I'm 65+ and recently did some upgrades. No question my hearing ain't what it used to be and it occurred to this is last system I'll want or need. Speakers first. Bose Acoustimass SE 5s to Difinitve Technology Mythos Gem XL's and a DT ProSub 800. The other was finding a vintage Tannoy Micro with a Stanton 681EE. Can I hear the difference? You bet! It's almost like my hearing's improved. I'm going to weight in here on the notion that we stop hearing the difference between mediocre and outstanding. It's a lot of BS and I'm here to bear witness.
Are your speakers designed for your listening taste and hearing ability?
It occurs to me that speaker manufacturer’s and designers in many cases design their speaker ( and its subsequent sound) to the expected ’typical’ buyer. IME, a lot of high end speakers are designed to appeal to the consumer who has a certain amount of ’hearing loss’ due to age! This might sound odd, but I think that there are a lot of a’philes who have reached a certain age and have now two things going for them..1) A large enough wallet that the expense of the speaker isn’t really the issue and 2) a certain amount of high frequency hearing loss. This circumstance leads to designers and manufacturer’s bringing out speakers that are a) bright, b) inaccurate in their high frequency reproduction and c) not accurate in their reproduction across the frequency spectrum ( some may be tipped up in the highs, as an example). My impression is that a certain technology catches on--like the metal dome ( beryllium or titanium, as an example) and the manufacturer sees a certain public acceptance of this technology from the --shall we say-- less abled in the high frequency hearing dept, and the rest is as they say...history. Your thoughts?