Thinking about the question, thank you, I associate "polite" with speed or the lack of it. That connects to three factors: PRaT, dynamics and HF extension. Ouch, what a dismal fate, to be lacking in all of these! The word "polite" is... polite, of course, and IME doesn't usually refer to really horrible sound, just sound that is more or less easy to ignore. Better than sound which grabs your ears and twists. Not polite.
Seems obvious that there would be degrees of politeness. Polite compared to what? I don't especially associate Classé with "polite" but then my definition of polite sound was formed by my Dad's old system, a pair of B&W DM14s being driven, if that's the right word, by a 45wpc Sherwood solid-state receiver.
Seems obvious that there would be degrees of politeness. Polite compared to what? I don't especially associate Classé with "polite" but then my definition of polite sound was formed by my Dad's old system, a pair of B&W DM14s being driven, if that's the right word, by a 45wpc Sherwood solid-state receiver.