On Monday, November 25, 2013 9:41:29 AM UTC-8, wrote:
In this week's online stereophile the editor bemoans the plight of "high
end",ie. price tag, audio. The boomers are no longer the buyers and
younger generations take their audio straight up, so to speak, as but one
part of several ongoing activities. The fear that audio gear will become a
commodity was raised, and it is a reality that fancy boxes as living room
set pieces have lost their appeal. Why the high cost spread when the ever
present smartphone brings in the tunes thank you.
http://www.stereophile.com/content/h...high-end-audio
Since I first got into high end audio people have been bemoaning it's down fall. That was 30 years ago. And yet as JA points out..."Despite a lack of growth in high-end sales, our industry is more innovative than ever before. Take any product category, any price point in specialty audio: the performance of products today is at an all-time high. The Golden Age of Hi-Fi? This is it!"
Not much in this world has enjoyed substantial economic growth in the past 15 years. (other than vinyl ironically) So why would high end audio be the exception? For an industry that has been allegedly dying for the past 30 years it sure seems to be doing pretty OK.