Fountain of purity

The Macrobians of the 5th century BC were said to be the tallest, most handsome and long-lived people to have ever populated the Earth. Your average Macrobian was said to have lived 120 years on a diet of boiled flesh and milk but that apparently wasn't the key to their success. They had a fountain that smelled like violets and turned their skin all glossy and sleek—as if they had bathed in oil. Washing in this fountain was their secret to longevity. This was just one of the many stories that would later drive Spanish explorer Ponce de León into the wilds of Florida in 1531 to search for water so pure it would restore youth. Myths and legends aside, our search for the best sound quality often leads back to the source in the hopes of getting it right. Yet like the proverbial Fountain of Youth its ability to transform the system is often obfuscated by what comes after. I can place various digital sources in my setup and they all sound different. Am I able to appreciate all they reveal? Probably not. Every piece in the chain colors the waters. I am a huge advocate of getting the source right but I am also enough of a realist to understand it all works together if it is to work at all. This post is in service of a balanced approach to high-end audio. We recognize there are no perfect products and the best we can hope for is a synergistic collection of favorites. The search for the perfect source is as much a myth as any of the great stories that shaped our cultures. Those stories surrounding perfection are best left to Spanish explorers and children at bedtime.