"I Trust My Ears"

Don't trust your ears unless you have something to reference your memory to. Audiophiles listen to expensive speakers and systems that often add extra flavor and that sounds better to us, usually because the system is expensive and impressive. The proper sound is in the mixing and mastering studio unless you have done that you have no reference to judge what the proper sound is. No one can say this or that is better or worse unless you have been in the studio listening to the final mix. 

[...] even those who talk about "training" the ears would agree that an objective foundation is needed for such training. Otherwise, the whole situation becomes quite murky, as one can be "trained" to prefer highly colored sound.

@mike_in_nc 

Therein lies the rub, I think. Colored sound is completely fine when it delights the listener; if eliminating coloration were the goal, no one would listen to tube gear, and I doubt we'd be better off for it.

When it comes to measurements vs subjective listening, I don't believe one excludes the other; both are necessary, in the right balance.

Without measurements, no gear could ever be designed or even repaired. I'm all for measurements, with the caveat that taken too far they can lead to a one-dimensional cultlike nonsense.

Just my 2 cents obviously :)

Training his hearing has nothing to do with the gear price, branded name etc 

@mahgister 

I completely agree, brand name and price should not be part of the decision-making process.

Maybe easier said than done, but this is an area in which we can train ourselves, if we so choose, to block / ignore those and other distractions.

@devinplombier - " Colored sound is completely fine when it delights the listener"

Maybe. Or maybe a particular listener doesn't know better. It is when the scale of good-better-best is used that we run into trouble, but preference I have no problem with. As you imply, there is no moral imperative to listen to a relatively uncolored stereo.

@mahgister 

I completely agree, brand name and price should not be part of the decision-making process.

Maybe easier said than done, but this is an area in which we can train ourselves, if we so choose, to block / ignore those and other distractions.

This dont means that my 1000 bucks  system sound better than a 10,000 bucks system because it is supposed to be my ears taste...

This means that acoustic concepts and only acoustics concepts can teach us about what we are hearing and what we are not hearing..

Without an acoustic concept we cannot know nor understand what we are hearing...

Be it from a 1000 bucks system or a system at any price, the ratio ASW/LV matter and the way we can optimize it with a system of any price...

It is the same for the concept of "timbre" ...

or the  concepts linked to  each acoustic spatial attribute..

But for most " i trust my ears" means i can purchase a gear upgrade and i dont need anything save my "taste"... (subjectivist)

It is childish...

But there is worst, there are those who think they can trust only the gear  specs and nothing else matter...(objectivists)

This is ignorance worst than childish...

Our hearing must be trained not ignored...

 Acoustics and psycho-acoustics concept matter more than anything else..

Yes to buy  wisely we need synergy between gear parts, using our ears and/or the gear specs, for sure to pick the right upgrade...

But before upgrading we need to use acoustics to optimize what we already own , if not we will never know what our actual system is able to deliver in a specific room ...