In the last TV appearance of political writer Cristopher Hitchens (who was known to be undergoing treatment for cancer) that I saw, he was asked by the interviewer how he was. He replied "Well, I'm dying. But so are you."
What do the statistics say about the age of Audiophiles and the replacement rate?
I'm unable to verify this so I'd like some guidance. I have a family member who is an authorized dealer of some really nice product lines (ARC, Magnepan, Sonus, Bryston).
He won't confirm or deny my hunch, but at his shop I see mostly older white, affluent men. I see very few middle age men and no men in their 20s. I don't keep all shop hours, but I do spend about 15 hrs./wk. there. My relative won't show me his sales demographic but I can see with my own eyes.
So my question is this: Is there an equivalent replacement stream of new blood entering the Audiophile world or not? Do you have statistical proof?
If the universe of Audiophiles (supposedly 20,000 in the lower 48) is indeed shrinking where does that leave the manufacturers and dealers?