Question Will Hi-Fi Disappear Within a Generation?

[davidf]

The place streamers are letting us down is the lack of availability of older movies.

But the younger generation doesn't want to watch older movies.

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

But the younger generation doesn't want to watch older movies.

Where true, that's their loss. My kids are in their twenties, but have great respect for a lot of older stuff - but then they were immersed in film from an early age!

 

[abacus]

But the younger generation doesn't want to watch older movies.

Have a look at film reaction channels on YouTube, where youngsters are also trying out old films and loving them, as it is totally new to them. (Remember, the youngsters take note of these channels and thus expand their horizons).
This also applies to music, where youngsters are being introduced to older music and loving it also.

Bill

 

[abacus]

HI-Fi on its own will reduce, but will still be there as it is already niche.
HI-Fi audio with video though will still be in there as youngsters like to see what is going on.
Many on here are probably more mature and don't even think about looking at what the youngsters are up to (Assuming they are not interested in older films and music), however start doing so and you will be amazed at just how much of the older stuff they are into.

Bill

 

[manicm]

But the younger generation doesn't want to watch older movies.

My 8 year old became a huge James Bond fan. He saw all the movies.

 

[RayP]

The place streamers are letting us down is the lack of availability of older movies.

If you have an AppleTV box there’s an app called CheapCharts that has a huge catalogue. Just checked Gone With The Wind and it’s available for £7.99.

They have sales and you can get films cheaper if you’re happy to wait. But of course you need an AppleTV box. £149. Subscription to Apple TV services not necessary.

 

[Jasonovich]

Just to touch base with OPs opening title.
The niche element of Hifi will either die with us or be passed on to our grandsons or granddaughters.

I have noticed a trend in some manufacturers, to make their brands more appealing to the young seedlings.
I'm alluding to all in one solutions, touch screens and intuitive interaction like those found on your smartphone.
Some deliberate social engineering and high profile marketing to capture the Buzz which is honey to young ums.

Once you haul in your net and captured significant mass.
You farm them, so they become receptive to the purer forms of Hifi, this will ensure longevity but if manufacturers close their eyes and do nothing, Hifi will continue to dwindle.

 

[Stuart83]

I’ve recently been told that there will be no such thing as Hi-Fi within a generation. A bold claim, but is it true? And what does the future really hold? Personally, I think the landscape won’t look all that different here are a few thoughts.

We’re unlikely to see any brand-new formats for physical media, which means CDs and vinyl records will still be with us. Without new formats, there’ll be no new sources. CD players will probably move towards being transport-only, as most people will already own a DAC. The vinyl bubble may eventually burst, but it will never truly disappear, while the cassette revival is likely to fizzle out.

On the electronics side, could Class D become the dominant choice at both entry-level and high-end, thanks to its discreet compact size? If so, perhaps Class A/B will be left to mid-range specialists and die-hard enthusiasts. Streamers with built-in screens are becoming more common, will we start seeing more music streaming directly via our TV sets? And as the market changes, expect fewer brands as mergers continue and some companies inevitably fall away.

AI will play a growing role in loudspeaker design, making speakers easier to position and more forgiving of less-than-perfect placement, even when sitting on shelves or benches. Similarly, home acoustic treatments will become less obtrusive, more affordable, and, with AI’s help, easier to set up for optimal results.

So, while the tools and technology may evolve, Hi-Fi is a means to an end, and still the best way to listen to music, so will be with us for many years to come. And, people will still be arguing over cables, and upgrade unnecessarily in their pursuit of unicorns.

Very good post👍 and I agree with most of your thoughts.

People have been saying the same trope way back since the beginning of digital formats as they did with the way back inception of Digital radio (dab) in which was cited as "revolutionising the way we listen to music, with near CD quality and 1000s of stations" while it didn't impact anything for the lion share, even le ss so the Hifi world whats often missed is through digital formats etc is the market according to some sources (and as always on the contrary to others) including where I go for all things Hifi is experiencing a small resurgence in popularity, driven by factors like the vinyl revival and increased interest in high-resolution audio causing many to dip their toes into the hifi world usually with a one box solution in which arrose a new market for such people with new companies like Wiim, we've seen hifi explored by those who perhaps wouldn't of in the recent yrs leading up to the streaming revolution and definitely seen a resurgence amongst those who had stagnated away from their past passion thanks to computerized audio.

I know as I was one of them, I've never dropped hifi since my early childhood but I'd gotten a tad uninterested until streaming hit the market causing a massive revitalisation in my interest, immediately I found after gearing an older system towards streaming it quickly woke up the HI-FI bug 🐛 causing me to start off afresh building two new systems and keeping a third along side all kinds of what I endearingly call "keepers" that I keep adding onto leaving the option to swap amps etc, I will say it was only to find CD is still my preferred format 🤣
Nothing has changed in the evolution of things just the way it evolves in which Hifi isn't immune, it has been ever evolving since Alan Blumlein made significant advancements in stereo sound, patenting a two-channel audio system in 1931, then from records to radio to 1960's 8 track to cassette tape then to CD and now digital from 1999 and all manner of things in-between and back again in certain instances, everything has it's heyday as with Hifi in the 60s and 70s due to it being the only way to get quality music into the home which shaped it into an accessible hobby and then passion for the select few, hifi was it's own advertisement in nearly every livingroom hence it's popularity, but as with anything despite the above written and especially now the focus on convenience seems more overriding than the persuit of audio quality to the masses leaving only "us" the ones with a passion above all else for not just hifi but an interest often enough in the equipment itself creating the niche realm we all walk in of the so called "audiophile".

I absolutely share your sentiment with your last paragraph, especially the last two sentences

"people will still be arguing over cables, and upgrade unnecessarily in their pursuit of unicorns"

Amongst my thoughts and what I've seen at various shows and at times here aswell is that there seems to be the same divide in both opinion and kit there's always been separating those for the old and those for the new 😂
As said before like some of you, I belong in the subcategory of liking whatever sounds best and theres been a few surprises along the way especially from absolutely gorgeous sounding 64yr old kit laying waste to modern alternatives to modern Marvels

 

[davidf]

Have a look at film reaction channels on YouTube, where youngsters are also trying out old films and loving them, as it is totally new to them. (Remember, the youngsters take note of these channels and thus expand their horizons).
This also applies to music, where youngsters are being introduced to older music and loving it also.

Bill

But are they finding all this themselves? If they're being exposed to it as an experiment purely for YouTube clicks, it's not really representative.

 

[davidf]

Just to touch base with OPs opening title.
The niche element of Hifi will either die with us or be passed on to our grandsons or granddaughters.

I have noticed a trend in some manufacturers, to make their brands more appealing to the young seedlings.
I'm alluding to all in one solutions, touch screens and intuitive interaction like those found on your smartphone.
Some deliberate social engineering and high profile marketing to capture the Buzz which is honey to young ums.

Once you haul in your net and captured significant mass.
You farm them, so they become receptive to the purer forms of Hifi, this will ensure longevity but if manufacturers close their eyes and do nothing, Hifi will continue to dwindle.

Hence Naim's direction they took when introducing wireless speakers and the Uniti streamers. Problem is, the change in direction needs to work, otherwise they're left in No Man's Land, as they will gradually lose loyal existing customers, and of younger people don't take up the new products, they have nowhere to go. Except maybe produce an overpriced retro anniversary product...

 

[nopiano]

My 8 year old became a huge James Bond fan. He saw all the movies.

Whereas we could see one every third year, once, at the cinema! I’m not sure how frequently they were released but it was one of the few ‘must see’ events I can recall as a child! 🙂

 

[abacus]

But are they finding all this themselves? If they're being exposed to it as an experiment purely for YouTube clicks, it's not really representative.

Social Media & You Tube is how youngsters find out about things these days, so it is fully representative. (Remember we are in the 21st century now, which works differently to the 20th century that most mature Hi-Fi users are used to)

Bill

 

[davidf]

Remember we are in the 21st century now, which works differently to the 20th century that most mature Hi-Fi users are used to)

Thanks for that, I'd forgotten.

 

[Fandango Andy]

that's their loss. M

Exactly what I was about to say!

 

[matthewpianist]

My take...

The traditional entry-level part of the hi-fi seperates market is stuffed. Things like the Marantz and Denon CD/amp combos are becoming too expensive and offering insufficient benefits to entice more than a tiny minority. Anything they do can be replicated, matched and furthered in cheaper or similarly priced compact systems, especially ones based around streaming.

Most of us, from so-called 'Gen X' (of which I am a late member) onwards, have bigger issues to attend to. Employment is becoming more challenging, the mid-life scrap heap is becoming more and more of a reality, home ownership is edging further and further out of reach, costs are rising dramatically but wages aren't, there's uncertainty over the future of healthcare and education, we (and most of the world) are becoming more politically unstable... Is it any surprise if hi-fi finds itself sinking further down most people's priorities? As the so-called 'middle class' contracts (which it is doing), already minority interests will survive, but on an even smaller scale, and concentrated more than ever on those with cash to burn. It's not the only market seeing growing challenges either; increasing numbers of people are running older cars, often because prices are getting way out of hand. Brands will disappear completely, and the number of cars per household is likely to decrease over time.

Some of us who are long-term hi-fi users might turn increasingly towards reconditioned second hand gear, where you can achieve high levels of performance for a fraction of new prices, as long as you know what you are looking for.

Does this all mean hi-fi is dying? No. There will always be those with disposable income, space and time to pursue nirvana, and they will keep the higher-end market bouyant, as long as manufacturers meet demand, but whether that will pass down through future generations only time will tell.

 

[manicm]

But are they finding all this themselves? If they're being exposed to it as an experiment purely for YouTube clicks, it's not really representative.

Teens will discover things themselves, younger ones like my 8 year old enjoy through exposure. I'd play Beach Boys in the car. At 5 he loved the Beach Boys, later got into the Beatles and Michael Jackson. He now discovers new music on his own through streaming. Later on (I'm divorced now), he told me he heard a turntable and how impressed he was. (I have no intention of getting a turntable, except perhaps to play my late father's collection, and my smaller collection, time and space permitting).

If adults do not play music at home, kids are not going to discover the joys. I keep on hearing, ad nauseaum, how young people today are not interested etc etc. Give them exposure and they'll discover for themselves.

Young ones are exposed through others. I was the youngest, and my brothers would play music. I can still remember, at 3, my brother putting headphones over my head.

Exposure, people, exposure.

 

[Gray]

increasing numbers of people are running older cars

Not too much evidence of that around where I live - but it's something I've always done.
Cars: always secondhand; no pleasure.
Hi-fi: always brand new; maximum pleasure.

Not sure about the future of hi-fi, but I wish there had been some of today's quality / value available in the past.

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

Not too much evidence of that around where I live - but it's something I've always done.

There was a piece in Autocar a few months back - people are keeping cars longer these days, and the average age of a car on the UK's roads has increased as a result.

 

[Jasonovich]

My take...

The traditional entry-level part of the hi-fi seperates market is stuffed. Things like the Marantz and Denon CD/amp combos are becoming too expensive and offering insufficient benefits to entice more than a tiny minority. Anything they do can be replicated, matched and furthered in cheaper or similarly priced compact systems, especially ones based around streaming.

Most of us, from so-called 'Gen X' (of which I am a late member) onwards, have bigger issues to attend to. Employment is becoming more challenging, the mid-life scrap heap is becoming more and more of a reality, home ownership is edging further and further out of reach, costs are rising dramatically but wages aren't, there's uncertainty over the future of healthcare and education, we (and most of the world) are becoming more politically unstable... Is it any surprise if hi-fi finds itself sinking further down most people's priorities? As the so-called 'middle class' contracts (which it is doing), already minority interests will survive, but on an even smaller scale, and concentrated more than ever on those with cash to burn. It's not the only market seeing growing challenges either; increasing numbers of people are running older cars, often because prices are getting way out of hand. Brands will disappear completely, and the number of cars per household is likely to decrease over time.

Some of us who are long-term hi-fi users might turn increasingly towards reconditioned second hand gear, where you can achieve high levels of performance for a fraction of new prices, as long as you know what you are looking for.

Does this all mean hi-fi is dying? No. There will always be those with disposable income, space and time to pursue nirvana, and they will keep the higher-end market bouyant, as long as manufacturers meet demand, but whether that will pass down through future generations only time will tell.

Really well said Matthew, I agree with you 100%

 

[matthewpianist]

Not too much evidence of that around where I live - but it's something I've always done.
Cars: always secondhand; no pleasure.
Hi-fi: always brand new; maximum pleasure.

Not sure about the future of hi-fi, but I wish there had been some of today's quality / value available in the past.

On the road where I live, most of the cars are 10 years+, and it's a decent area. Our own is nearly 10 years old, with 104,000 miles on the clock and unlikely to be changed any time soon.

Back to hi-fi, I'm unlikely to buy brand new ever again. There's much better value to be found by buying pre-owned.

 

[Jasonovich]

My take...

The traditional entry-level part of the hi-fi seperates market is stuffed. Things like the Marantz and Denon CD/amp combos are becoming too expensive and offering insufficient benefits to entice more than a tiny minority. Anything they do can be replicated, matched and furthered in cheaper or similarly priced compact systems, especially ones based around streaming.

Most of us, from so-called 'Gen X' (of which I am a late member) onwards, have bigger issues to attend to. Employment is becoming more challenging, the mid-life scrap heap is becoming more and more of a reality, home ownership is edging further and further out of reach, costs are rising dramatically but wages aren't, there's uncertainty over the future of healthcare and education, we (and most of the world) are becoming more politically unstable... Is it any surprise if hi-fi finds itself sinking further down most people's priorities? As the so-called 'middle class' contracts (which it is doing), already minority interests will survive, but on an even smaller scale, and concentrated more than ever on those with cash to burn. It's not the only market seeing growing challenges either; increasing numbers of people are running older cars, often because prices are getting way out of hand. Brands will disappear completely, and the number of cars per household is likely to decrease over time.

Some of us who are long-term hi-fi users might turn increasingly towards reconditioned second hand gear, where you can achieve high levels of performance for a fraction of new prices, as long as you know what you are looking for.

Does this all mean hi-fi is dying? No. There will always be those with disposable income, space and time to pursue nirvana, and they will keep the higher-end market bouyant, as long as manufacturers meet demand, but whether that will pass down through future generations only time will tell.

The middleclass is really being slaughtered now.

I remember when it was thriving, I would address my brother as Dey-vid ................but now, I try to be inconspicuous with the indigenous class, I would say Deh' Ave! 🙂