I go in phases. Sometimes I get excited about trying different things, room treatments, crossover settings, various components, etc. I usually get on these kicks because I read something about lateral reflections or speaker directivity or whatever and want to hear it for myself. Once my curiosity is satisfied, I lose interest in the equipment and get back to enjoying music.
The Forest for the Trees
I caught myself last night doing something that I need to do more. I was listening to the music. I wasn’t concerned with imaging, sound stage, tonal quality, wasn’t even thinking about it. I was listening to the music. It engaged me, I was lost in it. But then, I caught myself and started thinking about why it engaged me. It sounded awesome because all of the qualities listed above were there. I need to remind myself to enjoy this hobby more for the music than the pursuit of perfection. It feels good when it happens and you don’t even know it is happening.