Stehno makes good points. I would just add that I think that "brand names" are VERY important to some audiophiles (you'll note I didn't say music overs), whereas uniqueness is very important to others and they don't worry about the manufacturers going tits up.
My own position is somewhere between the two: I do like the idea that a manufacturer is going to be around to service my gear for the long term, but name brand for the sake of "elite-ism" is not particularly important to me. My amp dealer went out of business, but fortunately re-emerged with another company (McCormack/CJ), and my pre-amp builder (Sonic Frontiers) has been bought and sold (how many times?). I suspect it is very difficult for small audio names to become mainstream, ie Levinson and Krell (and I have 2 Levinson pieces that sound great-- and I appreciate the build quality and name).
But having said all tis, it all has to SOUND GOOD TOGETHER for it to be worthwhile. I'm too damned old to be interested in "trophy equipment". Assess the risk(s) you're willing to take and go with what you like and sounds good to you, IMHO. Good Luck. Craig.
My own position is somewhere between the two: I do like the idea that a manufacturer is going to be around to service my gear for the long term, but name brand for the sake of "elite-ism" is not particularly important to me. My amp dealer went out of business, but fortunately re-emerged with another company (McCormack/CJ), and my pre-amp builder (Sonic Frontiers) has been bought and sold (how many times?). I suspect it is very difficult for small audio names to become mainstream, ie Levinson and Krell (and I have 2 Levinson pieces that sound great-- and I appreciate the build quality and name).
But having said all tis, it all has to SOUND GOOD TOGETHER for it to be worthwhile. I'm too damned old to be interested in "trophy equipment". Assess the risk(s) you're willing to take and go with what you like and sounds good to you, IMHO. Good Luck. Craig.