I think it has much more to do with aesthetics than anything else. Just look at the System rooms of any Audiogon member, and compare it with the audio/HT room of someone who is not into high end. One is displayed as a part of one's life, and the other is hidden.
Virtually everything for sale on this site would lead one to believe that there is a hobby at hand, and most people would rather pay the guy at the big audio chain store to just come in, hide everything in the walls and cabinets, and hand over the decorative, "it even wipes your rump" remote. And the remote--just like the kids toys, the dishes, and the evening mail--is hidden away as well. If it cannot be used without aesthetic intrusion, they don't want it.
Virtually everything for sale on this site would lead one to believe that there is a hobby at hand, and most people would rather pay the guy at the big audio chain store to just come in, hide everything in the walls and cabinets, and hand over the decorative, "it even wipes your rump" remote. And the remote--just like the kids toys, the dishes, and the evening mail--is hidden away as well. If it cannot be used without aesthetic intrusion, they don't want it.