When I was in my late twenties I would drive up a hundred miles to Phoenix and go to the dealer that sold Audio Research equipment to listen to it and other components that I could not afford. I would see these old guys... you know the same age group that could afford the Corvette (different subgroup thought). They would come in and haul off the equipment I was drueling over. Fast forward 40 years... now I'm the old guy doing that.
What do the statistics say about the age of Audiophiles and the replacement rate?
I'm unable to verify this so I'd like some guidance. I have a family member who is an authorized dealer of some really nice product lines (ARC, Magnepan, Sonus, Bryston).
He won't confirm or deny my hunch, but at his shop I see mostly older white, affluent men. I see very few middle age men and no men in their 20s. I don't keep all shop hours, but I do spend about 15 hrs./wk. there. My relative won't show me his sales demographic but I can see with my own eyes.
So my question is this: Is there an equivalent replacement stream of new blood entering the Audiophile world or not? Do you have statistical proof?
If the universe of Audiophiles (supposedly 20,000 in the lower 48) is indeed shrinking where does that leave the manufacturers and dealers?
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I believe that what made high-end audio so very compelling and successful in our day (for decades) was #1: how compelling the music was for all those years. The music (passion) is what actually produces audiophiles, and future audiophiles. The music is what drives the high-end audio industry and not the opposite. I believe that, more than anything, IMOH, bad, non-compelling, poor quality music, over the past 30 years or so, has really hurt the high-end audio industry. Happy listening. |
@bdp24 Brother Hitch, as we called him, was a dear friend, although neither a melomaniac nor an audiophile. Like Molly Ivins, living larger than life allows but leaving unforgettable shadows. |
Lots of great, well recorded music being made now. A great aspect of streaming music is that this is easily discoverable. The music is not the issue. With widespread income disparity ever increasing, the high end industry became drunk on ever increasing prices. That turned off lots of folks. It’s happening to the ski industry now, another passion of mine that I am getting ready to walk away from.
Thank goodness for Schiit and the like for breaking new ground in affordable high end audio. |
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