Robin,

As I wrote on the Munich Show thread:

Primarily the biggest difference is that generally the Germans are much more serious about hi-fi than we are and also tend to spend big money on seriously hi-end kit.

They tend to think more 'out of the box' than we do and in terms of equipment are not afraid to go outside of the mainstream, whereas in Britain enthusiasts, in the main, are 'bargain hunters' who operate in the low to mid echelons of the marketplace buying mainly mass-produced mainstream hi-fi.

Basically, outside of the US, the Japanese and German markets are where the 'big players' are in hi-fi, so the Munich show reflects this.
There's a big high-end scene in Greece, too.

The difference in the UK is truly affluent 'audiophiles' (in general) buy expensive 'lifestyle' hi-fi or collections of expensive boxes from 'aspirational' brands to impress their friends and neighbours in the way of a designer suit or a flashy new car. Ask them anything remotely technical about it and they won't have a clue.

In the likes of Germany or Greece, affluent audiophiles (note the absence of inverted commas) buy expensive equipment to further their interest in music and because they're seriously 'into' hi-fi as a hobby, know lots about it, and don't care whether it looks pretty or not. Their systems are highly tuned tools for reproducing music, not status symbols.

In Britain (in general) the knowledgeable enthusiasts are unfortunately mainly those who can't afford to buy expensive equipment, whereas the ones who can, by and large do so for all the wrong reasons. There are a few exceptions of course, but including what I wrote earlier shown in my quoted text, it kind of sums up the scene here in the UK.

Marco.