High End Audio-Gaining Higher Ground?

Very good indepth answers above, too bad you guys weren't
present at this particular meeting with the so called
reknowned audio engineers, it would of made for a much more
interesting session.

Bcgator, that is a very good question, I'm not sure what
constitutes a high end system, that would be an excellent
thread to initiate on it's own. Ask a question here on
audiogon what is the best preamp, amp, and speaker
combinition you will get a hundred different answers. I
suppose if you have been listening to a table-top radio for
the past few years anything above that could be considered
higher end. Lets go with that analogy.

I've worked for fifteen years in a college arts program with bright young people whose lives are devoted to the arts of all kinds and I've met very few who had interest in our audio passion. Jmcgrogan2's response is pretty much spot on in my opinion. Young people's lives are an exercise in constant multi-tasking and the concept of sitting in one spot doing one thing - listening to music - strikes them as very odd. I work at a state university, not an ivy league school. The majority of our arts program students are so swamped in accumulating student debt they can't conceive of the time they'll be able to buy their own home much less afford a good audio system to put in it! I seriously think the rapidly escalating cost of college is going to negatively affect many aspects of our economy as discretionary income shrinks because of ballooning student loan payments. I know far too many people in their thirties with advanced degrees and six figures of student loan debt.

well from a 33 white male I don't see audio ever being more then a very esoteric hobby.

Listen its way to expensive for the vast majority of people. I buy used and people still think I am crazy. younger people don't have this kind of money period. I know doctors and lawyers who are so far in debt that I have more disposable income making way less.

Also you can barely hear Hi end audio anymore. Very few stores and the ones that do have Hi-FI carry only a few brands. Sorry its hard to justify buying something when you have no ideal what the market can offer at different prices points.

In addition the Hi-Fi stores I have been to have been very off putting. Very unwilling to show a younger person different systems and what is available. Rude and just not interested because I only bought $2000 dollar speakers. This is crazy. Treating todays customers like crap means you won't have them as older customers when they may have more money.

People are super busy having time to listen to music when there are 100 plus tv channels and the internet full of social media and information is unlikely. People don't put music ahead of these other forms of entertainment.

"High End" is pretty much a marketing term for traditional hifi gear and components that target peoples desires to have the best possible sound in their homes.

The term is a lot of the problem. PEople will always seek high quality sound with their music, just to different degrees and in differnet ways to adapt with modern lifestyles. Just look around you and you will see that modern lifestyles are increasingly mobile. Great mobile sound can be had for a pittance in comparison to "high end audio".

It's merely natural selection at play and guess who is the dinosaur and going to lose? Or at least never grow beyond a boutique industry that largely targets wealthy gullible fools? There is a niche for everything I suppose...

High End Audio needs to cut through all the BS and just deliver the goods in a manner that works better for everyone. THen we will all live happily ever after.