Hey RICH Audiophiles

@jerry_gt3rs - do you know Cheech, from Rennwerke in Elmsford NY? A madman, to be sure, but he knows the older cars and did meticulous work (more mechanics, not body restoration as I recall). He had some serious cars in that shop.

The real question is why do rich audiophiles buy exorbitantly high priced systems when there are so many less expensive options to achieving equal or even better sound? Wealthy / successful people are usually focused on end state results, not tweeking or enjoying the incremental upgrade steps. I don't consider them audiophiles any more than I would consider a street beggar a concert violinist just because someone gave him  a Stratovarius.

whart1,

 I do not know him specifically but I have heard of the shop. We only do mechanical work here, although the Roadster is here for a full reassembly. It came to us pretty much as a shell along with about a dozen unlabeled boxes along with 2 engines!

@1extreme 

Your post is not accurate. You assume so much and like many times in life, the assumptions are drawn from incomplete data or incorrect assumptions. Your version of rich may not be a completely accurate picture.

Super successful people, in general, are not satisfied with mediocre anything but if it has no value or utility, then they move on without a second thought. Time to this group is precious and those I know who fall into this category are not remotely interested in a cable shootout or posting on a web forum and they will not waste their time debating what is or isn’t an audiophile, they simply buy experiences. They underwrite symphonies, opera, jazz venues, festivals, universities, cancer research and hospitals. They heli-ski rather than take a lift because the lift doesn’t go where they want to go. The money value of time is equally as important as the time value of money.

I recently was invited to dine in the home of a very successful gentleman. His setup was modest (Definitive bookshelves, a hidden away mass market amp Im sure playing satellite fed music from his cable tv provider). I kow he liked music and asked him about his setup and he said its just for background, conversational listening. He said he hadnt heard too many systems that recreated anything resembling real so he was satisfied that to hear the real thing they would just go to concerts and venues to hear live. People in his tax bracket have many homes, many systems and very little free time.

So, I guess my point is I wouldnt worry too much about why the wealthy choose what they choose. Like everyone else in the world, they are shaped by their experiences.

@ghasley
I think you just made my point better than I did.