how about making it easier and more affordable? That might help.
Problem is, kids get much better music and sound quality VALUE!!! out of the various portable devices and services available today than they likely could with a traditional hifi. And that is assuming that they they would know how to get the sound they want out of it.
Injecting the sound directly in one's ears is a much more practical and efficient process than listening in a room on speakers. Unless of course one really values room acoustics, soundstage, imaging, etc., which most do not. |
I think of "High End Audio" ambivalently.
It has admirable goals yet often questionable methods.
Its like atomic power, which has a lot to offer, but also spawned Godzilla, just like High End audio has spawned entities like MAchina Dynamica. :^) |
There will always be a market for good music and good sound.
What constitutes "good" though will always vary widely and be mostly a matter of personal opinion. There is little concrete to support the case that high end audio is "better", but there is no doubt some will have very high standards compared to others yet each will still slay the beast their own way, usually on a limited budget.
So things like cost, efficiency, scale, features ALL matter. Just differently to different folks. The stereotype audiophile is truly a dinosaur, set in the ways of the past while the world changes around them. No kid wants that. Maybe when they get older, and listening habits change, some might come around a bit.
My daughter plays violin in school orchestra and has a fantastic ear for music. My son loves things unique and of good quality. Both listen to music often. NEither could give a rat's arse about my toys, as best as I can tell. Nobody but me even has any clue how to work it all. |
"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. |
Remember the Star Trek The NExt Generation episode called "The Game"?
Very prophetic, not just about the possible effects and impacts of addictive games, but how technology really does seem to be overtaking and wearing us all down, hopefully not for the slaughter. |
SAles trend data for key "high end audio" companies would be a good indicator of where its heading. I'd look for units sold more so than revenue. Never seen anything like this though. Pure "High End Audio" operates under the radar of the financial industry as a whole it seems. Are any listed on any stock exchanges? Sony, Yamaha, and other big Japanese makers do not usually get the high end audio seal of approval, but their trends are probably what matters most over the long haul.
How about a new high end audio stock market? A little government regulation would help keep everyone honest. There is NONE in pure high end audio. Just look around and extrapolate what that probably means is rally going on.... |
Schubert,
I believe my analysis would be at the macro level.
Results at the micro level will be different, however, most likely those that embrace the inevitable global economy strategically and effectively will surely benefit most, while those that resist change will most likely tend to suffer more. |
Best Buy faces a lot of competition these days. A common business strategy to combat that is focus on service and quality. With the right approach a chain like Best Buy offering very good audio products that one can actually hear and audition before buying might not be a bad piece of strategy, to fill a void that might appeal to some.
They already charge top dollar for most accessories, so why not the big ticket items that fuel those as well. That might give them something to work with to compete against Amazon for example.
B&M stores these days have to offer unique value not available via ebusiness, or else.... |
Most people wworry more about sound quality and features, and less about "build quality".
If it sounds good and does what is needed, and lasts a long time, then that infers sufficient build quality to deliver the performance intended.
Not that build quality does not matter, but value, design and quality control matters more for most people. I have seen high end pieces built like a tank that sound great but work less reliably than similar device at Best Buy. |
"Most people wworry more about sound quality and features, and less about "build quality"."
Whoops, forgot to say they also care about aesthetics. Build quality may factor into that aspect of it as well. |
Frog,
I have two teenagers.
There is truth to what you say about "kids" these days, but its really a moot point.
Times do change, but basic truths do not. Knowing the differences and adapting takes time. Same true when I was a kid. My generation did not resemble my parents at all. We became more alike as we grew older and wiser hopefully. That's pretty much always the case. The times largely make the person, but so do core values, which fortunately do not change nearly as much.
We are all programmed to take notice of music, to different extents and in different ways, much like the music itself. THere is no equation or magic formula for what works best. Kinda cool really! |
"Ultimately, what's the difference between Gwyneth Paltrow blogging about the 16 different products she puts on her face to let her natural beauty shine and a group of audiophiles describing ultra high end footers and how it let's them hear the music?"
Different hobbies.
Hobbies are hobbies. The only thing they have in common is is what the particular hobby enthusiast finds interesting.
It's nice to have a little time at least to waste on something I suppose. I like many hear am a sucker for good sound, so I find high end audio interesting. What better way to waste time than talking about what is high end or not. :^) |
Economic globalization will turn out to be a blessing most likely.
We are all less prone to fight when in the same economic boat together. That's a good thing I think.
When people come together, in any way, it is usually a good thing. The exception of course would be sexually transmitted diseases. :^) |
Thanks Schubert.
Less speculation would seem to be in order. Not sure how to accomplish that one though. |
No economy will ever substitute for charity, when needed.
Two different things I think, both needed.
I would tend to think a better global economy would help provide a better means to reduce hunger in many places.
It will never substitute for charities that address humanitarian issues not solved otherwise. There will always be those.
Its an imperfect world. We all know that.
Its always an interesting philosophical question about where ones money is best spent. Giving to others in need is globally recognized as a best practice I think. Its something I think even most credible religions agree on. |
Here's an idea.
Audiogon should start a charity. IT could be funded by audiophiles with money to burn buying expensive audio gear. THe charity would help them find less expensive solutions for high quality sound, and donate the money saved to charity.
That would be a great thing for all, no? |
Maybe Czarivey has cornered the market on those 2%. :^)
I was in my local B&M audio shop today they are in process of adding a new vinyl area. The titles are varied but mostly well known ones from over the years. Except they are now $30 a pop. Cash cow anyone? |
It's just not as hard nor expensive to get very high quality sound these days. It's becoming more of a commodity, like most popular things technical do over time.
So audio is gaining higher ground in this sense, but its a totally different world and set of rules. Most people just want to listen and enjoy, not dwell on things as is the norm with "high end audio".
Whether its al for the better or not is probably a matter of perspective, but the old school audiophile mentality is definitely an endangered species.
Best to get with the times and just ride the wave, perhaps? |
"80% of young people into music today are buying it solely on vinyl. "
I do find that hard to believe.
Some interest in vinyl in pockets perhaps, like certain Universities. College kids often do things just to be different.
One of my son's 3 room mates last year did have a turntable, vintage receiver and records in his dorm room. I was impressed! Only 25% of the kids in that room though. That's about the extent of my stats on the subject. :^) |
Here's the deal in a nutshell.
40 years ago, most people listened to the radio and records on a cheap Soundesign or similar integrated stereo made in Japan that cost maybe a couple hundred dollars max.
It sounded like crap!
MEanwhile people with good taste in music invested somewhat more and got much better sound.
Now, $200 buys a nice portable device and phones that actually sounds really good! Home gear can sound better too, but only for a price. It cost more to produce good sound at a larger scale, like in most any room compared to with headphones. But the $200 mobile/portable rig most people have can actually be quite good, so the difference, if it exists at all is much more marginal and harder to justify.
There you go. That is where we stand today. And the gap between average affordable sound quality and the best possible will likely only continue to close, not widen, over time. |
I think most oung people get their music online these days.
Little reason for most to buy CDs anymore.
CDs have always been an inferior product to own in terms of overall utility due to the small packaging. Now, most digital music is had online.
For something to hold and look at as well as listen to, 33 1/3 has always remained the best.
For digital, new music servers and services are starting to add content that helps enrich the digital listening experience over what you get with a CD. I've started using PLEX and like it a lot. Supports high res video and music streams and formats for good sound quality to boot. |
Minor,
My point is that the gap between sound quality achieved by most today is much better than it was back then. The quality or desirability of the music itself is a different thing and not really relevant to the point.
Top notch home audio sound quality has probably improved as well, but I suspect not nearly as much. Therefore, the gap has narrowed between the sound most have and the sound a choice few who care most have. That works against high end audio achieving any higher ground than in the past in that there is probably less to gain, if one cares about sound quality that is.
High end audio is often accused of excess hype and unsubstantiated claims of sound quality. I think that is part of the game that High End Audio must play in order to help justify its existence these days in that there is probably an absolute limit to just how good anything can sound in an objective sense, though the best sound is always harder to achieve on a larger scale ie when larger rooms rooms to fill are involved. |
Minor,
I was listening to a pair of $29 Audio TEchnica headphones today off my standard issue HP computer at work. Source were my lossless FLAC files on my music server at home. The cymbals sounded amazing good even on those, as they do as well at home. The only thing missing was soundstage and imaging, which for sure most people could care less about.
If its true that young people today have no interest in how music sounds, then that does not bode well for high end audio. But I suspect there is more to it than that, that what they have ready access to these days can easily sound pretty good, if they even just care a little.
Neither of my teenagers care a lick about home audio, but are very particular about what earbuds or phones they use. |
It's an interesting paradox that commercialism is generally considered a bad thing for music, yet that is how a musician would get paid for making music.
On the flip side, a true artist and music lover does it because that is what they like to do. They might make some money playing live on the side still, but how many can make a living just being a musician? Not many, ever!
Music/record companies are becoming almost irrelevant these days, except as a way to make money by hyping lowest common denominator pop stars that are more about sex appeal, visuals and pop culture as they are about anything having to do with serious music. |
Are we any more dumbed down really these days than say our parents were back in the post war 1950's?.
I agree that we are, but not that its anything new.
The difference is today there are many outlets for one to get information from if one only chooses to find it.
Used to be we were spoon fed whatever gov. and corporations of the day wanted to feed us with little recourse. Now at least there is. My kids for example get it I think and are not dumb.
Flip side is one still has to sort through all the noise to detect the real information. Not always an easy task. |
If it continuously "grabs you" and "draws you in further" its high end, or at least as high end as needed.
YMMV. |
