Does "state of the art" matter?

[RGA]

So because you think Vinyl sounds better than CD, therefore JA isn't a music guy? Is it not possible that the music he prefers listening to is on CD and not vinyl? Or that he actually prefers the sound of CD?

Once again I did not say that. I never said vinyl sounded better than CD. But there is a FACT that some vinyls of the same album sounds superior on vinyl. This has nothing to do with the vinyl - it has to do with the way the vinyl was recorded. Just as there are CD recordings that sound better than the recording done on vinyl. If it is about music then you need both. And no it is not about the type of recordings since there is a huge amount of classical, jazz, blues, rock, pop etc available on record that is NOT available on CD. You say Rock and Pop RGA? Yes I do - tons and tons of singles and alternate extended cuts on 12 inch vinyl not available on CD. Even some new artists like Jewel have albums on vinyl where there are 2-4 extra songs not available on the CD version.

Also interesting that your last paragraph is what I've been trying to get through your very thick skull for so long - all your endless preaching about what sounds great versus what only sounds good in a lab, blah blah blah is just OPINION. And clearly experienced audiophiles don't all share your opinion on what sounds best... What is the difficulty in accepting that fact?

Stereophile - "I used a selection of master tapes as the source. When the results of the blind test were analyzed, the tubed Radford had come in first, despite showing the poorest measured performance." http://www.stereophile.com/reference/70/

Not just an opinion. Sugden A21a - always wins in the blind test shootouts - and it always measures the worst.

My opinion on audiophilia is that we all need to stop listening to persons preach all manner of crap about what sounds best and just listen for ourselves and decide what we like... I don't hold any reviewer's opinion as Gold. The only opinion that matters is my own, since I have to live with the purchase... So I'm not going to buy a turntable and SET/HE rig because some arrogant reviewer preaches about how great it sounds... I'll buy it IF when I audition such a system it A) Sounds better than the other options I listen to & B) Meets my needs...

Fair enough - that's exactly what you should do. I am betting on A when you do hear a good SET/HE/Vinyl rig.