While I do not often post my membership goes back to 2003 so not particularly new to this site.

I would never tell a Bose owner that his/her speakers suck...that would be rude and uncouth. We make our purchases for many reasons and speaker purchases are generally the most "listener specific" purchase you can make. If a person were to ask me for advice regarding a speaker upgrade or purchase and was including Bose in their choice(s) I would ask them why and listen carefully to their reasoning. I would offer alternatives to Bose but always tell them to buy what makes your ears happy within the budget allocated and enjoy them.

PS: I prefer "Kai"...Mr Winters sounds condescending and a bit to formal.

In my opinion a "bad audiophile" is someone that throws money away on equiptment solely for the purpose of having a "trophy" that is bigger/better and badder than everyone elses but did not set it up because they barely have a clue on how to turn it on, no understanding of what they bought or why, would not open an owners manual or tweak said system even under extreme duress, barely even listens to it because they still do not know how to turn it all on and winds up using their "Bose Wave Machine" because it is easier...there are people out there that fit this description and bill themselves as "audiophile"...

I have been an audio enthusiast for over 30 years...going back to FM converters in cars...installing and tweaking car stereos in my cars and friends...moved to home stereo about the same time and have never stopped. Oft times we are restrained by budget and location when making purchases but I have not lost my "ear"...I am able to determine and describe the differences between speakers, receivers, etc by listening carefully. Most of us in fact do this and have quite sophisticated ears...sometimes we are limited by our benchmarks.