Why is there so much separation between the professional audio and audiophile worlds?

Digital just sucks in my honest opinion. Compression, suppression all you end up with is soulless sound.

noted that audiophiles are often proud of how much their systems cost; pro audio people, in contrast, are likely to brag about how cheaply they got their gear. There is overlap: mastering engineers with six-figure monitoring systems; audiophiles who harshly criticize high-end prices and insist that their inexpensive systems are just as good or better.

This is a lot of you here on Agon, pretentiousness is abound here. I lean toward the real value and quality.