CJ, maybe your suggestion to bring an SPL meter with you was a bit tongue-in-cheek, but as other replies have pointed out, differences in sound level can invalidate any conclusions which may have been reached. In a properly controlled blind listening test levels should be matched to within 0.1dB. When this is done electronic components such as players and receivers/amps which have have had sound differences described in rather poetic terminology suddenly become indistinguishable when their name plates and price tags are concealed. Speakers of course will differ in sound, but the point of comparative tests there is to determine a preference, not difference, and should likewise be free of influences such as difference in sound level or speaker position. Even better, the complication of a blind test is still useful with speakers to remove preconceptions as a factor in the evaluation.
