Re: But that's not what the anal-ogists here are saying.
Then too, most of today's popular music; certainly by-$$ marketing the vastly most: incorporates instruments and voices - intentionally altered, now most often digitally, though I see that early Fuzz-tone tube boxes command a premium price -- indicating a yet more subtle mix of 'production' and post-production massaging. Ergo, where the $$ is: no longer has very much to do with "high fidelity reproduction of actual musical instruments".
So the only valid comparisons of 'reproduction' must come from traditional instruments, orchestras, voices - as of yore. But the 'analog' source won't go away, though much may still be lost through carelessness and insouciance.
The slickest re piano must be the Vorsetzer! (sitter-in-front?) - a robot piano player with paper tapes encoded by several dead masters. In that technique, you can 'hear' Paderewski PLAY on a modern piano, just As sorta.. as anyway else.
Meanwhile there exists that library of Edisons, 78s, LPs of other Masters. And more and more statistical programs shall continue to reduce the clicks, pops and repetitive noises -- who can gainsay such an aim? Not moi.
Still and all: for as long as Russians have tube mfg. plants, there will be Marantz amps and new clones of such - playing through the closest we can still come to "KLH-Nines, Wharfedales" etc. - in preference to (the other multi-thousand-$ "Class A" type transistor yuppie-amps for big spenders), cause..
That's just the Way It Is. And what it is About is,
Goose bumps ...
(Now try and put Those in a spreadsheet, Smartass ;-)
Ashton
Senator Transistor-amp, I've met President Tube-amp..
Senator, you're no