fsonicsmith, please refrain from taking the Lord's name in vain; I find it offensive. Thank you! Lovely virtual system, BTW.
I disagree with what I consider exaggeration about lack of show attendance by owners/manufacturers/designers, as in my experience it is not representative of the reality at shows. Having a lot of show attendance over the years, it is not challenging to meet a designer/manufacturer. Perhaps you have had poor timing, but I cannot think of a show I have attended where several to many of the owners/designers were in attendance and spending a fair bit of time in their rooms. I especially remember the ones I have reviewed; Salk, Exogal, VAC, Legacy, Wells Audio, Van Alstine, PureAudioProject, Clarity Cable (have not done a show for a while). Others I recall seeing at forums, TAD, D'Agostino, I recall also Merril Audio, Synergistic Research, EAR, Voxativ, Sanders Sound - all these come to mind in a minute or two. If I were to go through my review list of the past 14 years at Dagogo.com I believe I would have a lengthy list. Add into that the numerous mentions and images in other review magazines about designers and owners at shows, and I believe your characterization of shows as bereft of the designers and manufacturers is unwarranted. I find that though the days are long for them, many truly love to show their work to eager audiophiles. :)
I also suspect (no confirmation - yet) that many of them have been whipsawed by the end of the covid indoors, cessation of some shows, and parts shortages. I fear the fallout in the next couple of years may be terrible. I am hoping AXPONA makes it. You may gripe about shows, but just wait. If they go under, have fun traveling hundreds of miles or having no demo prior to buying. Perhaps you do not care, but many do. For the serious customer a show is a godsend, a collection of some of the finest gear under one roof, something that could never be replaced virtually. All this is aside from the discussion of music genres, but I fear the industry will have to row hard against the wind for several years. A lot of these small businesses would not take the strain of an online shopping community that figured they deserve things like free (or practically free) returns on in home demos, etc. You could see a lot of nice gear makers decide to quit while ahead. The landscape could change pretty dramatically in a few years.
Anyway, back to the discussion about tunes at shows...
I disagree with what I consider exaggeration about lack of show attendance by owners/manufacturers/designers, as in my experience it is not representative of the reality at shows. Having a lot of show attendance over the years, it is not challenging to meet a designer/manufacturer. Perhaps you have had poor timing, but I cannot think of a show I have attended where several to many of the owners/designers were in attendance and spending a fair bit of time in their rooms. I especially remember the ones I have reviewed; Salk, Exogal, VAC, Legacy, Wells Audio, Van Alstine, PureAudioProject, Clarity Cable (have not done a show for a while). Others I recall seeing at forums, TAD, D'Agostino, I recall also Merril Audio, Synergistic Research, EAR, Voxativ, Sanders Sound - all these come to mind in a minute or two. If I were to go through my review list of the past 14 years at Dagogo.com I believe I would have a lengthy list. Add into that the numerous mentions and images in other review magazines about designers and owners at shows, and I believe your characterization of shows as bereft of the designers and manufacturers is unwarranted. I find that though the days are long for them, many truly love to show their work to eager audiophiles. :)
I also suspect (no confirmation - yet) that many of them have been whipsawed by the end of the covid indoors, cessation of some shows, and parts shortages. I fear the fallout in the next couple of years may be terrible. I am hoping AXPONA makes it. You may gripe about shows, but just wait. If they go under, have fun traveling hundreds of miles or having no demo prior to buying. Perhaps you do not care, but many do. For the serious customer a show is a godsend, a collection of some of the finest gear under one roof, something that could never be replaced virtually. All this is aside from the discussion of music genres, but I fear the industry will have to row hard against the wind for several years. A lot of these small businesses would not take the strain of an online shopping community that figured they deserve things like free (or practically free) returns on in home demos, etc. You could see a lot of nice gear makers decide to quit while ahead. The landscape could change pretty dramatically in a few years.
Anyway, back to the discussion about tunes at shows...