Hey Skylab,
Your series of portable amp reviews was the driving force behind my getting carried away with headphones, when I joined in 2007. I really appreciate all the hard work you put into those reviews, especially since I always found them to be trustworthy, including your review of the Oppo HA-1 that you did for InnerFidelity, if I remember correctly.
Speaking of "old farts" who made great contributions, I was sad to hear that Tyll Hertsens has retired. His good-bye post is an interesting read:
https://www.innerfidelity.com/content/thats-itim-out
Like you, I've been into speakers mostly, a near-field monitor setup, where the room treatments aren't necessary. The imaging is wonderful compared to headphones of course. I've still got three complete desktop rigs (den, office, living room) that I use from time to time and portable gear, used infrequently.
Here's the most recent thread I started:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/top...ansformers-for-affordably-clean-power.857448/
Mike