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No, you can't have it both ways...

That's my point. A bad system makes bad recordings sound "better" ("better" to YOU, maybe - don't assume that it will sound "better" to everyone who hears it) BECAUSE it is a bad system - if *coloration* is the definition of "bad". And, obviously, we disagree on the definition of "bad" in this case...

Not that I believe it is possible for such a thing to happen, but if any system seems to make all recordings sound good when all recordings are not in fact good ones, then it is not a "good system" - at least not from the standpoints of transparency and neutrality. Rather, I'd say that such a system is a likely to be a "highly colored (flavored?) system" - which some would call a "bad system". And I don't believe that a bad system can make good recordings sound better than they really are. A bad system could only make bad recordings sound better than they actually are if it is a highly colored ("bad", at least to me) system. "Bad", in the sense that it can only sound "good" when playing bad recordings (see my post above, see the paragraph below) - an effect that is of limited usefulness because the "color" will affect all types of recordings to some degree. IMO.

I guess I'm on the side of the audio engineers who are optimistic enough to believe that "good" (well engineered) recordings can and will be produced and distributed on a continuing basis, because those types of engineers will continue to produce systems that sound relatively transparent and uncolored for use by the types of audiophiles who prefer to listen to good recordings rather than bad ones.

And here is where we differ. I don't believe it is the job of a truly good (transparent, neutral) system to sprinkle fairy dust. I'd say that the sprinkling of fairy dust is the job of a colored system which, as I've said, might be a "good" type of system to have if all of the recordings you listen to are bad ones. But, if all of your recordings are not bad ones then a fairy dust sprinkler is not a "good" thing to have because of the degrading effect it will have on truly good recordings. IMO.

So, once again, if a system seems to make bad recordings sound better than they are it is because it is a colored (however pleasantly colored) one. Either that, or the listener is easily entranced and/or slightly gullible. IMO.

You believe that a system that does not *improve* the sound of all recordings is a bad system but I believe that such cannot possibly be true - not if neutrality and transparency are the standards by which a good system is judged by. But, obviously, we fundamentally disagree on what constitutes a "good system" so I guess I'm happy to leave it at that.

Thanks for the discussion. Good-bye.


Edits: 12/11/14 12/11/14 12/11/14 12/11/14 12/11/14
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