Powered speakers show audiophiles are confused

@thespeakerdude 

Full support of commercial anything beyond 10 years is rare.  So you have the ability to fully support, today, a product that is 20 years old.  Based on failure rate predictions and field failure rate data there is an appropriate stock of fully assembled amplifier boards and/or individual parts in a warehouse for a 20 year old product. That is a sunk cost the Finance department approved for every product and baked into the cost of every product sold?  

Or could support consist of a limited supply of custom items backed by purchase as needed resistors, transistors, caps, op-amps etc.?  That seems like an approach the Finance department would support.

Commentary that some do not want to learn and/or move forward smacks of a bit of arrogance.  New is not always better.  If not broken, why fix it.  Buy and enjoy the audio hobby as each desires.

Regarding comments made implying active speaker superiority backed by some level of personal technical knowledge, many only repeat common talking points originating who knows where. Every speaker, active or passive, is designed to a price point.  That demands some degree of engineering compromise in every case.  From the simple minded perspective of active speaker parts count, a failure rate prediction calculation will show an active speaker less reliable than a passive.  The only approach to remedy that situation is to increase cost of the design process, component quality, and testing.  Forget about engineering for serviceability or parts obsolescence. 

In the end, make your choice and hopefully be happy.  Lecturing from the high castle to save the ignorant unwashed from themselves, kindly save that for the new is always better club meeting.

@thespeakerdude 

Interesting that you start with accusation of a "snipe account" to frame your support of active speaker superiority.  Regarding requisite personal knowledge, not a single post in this thread provides verifiable technical bona fides, only opinions or recitation of personal system usage experience.

To follow your logic about fuel injection and electronic engine controls, indeed look where we are now - after decades of refinement.  Wonderful technology when it works. Repairs require expensive troubleshooting by trained mechanics at a high cost followed by expensive replacement parts.  In addition, alternatives to that situation are virtually non-existent.  Good model for audio to follow. 

@lonemountain 

Appreciate your comments about personal corporate experience.  My personal experience is based on working with Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 companies.  Regardless of what any of those companies professed, the engineering department never won against the bean counters.  That is truly a good think if ATC engineers always win.

As you cite KEF as an example, they survived the bean counter battles to become immune to cost???  Many more "cost is no object" startups do not survive when financial reality appears.

Electronics most frequently fail due to overstress.  Either design parameters are exceeded or the design was not robust initially.  Connectors are a problem area.  Primarily poor design choices to save a few pennies.  Whether active or passive speaker, push on connectors internally are a very poor choice but do save pennies.

@thespeakerdude

It is impossible to have a knowledgeable discussion on a topic if you lack knowledge of the topic.

Took a while for this attitude to appear.  Reminds me of another forum claiming to be a place for learning.  Until - - reasonable questions seeking knowledge are met with similar "you need to read this book, that report, seven research papers" before being qualified to engage in discussion. 

Back to the topic of technical superiority.  A completely vague and undefined terminology. What is the measurement? What is the environment? What is the standard of comparison?  How is good, better, best, superior defined?  If an active speaker FR is 1%, 5%, 10% flatter than a passive speaker FR does it sound better? 

I really don't care how anyone decides on a speaker purchase.  Research minutiae for months or pick based on listening only or pick the sexiest package.  The original post set the tone to promote controversy.  SUCCESS.  Not much but hot air followed.