I'll have some fun here and throw in my experience and opinion. 20 years ago I was living and working in Germany. I left my stereo system behind in South Carolina. It wasn't long before I was roaming the streets of Stuttgart looking for an audio fix. I found a pair of demo B&W P6 floor standing speakers cheap in a shop there and put them in my flat paired with a modest receiver. They sounded ok and that is what I had for a few years for music. Got back to the US of A and my stereo. It was AWESOME to hear my stereo system again. The B&Ws took on HT duty. One rainy day I wondered how the B&Ws, a modest speaker to be sure, would sound hooked up to my stereo. They were ok sounding for the most part. So I tried it. I was surprised at the result. The speakers sounded still just ok but now I realized they lacked detail and resolution. No layered soundstage- it was just a superficial sound as the best way to describe it. I learned something that day how much each component in my stereo system is a link in a chain. The overall system performance will be only as good as the weakest link. Each cable, source, preamp, amp, power cord, room, and shelf is a link in that chain. Some would include the power receptacle and in-wall wiring as well. While not always practical or easy to accomplish, the most efficient use of funds would be to insure every link in the stereo chain is equivalent. In reality, we tend to see saw our way up the chain- so to speak. It was obvious that expensive cables would be wasted on these modest speakers or even a hi end preamp/amp and source for that matter. How can there be an audible difference if the speakers are not able to articulate it?
I firmly believe that you get what you pay for in Audio. Sure, one must always be on guard for the snake oil but we Audio hobbyists have been a tight knit community for decades and do a pretty fantastic job at sorting out the gold nuggets from the clunkers.
I firmly believe that you get what you pay for in Audio. Sure, one must always be on guard for the snake oil but we Audio hobbyists have been a tight knit community for decades and do a pretty fantastic job at sorting out the gold nuggets from the clunkers.