Firstly, I'm sorry to hear about your business
@plastic penguin. It's been a tough year and as a freelance musician I'll be glad when things find some sense of normality again. I hope things get better for you.
This might be controversial to say, but I'm coming to the realisation that hi-fi above a certain point is aimed squarely at those with considerable financial fluidity, to whom price changes won't be an issue. You only have to look at the numerous images on the internet showing high end equipment in rooms where clearances from the rear wall of 1m+ are possible, and dedicated listening rooms that to most of us are never going to be a possibility. I read a review by Ken Kessler of a new d'Agostini amplifier in which he referenced a 'cheaper' £20,000+ model as d'Agostini for the masses, treating hi-fi more like his taste for expensive 'time pieces' and vintage wines. In a world where a Linn LP12 can be the start of endless and expensive upgrades that imbue subtle changes, price differences of a few hundred pounds here and there make less difference.
An illusion is created that those of us working with limited means are somehow losing out on some holy grail. It's part of what perpetuates the hi-fi obsession and a sequence of somebody stretching up to an 'entry-level' Naim amp or similar, and being given just enough of a sniff to offer reward but also to ingrain little piques of dissatisfaction to prompt a feeling of restlessness and of the 'need' for the next rung up.
Increasingly, traditional hi-fi lives ever more in these upper reaches. The mass audience has shrunk massively, with many who do value better than boombox sound being turned towards capable and simple compact solutions that increasingly deliver the goods. This is reflected in the reduced amount of choice in most areas of the affordable hi-fi market. Big players such as Yamaha, Pioneer, Onkyo have little to no presence in the traditional areas of the sub-£1k market anymore, and even brands like NAD, Denon and Marantz launch fewer products than they used to. Speakers are the only part of the affordable market that has maintained its size.