Well, Studer stopped innovating many decades ago and they are still at the top in analog tape recorders ...
Their aim was quality but also consistency and user confidence and pride. The profile of typical top vinyl audiophile buyers seems different today - they want vinyl also for fun and want to tailor their own sound, they do not look at getting the "master tape" sound. Most users want to fiddle with VTA and alignments, they want something sensitive to tweaks and mats, and specially they want to carry experiments.
Their new products are intended for people who want a turnkey analog system.
A very good point. In a previously buoyant market in the UK, the big high end manufacturers - SME, Linn, Roksan, Pink Triangle - claimed sound neutrality which SME arms could comfortably partner with - albeit Linn did not like that too much. Now, in a much smaller high end and tweakier market, there's more logic in SME building the entire unit. For years and years, of course, SME only made tonearms. But when you think about it, why on earth would you market two separate bits from what is essentially a single unit. A bit like marketing the platter separate to the deck.
