Ian - pardon me for going into humour mode:
1. I have a better chance of winning Canada's Got Talent than we have of Gene agreeing to the double blind test. My posting this was tongue in cheek.
2. Over the years, I would say 95% of audiophiles claim they "don't need a blind test" to hear a difference between amps, preamps, speakers, speaker wire ... etc ...
It's funny, even if one ASKS the person this question: "If you are so sure you can hear the difference, why not take the blind test?", one is greeted with profanity. I have even been called a cultist in this regard.
3. Rational conversations are impossible with 95 percent of audio buffs. Allow an example: I Was told the M100's could not POSSIBLY match the Legacy Signature SE's because the Legacy's quasi ribbon tweeter is far superior to the "cheap Axiom dome tweeter."
When I pointed out that Harbeth uses a similar dome tweeter in their Stereophile Class A speakers, the person replied with "The Harbeth is a super expensive tweeter with solid engineering behind it."
SOOOOOOOOOOO ... I had to ask ... Who makes the tweeter? What are the parts cost? Have you directly compared the Harbeths to the Axioms?
The answer was "no, and I don't need to."
THAT is the state of this industry, and it is fueled by Stereophile, The Absolute Sound and other magazines.
The simple truth is most people would rather be TOLD what to buy instead of buying what their EARS tell them is the best sounding.
