Is the idea of audiophile listening a dying concept as boomers die off?

@rok2id There is plenty of midrange gear around, and a huge home theater/distributed audio market that targets that segment. Just check out Best Buy or Target or Wally World or Crutchfield. Sony, Denon, Marantz, Onkyo, etc. still pump out lots of under a grand units, and not just Marantz, but other nameplates in the higher end do the same. Parasound may make megabucks gear, but they also make a lot of entry level gear. Plus there are companies like Emotiva and Schitt and Topping and others who market directly for the mid level consumer.

I remember my first encounter with the audiophile market in the 70s. Pretentious salespeople tried to upsell customers and were downright rude when rebuffed. (Little has changed, alas.) I researched speakers for my cousin, all of 15 at the time, but interested in good sound. We found a well regarded speaker that he could buy with what he had saved from his summer job. We drove the 50 miles to Raleigh to buy a pair, having found two dealers that stocked them. The first dealer did not want to honor the price he gave on the phone, and when we told him that was the budget, he sneered "so you really are in THAT price range?" We just turned and left, going to the other dealer. Their quote was more, but they honored it, and treated us to an audition of the next level, AFTER the transaction. They understood the concept of priming the pump. The first dealer did not get a bigger sale, nor even the extra forty bucks. The second dealer earned a lifetime of repeat business and referrals. I estimate my referrals added 30-50 grand to his sales, all gained from not humiliating a teenager over a 300 dollar purchase.

That first dealer is the one that makes people, as the younger generations say, cringe. Wine tasting groups and stores can have the same vibe. People are still buying and enjoying wine and spirits at all prices and with all levels of sophistication and appreciation. How we buy and share our interests has changed, but fundamentally, much remains the same. We all seek people who share our interests and respect our tastes and circumstances.

@rok2id You are right The high end is rather, uh, high-priced. The NYT noted a system at an audio show in 1975 that cost over 6 grand, and noted that the entry point for audiophile listening had crossed the Rubicon of 2 grand. In 2023 dollars, that would be nearly 35000 for high end and close to 12 grand for entry tier gear. That is pretty much the same as today. But in other electronic segments, from televisions to tablets, prices have dropped with innovation. I agree with some here that the ultra high end systems, costing 75-100K plus get outsized attention at shows, just like the Lamborghinis and Rolls Royces at car shows, but that is bling culture at work.

Two forces are churning. Income inequality has produced a larger class of multimillion- and billionaires for whom price is no object. But, even though the more-money-than-sense crowd is bigger than ever, the thick end of that market, the nouveau riche, is interested in installing a movie theater in their house, not a concert hall. The vast majority of sales of the top spec'd equipment is to enthusiasts, who are stretching every dollar because they are obsessed with ultimate sound. No doubt, the internet has made it easier for ambitious engineers to connect with those serious audiophiles, and niche markets command premium prices.

What amazes me is how many smart gear designers charge prices that are not low, but nowhere near premium priced, heavily advertised and reviewed brands. I recently auditioned an amplifier pair that is easily as good as any I have ever heard. In the designer's house, no less. The price is at the very top end of what I can save for, but a third of what it would cost from the top nameplates.  Like a fine restaurant, they build to order.

@simao I would agree with you that convenience is more valued than fidelity, but there is nothing really different about the current generation, as @roadcykler pointed out. I listened to FM (and AM) on lo fi car radios and table top sets and "transistors," and listened to records on my family's console hi fi when I was a teen. As I began to develop more appreciation for the music, and production became more sophisticated, I climbed the audiophile ladder.

Nowadays, the kids enter music via MP3s, "curated" stations, wretched earbuds, and yes, the radio, which is still the dominant way that people get their music fix. It's no worse, in many ways better, than what I had. And a small but significant number will graduate to better sound.

It reminds me, as a photographer, of when people complain the cell phone is killing cameras, even photography itself. Over my lifetime, and before, it was claimed that the Brownie, the Instamatic, the point and shoot, and even the original 35 mm film camera were going to overshadow serious photography. They are all gone or dwindling, and the stand alone dedicated camera chugs on. There have always been lots of snapshots, and a lot of very enjoyable listening of not the highest fidelity, and there is nothing wrong with either, but in the end, they have little effect on the serious enthusiast's experience.