Advantages of owning equipment from major audio brands vs. boutique shops?

Manufacturing has economies of scale.  Many major brands hire competent engineers, including professional audio companies.  Boutique audio companies will tell you it's as much about art as engineering and amplifiers and DAC's have to be "voiced" like a violin. The truth is the fidelity is mostly about engineering and looks and marketing is where most of the art is.  Someone that sells a few dozen amps in a year has to charge an arm and a leg for them to stay in business.  A company that sell thousands can charge much less.  This is why cost and fidelity don't always correlate.  

Tlong, it's more like LotsaBangs 22,317, the 22,317th ugly unoriginal formulaic Hollywood actioner, which seems all that they know how to make these days.

Rwortman, I think it is absolutely wrong to say that, "fidelity is mostly about engineering." Talented designers do a whole lot more than engineering, a lineage from today's Koetsu going back to Peter Walker, and before him, Lee deForest, and of course, one N. Tesla.

Of course there are economies of scale - sometimes almost making up for corporate and professional inertia.

I worked for a boutique loudspeaker manufacturer in Australia. Often asked to trade in well known brands, when selling his speakers to customers. He would take some of the very best reviewed speakers to help him sell his own.
He'd have a weekend set aside for local audiophiles to come and listen to his latest design, or something to review and invariably the well known speaker would be put up against his (actually less expensive) speaker and when all was said and done, his sales would roll in.
Mike Lenehan was asked to be an expert witness in a court case regarding a pair of Raidho speakers, I met the owner when he came into the factory to listen to these speakers that were touted as "better", he traded in a pair of speakers as well (no, not the Raidho's) that retailed more than what Mike sells his for.
I've heard a lot of well regarded and well known speakers come in and out of the factory. When medium volume white noise playing a sweep through the audible spectrum showed up the glaring and inexcusable cabinet resonance from some famous brands, I heard where the difference was.
I also know a designer and his son who makes DAC's that wipe the floor with well known brands 10 times the retail price, his don't come in a fancy enclosure, the fancy is inside, the components and implementation.
However, you'll need to be reading forums to find these gems.

millercarbon is correct, if you're really in it for the sound, a lifestyle involving the beautiful recreation of music, it's about building something.

I have found with boutique companies they are usually less costly 
and more flexible if I wanted upgraded capacitors , and other parts. Don Sachs preamplifiers is a good example of that .
my friend. Owns one and it is very good .
in digital I own a Lampizator dac and the only thing proprietary is the digital chips,and board layout,the rest my Vacuum tube tech friend did all my mods with just upgraded parts quality ,and a 5v rectifier transformer upgrade. I just bought the a New Jolida Now called Black Ice. audio  F35 F integrated amp.the F is for Fosgate designed. I consider Black Ice a boutique company with  excellent quality and service.BTW none are built in China !!

I guess most of my system would fall into "boutique" category, except speakers (and some other stuff I used to own) which are by far the most expensive pieces and are from a major brand. Now, which brands gave me most in terms of service, support, communication, upgrade path, etc?? The so called boutique ones! Mind you almost all the stuff I own are second hand items and out of warranty. When I had a problem with my mega brand speakers the support was laughable, I ended up having a local guy, not affiliated with the brand at all do the repairs because the obstacles the major brand presented, was not worth it. Also it was quite a bit less expensive (although not easy) to acquire those boutique items than what I'd consider major audio brands. Boutique doesn't automatically translate to expensive, just less known. For example Wilson Audio is absolutely not a boutique brand to me at all but sure one of the most expensive ones (I'm sure their support is great btw). So a lot depends on your definition of the word.