@goble,
i would like to add.... people would trust ''big town afficcianados'' like you.
the reason being, i personally confess, i will fail a blind test when it comes to comparing two systems of similar DNA.
what ''small towners'' can do is have auditions of max no of setups they have access to and ask the ''big towners'' which one they liked the most along with their prefered listenings. this would give them a fairly good idea about the kind of sound signature to go for in other options.