I think that there are people who get the concept that a decent set of speakers is still a decent set of speakers, but by far and away the killer of audio has been the convenience factor of the MP3 combined with video.
That is - people watch movies, they don't listen to audio at home, under the same circumstances, that they did 20+ years ago. You used to go to audio for quality sound that nothing in the world could touch. It had to be a record, because nothing else delivered that quality (reel to reels?). So, it was at home, and there was no Internet, so you had to be dedicated and do your homework and trust sales guys.
Nowadays, I don't think there are fewer audio fanatics, but there are FAR more people with some audio in their homes. While not a ton, there are far more, which means that there is more market, and a need for cheaper products. So, we get this influx of cheap, cruddy product, as well as the heavily marketed Bose stuff, which appeals to a certain demographic.
Yet, it is the jump in audio quality that goes with video that has really helped/hurt things. People want surround. They may not commit to it, but they still want it, and within a fixed budget, they compromise the stereo audio in favor of five speakers and a cheap subwoofer.
This is fine, because it is surround, and is typically an upgrade on their TV speakers.
They don't care about cable pricing, as they will happily drop 100 bucks or more on Monster stuff. So, I wouldn't think the 'audiophile' is hurting themselves at all with their certain quirks. (cable risers?)
But, for audio, we have moved from albums being the way to get music, to the MP3 delivering far better than cassette quality, and nearly CD quality in environments that really don't call for it. In our cars, while we exercise, at work. These are places where a 48kbs stream of audio is often enough to keep people happy and tapping their toes. When people go home, they aren't turning on the audio in their listening room, but are hitting their theater (family room), and turning on a movie, or a TV show, which features 5.1 surround and audio that was previously unattainable.
So, the audio shops go away in favor of A/V shops, and the stereo experts go away in favor of A/V experts. Big stereo setups disappear for similary priced, so cheaper, surround rigs. And the audiophile is ripped apart online for the voo-doo that often accompanies their golden ears.
Audio geeks can only hope to spread the word of decent audio - but they need to do so within an A/V world, and understand that a lot of people just don't listen to audio in places where sound quality matters.
