[dwill73]

Is it me or is there getting to be less and less audiophiles ??  Seems like everyone back in the 1970s through the late 80s in my family and most friends had some type of 2 channel stereo system.  Most families just buy a cheap off-the-shelf home theater and rarely listen to music anymore. 

[Phil A]

It's not you.  Even before the pandemic, traditional brick and mortar stereo stores had gotten scarcer.  Back in the mid 1980s and had a new house built and had surround channel wiring put in the family room and the builder didn't understand what it was for as Dolby Surround was only barely making its way into consumer products.  I had surround before then with a Pioneer TVX 9500 (e.g. https://www.ebay.com/itm/324877362843?chn=ps&_trkparms=ispr%3D1&amdata=enc%3A1sxSxTIy1TAyRY7aB0K825Q84&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&itemid=324877362843&targetid=1262843334889&device=c&mktype=&googleloc=9011840&poi=&campaignid=15275224983&mkgroupid=131097072938&rlsatarget=pla-1262843334889&abcId=9300697&merchantid=6296724&gclid=Cj0KCQiAtJeNBhCVARIsANJUJ2HuAbK4gm0vUgwVfFDh9HoEp92EQIPAtl2UIp458N9Ok-vPx4BMMNYaAjsjEALw_wcB) which tuned in TV Channels in dual mono (before there was stereo TV) and I had Time Delay devices for rear channel sound.

[Phil A]

PS - Welcome to AC!

[dwill73]

PS - Welcome to AC!

Thanks

[ArthurDent]

Greetings & Welcome to AC dwill73   

[Mariusz Uszynski]

We live in "ERA OF STREAMING" .There are no more video clubs, where I used to browse and rent or buy a DVD or Blu-Ray, a lot of CD stores closed the doors (oh, how I miss HMV Toronto on Yonge St.), where I used to go for CD hunting.That store had listening stations, the Staff would open cd and people were able to sample cd, before purchasing.Actually, that store was the "Capitol of Heavy Metal", the young man, Tim Henderson was making sure the cd shelves were up to date with new releases.He even started a magazine BW&BK, it's still up and running online.

[FullRangeMan]

Welcome to AC 

[charmerci]

Young people (and not so young too) have all their music on their phones so they just listen to music on headphones. If you're hooked up to the internet, you can listen to any radio station, free or paid Pandora, Spotify, etc. Or if they're into big screen TV's, then they can get into HT.

[dwill73]

Sound quality and feeling the music just isn't important to most folks nowadays I guess and most probably don't have the budget to invest in a new quality stereo system.   There's also the part were most hifi stereo shops have gone out of business the past 20 years and if there is a local hifi shop  around that shop can't afford to have a lot of demo systems like they did at one time.  IMO you can build a nice system on a budget with vintage equipment if you know what to look for.

[toocool4]

Welcome to AudioCircle dwill73

I think what you get these days are too many things fighting for the family money and attention, also the fact that some people these days have no attention span to sit and just do one thing at a time.

I was on the train coming home from work yesterday and the woman near me was watching a film on her iPad, but at the same time was doing other things on her phone. So if they have no attention span to do one thing at a time, they are not likely to spend the money on a good system because they can’t really tell the difference from a good or not so good system because their attention is divided.

[FullRangeMan]

They don have previous experience on good loudspeakers or even bad speakers and they think hi-fi audio prices are too expensive compared to his new Best Buy TV.

This situation a long with the new $399 Lii Audio F15 FR driver wonder will lead home audio to market changes.

[JLM]

Attended an audio meeting a couple of years ago hosted by Earl Geddes and thought I'd landed in a nursing home (have visited over 100 of them).  In my 60's I was the second youngest guy there.  It's a generational thing.  Younger folks are into miniaturizing everything and making everything portable.  Their standard of living has gone down while more disposable income goes into internet, cell phones, and electronic subscriptions.  They live in an artificial/temporary world and have little interest in DIY.  So they live in smaller and less freestanding homes that are poorly suited to home audio or "grown up" A/V systems. 

Even going to an audio show (remember those) was disappointing by the average age of attendees.  Most are of an age where they're interested in retiring or their various health issues.  And the economic demographic is showing fewer super rich and more poverty as wealth concentrates.  So the younger/middle aged middle income market is dying off. 

[Big Red Machine]

It takes time and money to afford true high end these days, hence the older crowd who have reached higher levels in business hierarchy. I would also guess many of us had hobbies early in life which took dedication and time, so we were inclined to dedicate time and money to achieve certain levels of competence in audio if that bit us. I couldn't wait to graduate college and chase 2 hobbies I could now afford, one being stereo.

Maybe the next generation will pick this up or it will completely transform into AI sensory psycho gibberish nonsense. These kids need to go to a true rock and roll concert and get bitten with the bug - oh wait, lip-synched hip hop until you drop crap music. Sorry. Never mind.

There was a thread on Audiogon this week about all the new manufacturers someone had noticed. Seems like stupid high end exorbitantly priced components. Maybe they will carry the torch.
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/where-the-heck-are-all-these-manufacturers-coming-from?utm_campaign=website&utm_source=sendgrid&utm_medium=email

[FullRangeMan]

One unfortunate thing I have noticed since some years is that no one wants to give useful information on audio subjects, maybe they dont want to compromise or dont have anything to inform, what will create a void of reliable information that will be filled by paid merchandising ''information'' of web sites of the moment.

Turns out that the grandparents of this current generation were raised by omissive parents who were educated by TV themselves, so by snowball effect this millennial generation was educated by omitted parents too who did not imposed moral and ethical limits to his childrens resulting that now they will be happy to take poison and eat s*t as long the mainstream news TV guide them to do it.

[opnly bafld]

Is it me or is there getting to be less and less audiophiles ??  Seems like everyone back in the 1970s through the late 80s in my family and most friends had some type of 2 channel stereo system.  Most families just buy a cheap off-the-shelf home theater and rarely listen to music anymore.

I have TVs, but I'm not a videophile (watching TV on an old Toshiba 22" as I type, don't pay extra for HD cable).
Most people back then had stereo systems, but were not audiophiles.

[richidoo]

Is it me or is there getting to be less and less audiophiles ??  Seems like everyone back in the 1970s through the late 80s in my family and most friends had some type of 2 channel stereo system.  Most families just buy a cheap off-the-shelf home theater and rarely listen to music anymore. 

My two big reasons:

Today's contemporary music isn't worth the investment in hifi. Great music is always the engine that powered the hifi industry. The tail does not wag the dog.

Video with audio is now finally better than audio alone because new technology allowed video content creators artistic freedom that was never available before like it was to musicians. The video makers eagerly took advantage of the emerging technical opportunities while the music industry still can't believe they killed their own LP golden goose so they express their rage through their products.   

[Letitroll98]

I don't know about the video thing Rich.  As a young adult with a growing family MTV hit cable TV and music exploded.  I bought my first hifi system.  (Allison 3 speakers, Thorens TD 316 turntable, NAD 3020B amp)  Nowadays MTV is a realty show/sit com network.  Are the kids watching YouTube for music?  Something else?  I don't see music videos anywhere, but then I'm nearly 70.

[charmerci]

Are the kids watching YouTube for music?  Something else?  I don't see music videos anywhere, but then I'm nearly 70.

Free Pandora, Spotify to listen and watch YouTube videos. I'm not sure how they download music onto their phones but there's a number of ways to download music. If they are really into music, they have unlimited data and pay for Pandora and Spotify. Why fill up space on your phone, when you can stream it anytime, anywhere?

[dwill73]

Maybe in the 1970s-1990s having a decent home stereo was like everyone having a cell phone today.  So many went from having a decent turn-table, to a 8 track player, to a tape cassette player, and then on to a CD player.  Seems like audio equipment was way more expensive per dollar back then also.  Hell, the first CD player back then was a Sony for $1000 in 1982, which is over $2200 in todays money.  Most old school audiophiles would probably be very reluctant to spend that kind of money on a CD player today, even if that's what they were into.     

[charmerci]

Maybe in the 1970s-1990s having a decent home stereo was like everyone having a cell phone today.  So many went from having a decent turn-table, to a 8 track player, to a tape cassette player, and then on to a CD player.  Seems like audio equipment was way more expensive per dollar back then also.  Hell, the first CD player back then was a Sony for $1000 in 1982, which is over $2200 in todays money.  Most old school audiophiles would probably be very reluctant to spend that kind of money on a CD player today, even if that's what they were into.   

I'm not a expert but doing a memory search, during the late 70's in high school, I don't remember most high school kids having more than decent stereos. In the early 80's, the vast majority of dorm rooms or apartments didn't have great stereos, just a few apartments with Technics/Pioneer/Sansui complete systems and usually for partying reasons, not great sound. There was a friend of a friend who had his equalizer sliders set in a giant smile pattern!