Quote Originally Posted by hertz
There is a big difference between casual hi fi enthusiasts and audiophiles.
You're right, audiophiles suffer from Audio Nervana Nervosa.

The audiophile can make out differences between equipment because he is obssessed with natural, uncolored sound.
They say they can, but none has actually ever proven that they really could.

I have been in this hobby for the last 15 years and I have a small group of friends who are like minded. Most of them including myself have bought their equipment after extensive lisening.So the buying decision is based solely on the SIGNATURE SOUND of each equipment within a certain budget.All of us do not have the luxury of dedicated listening rooms but I have noticed that the differences in equipment is much more noticable and evident when you swap components in a system that is setup properly in a dedicated listening room.
So you all convince each other of what you are hearing and your brain gladly modifies your perception to match.....

-Bruce