In my experience room acoustics have more effect on the sound of the system than any of the components, including speakers. I once had a $60,000 two channel system installed in an acoustically poor room that sounded rather poor. That same system in an acoustically great room was very satisfying. So I would say room acoustics have more sonic effect than the entire rest of the system combined. You misjudge me for some reason.
In my experience rooms that are longer than they are wide with plenty of space behind the speaker systems and behind the listener seem to represent a good foundation for acoustics. Small square rooms with dead acoustics and with speakers backed up against walls seem to be poor foundations. I could tell you about some listening tests I conducted that would surprise you but this isn't the place, obviously.
Center channel speakers deliver about 70% of the content of a Dolby movie sound track. I understand how, in some circumstances such as sound that follows action from side to side, there is an advantage to having matched speakers for the mains and center. Certainly there is nothing negative about having such a match. However, given the importance of the center channel in surround systems, my own experience is that choosing the center channel is the most important decision one can make about the entire system (except for room acoustics, of course.) Since the center channel delivers 70% of the content and since most of time it is delivering different content than the mains, the mismatch hasn't been so important for me. I rarely notice it. I find it more satisfying to have a center channel sound that I like more than having matched sonics in those rare occasions where it is a benefit. I like the sound of my center channel. If all of that makes me oblivious to "cohesive sonics" then so be it.
I like Sinclair's quote. It seems to pander to both sides of the equation. I'm sitting here imagining a design engineer wondering where exactly to put that mid bass peak in the frequency response. The thought gives me a chuckle.
I think you will agree that amplifiers with similar performance measurements will amplify signals in a similar manner and sound the same under normal operating conditions. I have conducted blind tests in which amplifiers were sonically distinguishable from each other so I realize that all amplifiers don't sound the same. My comment was that competently designed amplifiers sound the same when operated in a proper manner. I disagree with Sinclair in that I consider it incompetent to design a sonic "signature" into an amplifier. The whole purpose of an amplifier is to make the waveforms larger without coloring them. One can add sonic signatures to a sound system in many ways that are adjustable or removable. It isn't possible to adjust the sonic signature of an amplifier. If you have it, you are stuck with it. Amplifiers should be designed to be neutral. To me it is downright crazy to do otherwise and it represents incompetent design. With all due respect to Sinclair, of course.
The sonic similarity of amps with neutral designs was brought home to me once when I conducted a blind test between my Audio Research power amp which is a tube driven design and one of those very same Crown amplifiers that you decided were "unrefined" with no knowledge of them whatsoever. The Audio Research amp, unlike many tube amps, had very good performance measurements. Nowhere in the audible range was the frequency response 3 db away from flat and, while it had higher distortion numbers than the Crown, they were still in the inaudible range. Three audiophiles couldn't tell them apart in a level matched blind test. (Audio Research solid state CD player, Conrad Johnson preamp and B&W Matrix 802 speakers in case you were worried about a lack of refinement in the test components.)
It's hard for me to imagine two amps with more different design philosophies. Yes, I've tested tube amps with a throttled back high end and they are common and distinguishable in blind tests. They are incompetently designed. I can tell you that Audio Research appears to make competently designed tube equipment.
I'm not suggesting that your two amps don't sound different from one another. Obviously, I don't know. I'm suggesting you haven't conducted a proper level matched blind test so you really don't know either. You're comfortable in believing what your ears tell you in a subjective listening environment. Been there. Done that. Done it for 40 years. I used to use the same arguments you use. How can I not believe my own ears? Well, let's not go into why you can't because it doesn't appear to be an appropriate subject for this forum. I'm sure you know the reasons. Enjoy the new amp. It's always great to get new gear.
