Some people actively participate but rarely if ever start a thread.

When I really ramped up this hobby in 2019 or so, I started many threads, most of them trying to get at questions for which easy information would be hard to find -- for example, "Is there something special about low efficiency speakers and higher powered amplifiers?" or, "My outlets are reversed in my listening space -- is that dangerous for equipment." Etc. The discussions which have ensued from many of my threads have been so informed that I’ve saved many of them as PDFs into a library of files on various topics in audio.

Most of my questions can be answered via the search function.

Bless you. There's so much here already. I've argued it should be organized into some kind of archive but that won't make any money...

I've found that threads I've started that ask for something specific are pretty well responded to and answered. But ones that are more opinion based or ask for feedback on a certain component inevitably devolve into pissing contests. 

I've found that too. It only takes one monkey to start a food fight.

I have one idea about close-field listening. Not sure how well that will go over. Is it too controversial?

I'd find this interesting. The heart of the hobby for me is how people listen and set up their rooms and gear.

I would like to see a whole category here for just low price bargain components

Me too. This would give a good boost to the hobby because younger people are, by and large, the future and do not have a lot of disposable income. Your idea is what Steven Stone and others have hit upon. See:
https://pmamagazine.org/?s=steven+stone