Paul McGowan writes:
A fellow manufacturer dropped me a note recently in response to one of my posts regarding the declining acceptance of high-end audio in the home. He writes:
“Audio-as-a-destination-activity is the enemy of the rest of the household. It takes both money and the listener away from the family.
Home Theater is a friend of the family … and much more. As in the MasterCard commercials, HT is priceless to the Mom because it has the possibility of being used to bring the family together for a shared activity.
C’est la vie, c’est la guerre. Redesigning the genetic code is not our job.”
I think what’s interesting here is found in the first line: “audio-as-a-destination.” Or put another way, the proverbial two-channel man cave sanctuary.
I believe much of the perceived shift away from high-end audio (we hear tell about) is actually a shift away from the dedicated sanctuary approach and not two-channel itself.
I have never met a family that does not enjoy music and isn’t appreciative of better performance. Music has a bigger place in the family than home theater ever will.
Home theater is a passing phase. Music is here forever.
The shift in our industry isn’t away from the high-end – it is a shift away from the isolation of the sanctuary.
High-end needs to change its status-quo to one of supporting the family enjoying high-performance audio.
