After fifty years… amazing. What high end audio can be.

75 here, with 60 years of the chase behind me. Still have the first Heathkit I built, the first decent turntable and speakers that I bought. It’s all been wonderful, and still going. We have about a dozen pairs of speakers inside and outside of the house (no neighbors) and a portable system (small amp and Ascend Acoustics Sierra 2 EX speakers) for travel and hospital use. That’s about the only concession to age. No dedicated listening room or home theater. Every room is for listening, and all systems can be connected via Bluesound.  Music is going close to 50% of the time, throughout the house, inside and out.

“I wonder if we are the last of a generation that grew up with hi-fi and made it an important part of our lives-- “

Yup, you’re right.  But part of the reason is that they haven’t had the opportunity to hear what’s possible, what big ol’ boxes can sound like.  When friends of our kids came over, a number of them showed a lot of interest.  On top of that, they didn’t have the American songbook and the crooners to grow up with.   We definitely lived through the golden years of the birth of high fidelity.  We’re in Lampasas and it’s noticeably absent from the Austin scene, even with SXSW!

I concur. I have been in the game at a certain level since the early 70s, certainly not in the elite echelon but quality hifi hardware. Just last night I sat down after dinner and listened to 3.5 albums consecutively* and marveled over and over at what a modern system can deliver compared to my previous mostly more middling quality vintage hardware (with the exception of the streamer), which I purged piece by piece over the course of the past two years and replaced with up to date speakers, DAC/amp and powered subs with the attendant room correction software.

Listening to music is a much, much more rewarding experience today than it had been in the previous decades.

You could say, "they don't make 'em like they used to", and you would be correct ....and that's a good thing.

*
Claudia Campagnol "Right Now"
Simon Phillips "Protocol II"
Brian Culbertson "TrilogyPart 1: Red"
Fourplay "Snowbound"

My Audio gear plays a Big Part in my Retirement Time. Still Rocking at 72, since the 60's.

This is the BEST Hobby in Retirement. Spending my Pension $ on what I want. Not scrounging my Nickles to buy Audio Gear and Albums in the 1960's.