As a funny side note the current group of 20 or 30 somethings have embraced Argyle socks, Brylcream, sweaters and horn rimmed glasses. 
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And high school students are continually engaging in “back to the decade” dances where the decade of choice is twenty years ago, the decade more or less of their parents.
There is a continuing fascination with the recent past.
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I have one of Arnie’s last works with Infinity (Modulus), for over 30 years and have keep the speakers in mint condition. Just sayin’… 
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When I was in my 20’s in the 70’s, the 50’s were cool. Got into rockabilly (Eddie Cochran) through The Who. This is way before the later popularity of Stray Cats/Brian Setzer. But I wasn’t unique in that appreciation.
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It isn’t if a new younger market of speaker buyers prefers a certain aesthetic in the boxes they plunk down in their rooms.
And I don’t see the 20 and 30-somethings I know losing their love for vinyl anytime soon. Even with streaming taking over - because I see the love for it being in part a reaction to streaming (the term used very broadly), which has been their primary means of consuming music their whole lives. It is precisely the whole physical, real-world experience of buying and playing vinyl that is one of its great appeals. Though I suppose it is still very niche in its appeal, just as are most of our concerns are on this site.
Of course something else altogether could come along and make everything obsolete. Like the CD did 
Just joking. Something unanticipated COULD happen. That’d be fun.
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John Darko does a good job attracting enthousiasts and those who are potential enthousiasts.
He has a good way to put equipment of different price categories into perspective such that those who can not afford high end don’t feel disappointed when watching his reviews.
Large speakers are not young people’s thing as in many parts of this world living space is limited certainly for young starters. So the KEF LS50 (wireless) are attractive propositions as well as integrated solutions.
Our children, living at home only want Head-fi, for the same reasons they don’t want us to look at the screen of their smart devices.
The oldest, living with his partner in their own apartment is excited to get our Yamaha and Canton speakers as they enjoy listening to music, watching movies and playing games with good quality sound.
I guess the view on audio equipment changes in different stages of life and with different circumstances. When I was younger I like playing the music loud.
Regarding the future of hifi: I decided for the NAD M33 as it offers to merge what I like from vintage as well as new options.
Is has a good phono pre amp so I can connect my 40 years old turntable. The Eigentakt amps are very good for my current Canton but offer potential for higher end speakers as well. It has a beautiful and snappy functioning display that makes operation and set up easy, shows cover arts (not my personal prime goal) and switches to beautiful VU meters after a while. You can select to stay all analog (leave the Dirac room correction out) or benefit switch to A/D conversion and benefit from the Dirac room correction and stream even your analog sources through the entire house.
It also has extremely long delivery times.
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I hope this ends up being true. Playing vinyl is listening to music as an experience. It is not music as background. This focus on the experience of listening to deliberately music may lead to a broader appreciation of audio.
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I talked my 30 year old daughter into buying the KEF wireless speakers. They fit her lifestyle perfectly. They look like something she wants in her life and sound great. This is from her place in Costa Rica. Watching The Blackhawks via a VPN connection.
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Except, he said neither of the things you claimed. He didn’t say there was nobody that could do the work, he said there were not enough craftsmen available to do the volume of work. It’s been my experience with fine craftsmen, if they have the work capacity to take on a significant project, they may not be the most skilled in the marketplace. The better craftsmen tend to have a significant backlog. And he did not say North American craftsmen “over charged” he said the ultimate cost to the consumer would have significant impact to the final price to the consumer. In fact, I said 10X MSRP, but in reality I believe he actually said a figure much greater than that. If someone makes the choice to be insulted by what he said, well, that’s their prerogative.
Kind of the same here. Elvis was too old for me but Chuck Berry was my beginning of listening to rock and roll. Haggard or Cash were my intro to “hillbilly” music.
If there would be enough factories and jobs, there would be enough craftsmen. But, the industry and consumers (that includes myself too I guess) were extremely greedy the last decades and consequently much work requiring craftsmanship has been outsourced, local factories were closed and now a representative of such industry complains that there are not enough craftsmen. The given arguments are just self-fulfilling prophecies. The manufacturers like REGA, Pro-Ject (EAT), Rowen and Abacus kept the manufacturing in our countries going, their products do not cost 10x to 20x more.
To put things into perspective, I bought the NAD M33, made in China I believe, and am planning to buy the speakers from Rowen in Switzerland. A good mix so to speak.
Let me assure you that the M33 is not 10% of the price of anything comparable made in the US or Europe. And the High end Rowen speakers are no more expensive, even less expensive than the prices of comparable Asian brand speakers.
Likewise the Abacus active speakers are not more expensive that the Buchardt’s that are made in China. Both outstanding options by the way.
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Considering age characterizations, I recall a Mark Twain paraphrase. 'When I was a teenager, my Dad was so stupid, I left home …You all know how this story ends.
At the end of the day, “it is what it is” and we are unlikely to see the landscape revert back during our lifetimes. I’m sure there is nobody here more knowledgeable about the international market and the costs for crafted audio items than Paul.
We all have our icons.
Pay it forward and support their habit:
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As an aside, either badbeefs photo really old or he sure looks young for someone in his 70’s. That’s all
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I too have a late issue of the Genesis V’s, in mint condition and original… These really sing with tubes. The trick with Infinity or Genesis is replacement drivers and servo amplifier repair. So far no issues.
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I don’t think high-end audio is about music, the primary requirement is a substantial disposable income. If you enjoy music, then so much the better.
My son and his girlfriend both have large vinyl collections. His audio system, that does analogue and streaming, is about $1,500. You don’t need high-end to enjoy music. He manages fine with on old pair of Ruark bookshelves and some hand-me-downs. His main investment is in a Rega P3.
I see a lot of high-end audio as old people designing audio for other old people, usually ones with lots of money. Young people design audio for young people, usually the complete opposite of what old people like (small, wireless, streaming, low-res, mobile).
The problem with older people is that they think they have the faintest idea what younger people want and that they have the means to deliver it. Think software expertise, product design, wireless and streaming technology and low cost production.
Andrew Everard wrote an article in Gramophone last month on this subject. He spoke to two young technicians aged around 20 at a UK audio company, one of whom said “I don’t know anyone who’d buy the kind of stuff we’re making”. They said they thought they were making hifi for people in their 40s, but Andrew Everard thought they were being generous.
There will be unexpected products in the near future, but not unexpected to the young people designing them.
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How very sad. 
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I think it’s more an obsession with recording technology and playback. Ever wondered why it’s so dominated by aged males with a high proportion of engineers and computer types? Why would that be?
Go to concerts, festivals, opera and dance, I’ve never seen a gender imbalance and usually a wide range of ages, and meet people from all walks of life. These are music lovers because they go to the effort to go to music rather than sitting on the sofa and pressing play. There may be a few high-end audiophiles amongst them, but I’ve never met any.
Music is a large part of my elder son’s social and work life, also the case with many of his friends, and expensive static stereo is just not on their radar. Just the province of middle aged or old men with money. Andrew Everard wrote about getting the same response.
I’ve heard a few high-end systems, perhaps $500,000+, and a few below that. On only one occasion did I have any desire to actually own such a system from the perspective that it would make listening to music more enjoyable. Although it was primarily a vinyl demonstration, it was the speakers that impressed me and I recently bought a pair from that manufacturer.The other main reason, as I’ve Sid before, is that my wife chose them for their looks. She has good taste.
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