I do enjoy music... thanks
I just don't fuss about the containers, bit-rates/-depths as long as it sounds good to me (uncontrolled and sighted) I could not care less.
Could it sound even better ? Maybe ... what I don't know I don't miss.
There will never be any scientific objective measured definitive 'truth' about audibility borders nor would that affect public opinion of the masses nor development of even higher resolution formats if there were.
Humans are too divers and those that do the testing keep making mistakes/errors/false assumptions based on observations.
Hires... does it matter ? To some it seems, others don't care, consensus.. there won't be any. Divisive threads ... will always exist.
We totally agree that music is what it is all about. I listen for hours each day to a tabletop FM radio with speakers inches apart. I enjoy that music very much at just a little above background levels. I can focus on the music, read, cook or easily have a conversation with my wife or someone with it on. It is always on during dinner or social gatherings at my home. No one complains.
But, hours of mostly solitary, serious listening has also been part of my DNA ever since my teens ages ago, as is regular attendance at live concerts. For serious home listening, it is vitally important to me to try to make that as transparent as possible and as close as I can to my recollection of the live music experience. I focus only on the music, and I am unable to split my attention to read or do other things during those sessions. I generally don’t fiddle with the system except for volume adjustments once or twice at the beginning of an album. I just want to select an album from the thousands on my NAS, push play and listen to the music for pure pleasure.
The audio hobby for me is only a means to that end, and perceived quality and transparency of the music and the illusion adds greatly to the listening pleasure. So, very occasionally, I do shift gears out of curiosity to see if better quality exists. And, I seek out objective conclusions, based on measurements, specs, etc., but also I form subjective conclusions based on my own comparative listening impressions. Both are essential to me.
But, the last major overhaul of my system was over a decade ago, with a shift toward computer audio as an input source about 5 years ago, and a upgrade to my DAC and my DSP EQ suite a year or so later. There was a lot of analytical evaluation including by ear during those changes and setup. But, I was satisfied after that, so I could go back to what I really wanted to do, which was just listen to the music. I have no burning desire at the moment to make any system changes. I do not lust for any new gear. But, following audio technology and products is also something I have done for many decades.
It all works for me, and I am open to and respect others’ listening habits or expectations or perceptions about audio quality. But, I will voice my own opinions from my perspective, and I will try to get at the truth as I see it if facts or understandings are in question. Popularity or what others prefer or choose don’t matter much to me. We each make our own choices, though I cringe at some others’ choices.
In deference to the thread topic, hirez matters to me. But, if it does not to others, I have no problem with that. I will listen to my choices as they do to theirs.
Never been happier with my music or the quality with which it is delivered. Meanwhile, my wife shrugs her shoulders and prefers watching TV upstairs or web surfing.
