Quote Originally Posted by Puffin View Post
What is purity? I always thought that the holy grail were something like LS3/5A's until I heard them at a show and thought they were awful, thin, lacking in bass and no soundstage. Maybe it was just a bad dem, or amp or source or a combo of all. I suspect that anyone hearing my system would say that it is coloured (whatever that is) What exercises my mind is that we all have our own take on what sounds good and what we want to listen to. How can there ever be a definitive system that is all things to all 'philes?
Not the LS3/5A "chestnut" again. They were designed for near-field monitoring of speech in the confined space of the outside broadcast vans used by the BBC. They were never intended to be used to replay full-range orchestral, pop or rock music. The fact that they can do a half decent job of the latter is a credit to the designers, and the reason why they are sought after by audio enthusiasts; and hence the absurd 'hype' and mythology that now surrounds them.

Quite agree with the last sentence however - no, there can never be a definitive system, because there is, as yet, no such thing as a perfect system (nor do I think there ever will be). All audio systems are a compromise, taylored to suit the tastes of the owner.