Sheesh! The OPPOSITE of what I said.
I was trying to make the point that, just because you may be over 50, don't accept the notion that you are somehow disqualified to be able to hear and appreciate higher quality sound and music.
In Get Better Sound, I used a true account of an older man (probably 70) who had been in front of high spls for decades (he was a conductor of a state symphony orchestra). Even thought he obviously couldn't pass an audiologist's test with flying colors, he could stop a rehearsal and tell a musician that he or she was late entering in a section, or even sometimes call for a retuning.
As a free-lance recording engineer, I worked with this group weekly as the recordings were for broadcast on a NPR affiliate. So I saw him in action over and over.
Furthermore, I've recounted setting up and voicing systems for much younger audiophiles than myself. It's not that they couldn't hear. Most often it's just that they don't have a reliable reference for what to listen for.
It's not their fault. They may be basing their reference on systems they've heard that fall short of their true potential - such as at any show and in nearly every dealer showroom.
To punctuate this point, I must say that many of the most sophisticated and discerning listeners that I know are over 50.
Finally, this thread is evidence of what I call ACK on my website.