For You: THE most imprortant element...

Actually, CornFedBoy was spot on - it's the music. I can listen to Dwight Yoakum, for example, on anything capable of making some semblance of the sound. Do I prefer to hear it on good gear - naturally. But I first fell for music listening to Chicago blues and MoTown pop on the old Sony "Ball and Chain" am radio. Stupid thing could sometimes pull in Chicago, sometimes Texas, sometimes Canada, and as a kid it was the most amazing thing - to hear all this music I'd never heard before. And back then I didn't know AM from my A$$, stereo from steering, I just loved the music. If I'm doing "serious" listening, then it'll be on the main, but I can get just as much joy out in the barn listening to Bill Monroe on the beat to bits boombox when I'm working on something. If I get hung up on how it sounds, I lose that foot tapping fun feeling, and that's really why I listen to music, at all. On the other hand, put any "101 Strings..." recording on the mightiest, most magnificent, as yet unheard, unbelievably realistic sounding, you-are-there system, and I'll just pull the plug. Can't stand it. Really don't want to hear it.

No system can make music, but the music makes the system, for me.

chas

I agree with Drubin and the Trekkie (couldnt resist). Taking for granted that we are listening to music we like, accurate tonality comes first for me, then dynamic realism, then imaging (ie 3 dimensionality), then soundstaging.

...is being able to get lost in the music. When suddenly it's 2AM, and the past hours belonged only to oblivion, things are just right.

Most important is accurate retrieving of low level musical information. Without? Musicality and sense of ambience and space, is lost.

Actually, I think your's is the first comment I've received on my A'Gon alias Paulwp :). I thought it doubly appropriate given the forum topic here and the fact that I tend to lurk more than post (though I am *not* the phantom -2, -2 lurker-rater ;).

Fpeel- you hit it right on the money; though I hate getting up to go to work the next morning. I just don't seem able to stay up into the wee hours like I used to- getting old I guess :).