merlin,

to use your analogy - it would depend on what i was after. if i wanted a car to get me froma to b cheaply then the yugo would beat the lex. it depends on your point of view. now don;t get me wrong there is a degree of arogance in bd's posts however i think a lot of this has been engendered by the responses he's had from some here.

now i don;t agree with his methodology in choosing an amp but if it floats his boat then who am i to argue (if i did i would be a hypocrite as i'm a subjectivist so must respect his opinion for his circumstances).

i think bd has had an epiphany and is proselytising about it - much the same as you did with the tact a few years ago. don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with this and imho the forum is a better place when people come along and are enthusiastic about things.

i'm not saying don't call someone if you feel they are spouting bullshit, what i'm saying is do it with a bit of sensitivity as there may be a germ of reason in what they say. in this instance the null test seems like a good idea but saying it should be the sole criteria for chosing your amp is a little foolish, to us, however if this makes bd happy who are we to argue. it is the escalation of the argument to deeply entrenched, back to the wall, finger on the button posturing that i'm opposed to - on both sides.

cheers

julian