Only problem is that it is quite easy to fool untrained ears. Boomy bass sounds like impact and bright treble sounds like detail. 4 months later, our hypothetical beginner sells his hifi to the preowned shop and purchases something less aggressive. Components can have a rising treble to simulate detail. A big hump near the 100-250 Hz range sounds like deep bass.
CD players cheat by putting out more voltage than normal to sound louder and more impressive.
I try and keep things in perspective by comparing all systems to a reference. My reference is the concert hall. True that it is unscientific since the recording wasn't made in MY concert hall. But it's better than nothing. Strange thing is that I feel that many hifi systems sound larger than life, more exciting than the actual performance.