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HiFi: old man's (end)game?

Some good points above. The key change (IMO) is that portable music is so simple and has become pretty decent in recent years. Most people already have a multi-functional device in their hands (replaces laptop, camera, audio and video player and so much more) so just adding decent headphones makes possible perhaps 75% of the "hi-fi dream" from a sound quality, at a fraction of the cost.

This sunk home for me recently - I spent approx £600 on an entry-level A&K SR25 audio player and HiFiMan Edition XS 'phones - amazing value for money compared to what I have in my old-man's hifi system, plus I can listen in any room (or if so inclined on-the-move too).

And we have to recognise that hi-fi is not just about the music, there is also an element of ownership / materiality / collecting / twiddling that satisfies our OCD tendencies**. Perhaps now we have shifted the focus of this to today's mobile tech?

On the small / cottage industry aspect, manufacturers have got us by our short and curlies with the newer tech. I cannot imagine holding on to a smartphone for over 20 years, yet some of my hifi has been in my ownership for this sort of timeframe. And their target is most of the world's population - some 7bn people - not the few tens or hundreds of thousands that manufacturers of old might aspire to.

** I don't mean to insult anyone here, I know from my personal experience the for those "into hi-fi" the enjoyment of the music is not the only motivation. And different people sit in different places on this scale - enjoying music / collecting equipment / CD / LP / cassettes / cables...
 
Big Tabs said:
You choose to ignore Beyonce?
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I’ve not listened to any Beyonce nor could name any of her songs so I had a listen last night after reading about the Grammy awards and the mad demand for her tour tickets, I didn’t listen for long as her music did nothing for me and soon went back to Loscil, The Black Dog, Craven Faults etc (electronic/techno etc)
 
Big Tabs said:
You choose to ignore Beyonce?
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Well, I did say today’s threads, but yeah, maybe.

Though I think the only song I know from Beyoncé’s Renaissance is the one that samples Robin S’s ‘Show Me Love’. Beaten in the prestigious Album of the Year category at the Grammys by pfm favourite Harry Styles, of course.
 
Alex N said:
Today’s pfm music room threads: Pink Floyd, Bob Marley, Bonnie Raitt, Echo and the Bunnymen, Peter Gabriel...

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
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But then Kate Bush has just seen a resurgence. And one thing that streaming services do allow the younger people brought up on them, is the realisation that decent music didn't just start when you became able to buy your own records / CDs / Streams.
 
Big Tabs said:
People on pfm enjoy moaning about their lot, and paint the yoot with their negativity because it suits their narrative.
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Not at all as far as I’m concerned. I’m far more likely to lash-out at my own generation for not designing audio kit younger folk want to buy. Music itself is in a great place today, just so many amazing young bands coming through, and they are marketing their wares on vinyl (I’m buying more than I can keep up with!), so the problem is with us, not them! I wish I knew how to make pfm attractive to a younger audience. The site is certainly intended to be inclusive and we all have so much to learn from the younger generation IMO.
 
Most of the interesting stuff seems to come out of china these days. I'm not talking Xiaomi earbuds, but boutique audio companies etc.
 
We occasionally forget hifi is a means to the end of listening to music with a degree of fidelity. I'm not at all surprised that there are so many different ways to achieve the ends. I blame the Sony Walkman for the demise of hifi. :D

Aspro said:
One of the best aspects of Hifi is doing business direct the people actually making the equipment. Apart from artworks every thing else I buy is mass produced.
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There is nothing wrong with mass production. Most of my kit dating back to 1970s and 1980s are made in a factory. The difference is they are very well designed, properly documented and so can stand the test of time and remain serviceable for decades.
 
Richard Lines said:
What you mean not every student leaving university will be out buying £35k of Linn klimax DSM??? :rolleyes:

Regards

Richard
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It's not the cost of hi-fi it's having a place of your own to put it in. Why bother if home is a small room in a rented houseshare that you might get booted out of any time. Decent headphones and DAC make far more sense.
 
It's not the room as much
It's
Newsflash
Younger people just aren't interested in your hobby
 
Growing up in the 60s & 70s the only way you could listen to music of your choice whenever you wanted was to buy some sort of ‘hifi’ kit (from a basic Dansette up to the more exotic). There was no other choice. The alternative was listen to the radio or Top of the Pops. Buying a stereo made sense and became commonplace.

The rise of the internet turned that on its head. No need for a stereo any more to hear the music you choose. Why bother with the expense? Also, if you choose vinyl, you limit your choice because the physical media is so expensive?

Some younger people may get to hear a ‘quality’ hifi system somewhere, and get the bug, but for most I see see why there is no appeal.

Kevin
 
kernow said:
It's not the room as much
It's
Newsflash
Younger people just aren't interested in your hobby
Click to expand...

Dunno. I might be a bit biased hanging round with musicians and stuff but I know plenty of people half my age with nice Genelecs etc. Not so many with two racks of Naim power supplies.
 
Friends my age (44) appreciate my system and one does own a modest 20+yr old arcam setup, another with a good bluesound based system - both great. They appreciate my system but aren't dumb enough to pay the money out for it so
 
I try to do my bit by passing on my spare/unused kit to a friend’s daughter and son-in-law, as they are interested, but probably couldn’t afford to go out and buy it on their income.

Kevin
 
Mr Pig said:
It's a good question. Things can die out. We used to have an amazing supersonic airliner. Now we don't. Progress, or even maintaing things as they are, is not a given.
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I still shed a virtual tear at airports that Concorde has gone. I loved watching it fly over. My best friend’s mum went on a round trip in it, her dream and the best day of her life. Iconic design, an emblem of technology and pre Brexit Britain, sentenced to death for various reasons but the final nail being driven by a shitty (Continental Airlines) plane dropping bits of metal on the runway.
 
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