Respectfully, Jason we are not just talking about better sound as in a subjective thing, like the fun arguments that we all have about what cable is better. We are talking about frequency response. Cheap transformers have a response of say 50hz to 14k with in 3db! that's pretty bad, good transformers will do 20hz to 20khz +- .5 db! Why would you want to limit your frequency response? It's bad enough that your mics already do that, why aggravate the situation by using substandard transformers that have such bad bandwidth? Never mind the poor distortion characteristics.
Chris, you are quite knowledgeable when it comes to tranformers, and I understand that the differences between cheap and expensive tranformers are measureable, and noticeable when listening to them as well. I can hear the differences too. obviously, as you keep pointing out, it is not ideal to run the audio through a 50Hz-14kHz +/- 3dB transformer. But, usually, when people on this forum ask for transformer recommendations, their personal budget is driving a lot of their decisions. If someone was going to buy two $150 transformers for a total of $300, personally, I'd recommend buying a cheap pre-amp (used sound devices mp-2 can be had for $350-$400).
So, while you are telling someone to stay away completely from cheap transformers, I am simply suggesting that the cheap ones might be a reasonable solution that fits their budget. obviously, it's not ideal and it's not something that anyone would choose unless their budget was restrictive and didn't allow for more expensive options. I'm not arguing with any of your facts, or even suggesting that the cheap transformers are the end-all be-all. I'm just saying that it might be a good solution for some people.
thanks for the interesting discussion,
Jason