Let's take the Prius/ Porsche analogy mentioned upthread. If the only way you could get into motoring as a hobby was to start with a Porsche, there wouldn't be many playing the game. Of course, the question that motoring enthusiasts ask isn't "how can I buy a Porsche?" (at least, not in the early days for most), ithet's "how can I get more fun out of my Prius budget?" Right now, I don't see the message getting through that there's better sound available outside of the mainstream for not that much more money. I appreciate this is What's Best Forum, and wealth is more normal here than in the wider population, but let's not kids ourselves. If 20k is the bare minimum price of admission to whatever this hobby is, then it's no wonder we think it's in decline!
Porsche off the lot are unusable at the high end outside of a few tracks nobody lives in.
Unless your spiel is sitting around in a garage making engine noises and swapping out parts.
Let's take a moment to remember what made a Porsche a Porsche on even a rough track.
There was a point in Western civilization where gas lamps still required a gaslighter to go around in every community and inside every home. Electric light being very much at a point of infancy. Even better early attempts were inefficient and hard to reclaim materials from. At times this lead to enormous expenses when raw materials were drawn down. Still, someone had to keep throwing men and money at their own ideas. Only a few drove this future into being through self-funded successes from previous ventures. It was those who stepped outside the sophistication of previous era to roughen their wardrobe and polish the edges off their approach.