Right, science is evolving, but there is not universal agreement that science is the best way to approach every topic. Subjectivists have a strong argument that measurements do not incorporate everything that matters to audiophiles and their enjoyment of what is a hobby that focuses on enjoyment of an art. A purely scientific comparison of the relative quality of Rembrandt vs Picasso might rank Rembrandt as far superior because many Picasso portraits have the wrong number of eyes.
DACs were mentioned earlier. They are a good example of the issue because they are so near perfect that audible differences are tiny or inaudible. A subjective audiophile,
joined and started a thread here yesterday discussing mostly DACs. It did not go well. Most responses were that subjective opinions of DACS were useless without DB tests. One posted posited that subjective reviews of anything, including speakers has little worth.
Does this mean that the enjoyment audio hobbyist gets from DACs is totally based on measurement? Is the experience of owning and using a Topping D10 superior to the experience one gets from an SPL Phonitor X because the D10 measures better? If that's true, then going forward the primary utility of DAC reviews here is to spot the dwindling few DACs that measure poorly. That is not sufficient in itself for me to make buying decisions. I love measurement....but I like hearing about the functions, technology, brand story, build quality, and yes, subjective listening impressions too. In the real world all of these factors impact our own listening experiences. If you are into gear, my guess is that the experience of owning and using an SPL Phonitor is more fun than a D10. At least until you see the measurements
My point is that how much science and measurement matter to audio hobbyists is disputed and rejecting that is not objective. If you believe the only goal of audio gear is to reproduce the original recorded signal as accurately as possible, then science is #1. If you believe that subjective enjoyment of your system and the music is most important, then we should be open to the concept that science may not be the only valid methodology. I think you can put value in both approaches.