TONE

Some representations are more pleasing than others even if they are not "realistic."

I like impressionism more than hyperrealism in painting because it conveys something meaningful with the way it represents.

My search for the sound I was looking for in audio was helped somewhat by looking for realism, and also helped by looking *past* realism.

In other words, "true" has many meanings, and "simulation" is only one of them.

@jdane Agree 100%. Whether it's a violinist 3 feet in front of me or The Ramones or the Chicago Symphony, everything in our sound space must -- at the very least -- be reduced in size, most of the time. If one has an enormous listening room, well, maybe they can fit a string quartet, but still -- the Mormon Tabernacle Choir? Who'd want them?

This is why I made the comment below about "impressionism" vs. "hyperrealism." It's about what kind of representation you prefer, which is consonant with what MC was saying, too. All that said, we still want oboes to sound like oboes, and so the idea of the system all conspiring to keep us in the same arena as the world of live music is an important reference point -- but it's not a ideal we are trying to simulate, point-for-point, detail-for-detail. Otherwise, well, we get the Ramones trashing our house.

@mahgister "And there is no resemblance at all between live event and recording"

Suggest you check a dictionary. Because you must mean that there is no perfect resemblance. Because obviously there is resemblance.