Why Don't More People Love Audio?

In my experience, the majority of buyers in big box stores could be described as not particularly discriminating. They buy brand name or price, not performance.

You guys have to get beyond your narrow-minded insistence that sound matters to anybody but you. It does not. The general public has a quantitative mindset that does not take matters of quality by assessment into consideration. In seeking quality they are guided by brand names and ad campaigns. They buy what they hope will send the message that they are cool. This may sound very familiar to some of you.

The problem may be that the Title of this thread, and its Description do not agree. . . . .

Lots of times friends will come over and bring (usually) a CD because "I wanted to hear this on your system", so they are maybe more discriminating than we assume. They just don't "Love Audio" enough of the time to "Love Owning an Audio System" ;--))
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It's not worth the effort. Make it simpler, with good sound, and they will come.
For example, are there any good one-box systems that can compete with separates, AND at reasonable cost? No. Instead your stuck with a cajillion wires, power cords, boxes. Is it worth the bother? For most people, the answer will be no.

macrojack -- Then there is Bose which populates big box stores and drives on the road it has paved with it's carefully managed reputation.

I object to the notion that it's too time consuming/requires too much work, particularly when it comes to the wealthy. To me, that's when it becomes easy. Walk into a well-known hi-fi shop, listen to their top setups, pick the one you like best, have them deliver and set it up. Working within a budget is the hard part.

I also disagree with the idea that most people's ears are "untrained", and find it a little arrogant to be frank. From the moment I first walked into a hi-fi shop and listened to that first note, I was floored. Why else would anyone of us have gotten into this hobby in the first place?

Personally, I think it's just lack of knowledge of its existence and financial priorities for most people. An iPod is a luxury audio purchase for many. How many are willing to spend double that amount for 36" of cable?