Do you appreciate music more with a high end 2CH rig? I'd guess. Could you still appreciate music even if you didn't have a high end 2CH rig? I hope so. Do you listen to nothing but optimally recorded 2CH taking full advantage of spatial potential and dynamic range? God I hope not. Do I appreciate HT more with a high end HT rig? Sure. Do I have to have a high end rig to appreciate HT? No. Do all movies I see take full advantage of 5CH capabilities? No. Where's the difference?
Look, I did re-read the whole thread. Take your statement:
"birds of a feather flock together and tend not to challenge each other about alternative views. I would rather raise challenging questions about the validity of purchases to the very ones doing the purchases."
If you didn't intend to say A'gon readers are the problem, at least you can see how this could be misinterpreted?
As far as my citation of Classe, its not hand picked or purposefully cited for some nefarious reason. It was just an interesting and glaring difference. I'd hoped to avoid the kind of accusations you raised by sticking to the same company and year--Classe made both the CP-45 and the SST-1. In the 10 min. I wasted in the blue book, it wasn't the only company I looked at--checked ARC, Krell, and some others. Perfect apples to apples comparisons are pretty hard to come by, but at least I tried and didn't selectively edit bad results out--I even said I found HT gear was lower as percentage value by a couple of points or so. But, the difference is not "disposable technology" for HT versus "value long term investment" for 2CH. "Clear evidence" you say, and a "wide range of gear and value." What evidence? What range?
"Upset"? Hardly. At this point "bored" is more like it. It could have been an interesting thread. I'd like to hear what people would have to say about whether the prevalence of HT will change the way movies are made. Maybe 5CH equipment for moviemakers will become less expensive due to volume demand, techniques for 5CH will become better, and there will be more software out there that takes real advantage of the possibilities.