I was an audiophile in my teens.  But, I didn't purchase a pair of serious loudspeakers until I was 40. By then, I had a house, children who were past the toddler stage, and a bit of disposable income.  I suspect I am not alone.  Give the Gen Z kids time.  Chances are at least some of them, 5-10%, will discover what a decent audio rig can do for their music.  That's enough to keep the industry afloat, I think.

I recall Paul McGowan saying that the universe of real HiFi buyers is about 20-25,000 in the US and shrinking. 

Let's face it the younger generations  have little regard for quality and even less regard for bespoke HiFi gear. They are in debt up to their gills and have little discretionary income. They are not keen to own homes, or even cars if you believe the consumer analytics. They don't generally long to be rich like my generation did (I'm 63) and they don't care to be married either. 

Add to that the quality of the AirPods Max, the Bluetooth boom boxes that sound pretty darn good plus the mid-fi brands being poorly made and you have what we have here today. 

I don't know how to remedy this, and I don't know anybody who has proffered a good solution.  

I miss Oldsmobile, I'm finishing restoring my IH Scout II, next will be a 1968 Olds Cutlass Convertible - love that car.

 

I'm also looking for a turntable, have an old Dual, thinking of getting a VPI. I'm not done with this hobby either.

What will the lack of these products do to the used market is the question. Many products are all ready higher than they used to be. I’ve seen Palladium ll monoblocks and Aragon 8008 BB amps, each nearly 30 years old selling for $3k and $2k respectively. That’s simply one example of the used market that I’ve observed that’s truly out of whack. These products were available for less than $2k used when they were 3-4 years old. Now they’re 27 years old and selling for more? I don’t get that!

 

There was a day that you could spend $2k and acquire a very solid audio product. It’s rare to find a quality product at a great price anymore. Well, at least that’s one thing I’ve noticed.