I think it's also fair to say that there is an entirely different expectation from professional and domestic audio. One is a tool for work and the other for hopefully, a route to pleasure.
Professional audio gear is there primarily to serve a purpose ie help the technicians and engineers to get a job done and is judged by reputation and performance specs. Design and ergonomics must follow function.
Audiophile gear is sold on cosmetics and styling first. Performance specs and reliability appear to be an afterthought or even unimportant in many reviews!
Snake oil does exist in both camps but I can't imagine many engineers worrying too much about cable directionality, or sound quality differences amongst digital hardware - it either works or it doesn't. Domestic audio has always been littered with surplus 'eye candy' junk such as glitzy connectors or ephemera such as bi-wiring, spikes, or Dolby B whilst useful features such as tone controls or a mono switch are often omitted altogether!
The world of domestic audiophilia can easily look like a dangerously expensive place infested with snake oil sellers where the promise of audio satisfaction is forever kept tantalizingly just beyond reach.
For the uninitiated, a safer course to follow might be to look at those manufacturers who have some association in both camps (ATC, Audio Technica, B&W, Beyerdynamic, Focal, Harbeth, Harman Kardon, JBL, KEF, Kerr Acoustic, PMC, Sennheiser, Sony, Tannoy, Technics etc) and ask yourself just what the differences between their offered product lines might be.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_audio
Professional audio gear is there primarily to serve a purpose ie help the technicians and engineers to get a job done and is judged by reputation and performance specs. Design and ergonomics must follow function.
Audiophile gear is sold on cosmetics and styling first. Performance specs and reliability appear to be an afterthought or even unimportant in many reviews!
Snake oil does exist in both camps but I can't imagine many engineers worrying too much about cable directionality, or sound quality differences amongst digital hardware - it either works or it doesn't. Domestic audio has always been littered with surplus 'eye candy' junk such as glitzy connectors or ephemera such as bi-wiring, spikes, or Dolby B whilst useful features such as tone controls or a mono switch are often omitted altogether!
The world of domestic audiophilia can easily look like a dangerously expensive place infested with snake oil sellers where the promise of audio satisfaction is forever kept tantalizingly just beyond reach.
For the uninitiated, a safer course to follow might be to look at those manufacturers who have some association in both camps (ATC, Audio Technica, B&W, Beyerdynamic, Focal, Harbeth, Harman Kardon, JBL, KEF, Kerr Acoustic, PMC, Sennheiser, Sony, Tannoy, Technics etc) and ask yourself just what the differences between their offered product lines might be.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_audio