological aspects of it, the statement itself is also patently wrong!. The simple fact of the matter is, that the technologies of sound reproduction today have matured and progressed in a remarkable fashion to the point where they are within an eyelash or two of "perfection". Perhaps it's because I've been intimately involved with audio for nearly 70 years(!) that I'm much more aware of the progress that's been made than most others seem to be.

You are correct, Woodman, I do not have even 1/4 of the experience you do, and just because I haven't heard anything close to "perfection" (whatever that is), does not mean that it isn't out there. That being said, I'm happy enough with what I have now that other than my amateur speaker building and future SS amp projects, which are as much exercises in relaxation as the pursuit of audio perfection, I'm not in any mad search to find audio Mecca.

Just curious Woodman..If you could build one dream system, what would it be?