Interesting discussion. I read ASR for a while because I found the reviews with data helpful. I also read and listened to reviews on other sites that discussed listening impressions. Put them all together and you get a sense if a piece of equipment is worth checking out. The thing that turned me off about ASR were some of the comments that were posted. If someone posted they liked a piece of equipment I would often see posts using measurements to challenge the post. Then I would see it get personal with comments back and forth that were very negative. I listen to music and read about equipment as a hobby to get away from the day to day grind and all the negativity that seems to be at an all time high. Life is too short. I don’t have time for negativity. One of the things I like about this site is I see that people share their opinions and they’re respectful and usually positive. As Hans says, enjoy the music.
The Audio Science Review (ASR) approach to reviewing wines.
Imagine doing a wine review as follows - samples of wines are assessed by a reviewer who measures multiple variables including light transmission, specific gravity, residual sugar, salinity, boiling point etc. These tests are repeated while playing test tones through the samples at different frequencies.
The results are compiled and the winner selected based on those measurements and the reviewer concludes that the other wines can't possibly be as good based on their measured results.
At no point does the reviewer assess the bouquet of the wine nor taste it. He relies on the science of measured results and not the decidedly unscientific subjective experience of smell and taste.
That is the ASR approach to audio - drinking Kool Aid, not wine.