gofar99 Messages: 1947 Registered: May 2010 Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, Yes and no. Truly high end audio was probably only a small fraction of audio in the first place. It has always been costly and that automatically removes it from the main stream of audio. By high end audio I figure it relates to the to 5% or so of systems. Mid range audio is alive and well and meets the needs of a vast majority of individuals. I figure most home theater systems fit here. The bottom end is thriving as well. MP3 and similar formats on portable devices are common. I believe that there really was no bottom end in the early days as there was no media for it that was affordable. What do I personally figure is high end.... anything that puts superiority of function over cost. It does not necessarily have to be expensive, but because of the search for excellence it generally is. It is true that some exceptions exist and indeed many costly components are not really high end, just high cost. One perspective that makes it seem like high end is dwindling is that the number of retail venders is lower. I suspect this is a marketing problem. It would (does) cost a fortune to stock a store full of high end gear now. The way around it is direct marketing and retail stores having only a limited stock but requisitioning items as needed.
Last fall I went to the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest in Denver. The entire conference hotel was full of high end stuff. The exhibitors didn't think there was any decline in demand and most were indicating an increase. So all in all I figure it isn't going away, it is just not as conspicuous as it used to be.
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