Have you heard the sound you are after
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The trouble is Martin that when we think that we have done it, that feeling gradually fades over the months as we learn and habituate, and our brain 'susses' the new illusion. Then we start again.
Nearly 50 years, and yes - more or less 'there', though I still like to tinker with cartridges.
1971 first attempt at putting a 'Hi-Fi' together (dismally).
Money is the clincher. Big Tannoy DC appear to be the only realistically affordable 'super-speakers.' Unless you count QUAD ESL but impressive as they are that isn't the sound I am after.
I have just revisited a post I put in the gallery here when I joined pondering if I had reached my end game or not, and of course I hadn't, in fact I have changed every single component at least once since and some by a factor of 3 or 4 chasing my dragon. However I must say that I have been pretty happy with all incarnations and they have all been similar, in that my amps have all been valve, similar with phono stages, and have only been trying to tweak rather than drastically change the sound I want. So no, I haven't, but have been close, and I wonder if that is the best one can hope for given a finite budget and room limitations.