An Audiophile Journey can be 1) scientific, 2) pragmatic and 3) subjective. Is never easy to find another with the same attached value in all three (3) areas. Therefore just chill and be cool about it…
it is not easy to find another ‘YOU’.
Audiophile just like to argue almost about anything in the hobby (maybe the case in most hobby) and even bring such arguments to the home of the host…thus forget their position as,…(supposedly) a cultured and well mannered guest. Almost always they want to stress their point of view and put weight on what they deemed ‘good sound‘ and/ or the ‘right sound‘. (Again) They forget their position as a ‘guest‘…but count themselves a ‘Teacher‘, ‘Savior‘, ‘Master‘ or ‘Guru‘…(a cautionary note to those who carry such title?)…
all is but an attempt to show that they are better than ‘YOU’.
Try to disagree with them…and they will count you and tell others that you are ‘arrogant‘, ‘unteachable‘ and a ‘lost cause‘.
If allow them to mess with your audio set up then you may risk time and effort to put it back to the way that bring you joy and satisfaction (if the mess is not irrepairable?).
However, I do admit some audiophile friends are able to give ‘a good pointer or two’ to improve the audio set up in term of the ‘desired sound quality and/ or coloration‘.
To me, at the end of the day, if the audio set up with all its components in the space and surroundings still remain the ‘same‘…the changes and/ or improvement in sound quality and/ or coloration may be only a ‘subjective’ one (in no way am I implying in absolute term). At the same circumstance, there are some ‘Teachers’, ‘Saviors’, ‘Masters’ or ‘Gurus’ whom have the audacity to tell the host to demolish the house or shift to a new house or even to give up the hobby…to me that is utterly RUDE!
Therefore, it is better to listen to your guests’ ( ‘Teacher‘, ‘Savior‘, ‘Master‘ or ‘Guru‘) set up before taking their advice seriously…more often than not that their audio set up may not be what ‘YOU’ want (?).