This is one manifestation of a problem that is going to become more acute over the next several years for a growing range of products, including cars, televisions and appliances. As the middle class disappears in the United States, and countries with emerging wealth see it concentrated in a relatively small number of hands, high-end manufacturers find themselves trying to chase bigger and bigger sales to a smaller audience - those able to buy five and six figure pieces of equipment, with the abundance of money, interest in the hobby, and lack of common sense that all seem to be prerequisites to purchasing most of these new ultra-high end products.
I used to shake my head in wonder when Stereophile would refer to a three or thousand dollar component as "affordable." Recently, I read a piece in a British hi Fi magazine that called a five-figure pair of speakers "entry level" and about fell out of my chair laughing.
My advice: Buy good new and used equipment from Audio Research, Manley, Conrad-Johnson, VTL, Magnepan, Totem, Spendor, and the other "old guard" high-end companies while ye may- if these trends continue, those companies will soon be gone, and those of us who can't afford, or aren't dumb enough, to buy 29k "entry level" speakers and 40k amplifiers will be left adrift.
I used to shake my head in wonder when Stereophile would refer to a three or thousand dollar component as "affordable." Recently, I read a piece in a British hi Fi magazine that called a five-figure pair of speakers "entry level" and about fell out of my chair laughing.
My advice: Buy good new and used equipment from Audio Research, Manley, Conrad-Johnson, VTL, Magnepan, Totem, Spendor, and the other "old guard" high-end companies while ye may- if these trends continue, those companies will soon be gone, and those of us who can't afford, or aren't dumb enough, to buy 29k "entry level" speakers and 40k amplifiers will be left adrift.