Why isn’t more detail always better?

Accurate detail means as close to live or the recording studio, in the bass, midrange and treble.  If you cannot separate the bass guitar from the kick drum, it lacks detail. If it is fatiguing, it lacks accurate detail. Accurate details are always better. You, however, may not enjoy a completely flat frequency response. 

Detail is never the "last word" in accurate retrieval but one of many criteria in the overall reproduction of sound.Its always about synergy; the balance of all factors that creates an illusion of a live performance.

It seems to me that what is desired is a mostly flat response without favoring any specific frequency or any frequency band that is a subset of the 20-20k band. That said, I am sure many of you have seen the so called idealized response curve that Harmon corporation suggests for a natural reproduction of music. While I hesitate to throw rocks at Harmon for arriving at this conclusion that a downward sloping curve from the bass end towards the treble end of the spectrum is ’ideal’ I maintain that instrumental balance in an orchestra varies according to who called in sick on the day of the concert. :) One time it might be top-heavy another time more neutral or flat and yet another more like the Harmon curve. I suspect the real ideal is a version that splits the difference between the Harmon curve and totally dead flat. Trained human ears are deceptively discerning when it comes to loudness differences and other aspects of listening to recorded music. It comes as no surprise to me that aspects of some equipment combinations just light some folks up with delight and totally turn off others. A little bass heavy as presented and apparently preferred by Harmon probably plays better than something that is too bright. Im hoping that as I choose new gear I end up with something that is satisfying on todays streaming content and also on what few CDs I have left. If I get back to pre-fire parity, I will consider myself incredibly fortunate. Detail when not in balance with the rest of the content is pointless. I seek accuracy. I want the system to produce what the production engineers burned to the disc without adding or taking away anything. If the listening experience to that disc is not good, I want to be able to blame the engineers who produced the disc for the unpleasant rendering rather than my own system.