I have subscribed to every audio magazine ever printed and when "Hi end emporiums existed" I spent so much time in them that my wife swore I was seeing another woman.
I also discovered from reading the comments here on "Agon" we are divided into two types of audiophiles; there are equipment lovers and there are music lovers. Equipment lovers speak of 0 distortion while music lovers listen for the equipment's ability to communicate the music. Equipment lovers dote on "sounds" while music lovers only listen for the equipment's ability to communicate the music.
Equipment lovers who preach 0 distortion prefer solid state, while this music lover would not get within ten feet of a SS pre-amp no matter how expensive, although I have no objection to SS power amps.
The bottom line is what I call "The essence of the music", and not everyone can hear or detect it; consequently, it's a moot point if you can't hear it.