It matters quite a bit but I'm not averse to historical recordings. I recently bought a HD with all of Pristine Audio's offerings on it and it's fascinating to explore. In general these artists hailed from a time when the origins of the music weren't so remote and so there is much to be appreciated. It helps that Pristine has made most of these antique recordings very listenable
In Classical music the effect of SQ on appreciation
In classical music there are often many different versions of a single composition that you may own or listen to. How much influence does SQ have on your appreciation?
As a recording is an artifact in itself, the presentation of the sonic factor has to come into the equation as does the interpretation.
in Mahler, as an example, the orchestration is vital.
A recording that is just so-so interpretively may be very attractive to the listener because of the sterling sonics of the orchestra.
So, how much does the SQ affect your judgement?