PS Audio Revises Marketing to a Direct Sales Only Model

Do Parasound and PS Audio generally compete or market themselves at similar levels of quality / performance, at least in the preamp/amplifier markets?  Don't know a lot about either brand (dealers I've been to don't carry either), serious question, but I see a lot of recommendations on a'gon for both.  Thanks!

If there was any competition it is over now. I doubt Parasound will do direct sales. Because they have their stuff assembled in Taiwan they are very competitive and apparently the stores love them. In my day it was NAD. It was just great stuff for the money. NAD never had something like the JC-1 or Parasound's Phono amps which are also killer. kren006, for most people it is all about the money. Where can I get the most performance for my dollar. Very few of us get to go into this on an unlimited budget and I hope by now most of us realize that just because something costs more does not necessarily mean it is better. There are real values out there like the Benchmark AHB2, their DACs and ADCs. 

Teo_audio., the successful dealers today like Singer in NYC and Goodwin's High End in Boston are in areas with large populations of wealthy people who just want a nice system and have no price limitations. So they let people at stores like these supply and set up systems for them. They are not about to play around with wires. Sometimes a theater set is required as well as cabinetry. 
This business is enough to keep them going but they do sell individual pieces and they will bend over for proven customers letting them do things like try amps at home etc. As soon as you walk in the door you will be evaluated to determine if you are "qualified." A guy that drives up in a Porsche is more likely to be qualified than the guy that drives up in a Ford Escape. 
Stores outside of wealthy metropolitan areas are disappearing. There just is not enough high end business to keep them going. What are they going to do, compete with Best Buy and the internet?

..just wondering if today’s 10,000 dollar black box is that much better then the 5000 dollar black box bought years ago and is still working.  ...and just wondering if those aging audiophiles with hearing loss are willing to even try them.

For companies that sell relatively low volume, direct sales is probably the best way to have the best customer service and competitive price.