I don't value recording quality in comparison to recording content. What makes me an audiophile is that I do care about quality, but if someone told me I should care about it more than or less than the content of what I'm listening to, that is a topic that I simply will not address. It's separate from the way I love music. But it is also related. I can appreciate quality in the content of music, but the converse is every bit as true. I've had memorable experiences listening to music that moved me though it wasn't presented cleanly, and I've also heard sound quality that moved me though I wouldn't have appreciated the music otherwise. But even in that case, I was enamored with the music.
It's kind of disgusting to have to keep treading these circles of self-definition. "You know you're an audiophile when..." I unsubscribed to that thread. It became like the joke that was funny until you had to explain to someone what made it so.
As audiophiles, we have the luxury of not having to ask ourselves whether we prefer the quality of the reproduction, or the material that is being reproduced. As audiophiles we can kick back and enjoy it and know that we have it good. This is what I love about the hobby. When you can't taste the wine because you're busy analyzing it, you're drinking it for the wrong reasons. But as discerning and informed hobbyists, we very fortunately don't have to choose.
