Why do people that are Into rap and hip-hop even want a high-end audio system

@tostadosunidos you are so right.  I knew in the beginning that this conversation would go the way it has and I feel that all of this has taken away from the music. Therefore, I'm not going to continue in this path with this thread.  Great observation. Don't talk. Just listen.  

Racism doesn't explain everything in American Society but its always the first place to look.

I'd put power/money at the top.  The whole slave trade flourished as the thing that made the south viable economically.  Without it the region faltered, to say the least.  Slavery was a means to an end, and that end was the prize.  Slavery is long gone here but business still finds ways to ensure the rich keep getting richer and the poor stay down.

I just had one last comment. The assumption that a rap fan couldn't appreciate a high end system is extremely stereotypical and usually comes from the type of folks that I would consider way beneath me. The kind of folks that I don't even bother to engage in conversation with. It's audiophile snooty at its worst. It's what music is not about. The sad part about it all is that we would never hear each other's system or listen in the same room for various reasons I will not discuss on this thread. So to everyone, enjoy your music. People don't matter who you wouldn't care to have around you or your audio system as long as you enjoy what comes out your speakers. That is all that matters.  

Pete Seeger once said "it's very important to learn to talk to people you disagree with."   I think there's something to that.  That's what we  do here, right?

We're all equals, here and elsewhere. Be careful if there are people you consider "way beneath" yourself lest you wind up being the snob.