Well...although everybody can go to the CES and THE SHOW but both is actually a manufacturer show and mainly catered to distributors and wholesalers (or industry-only like Audiofile9 mentioned above). On the other hand, HE is catered for consumers and most exhibitors are local dealers plus some small presence of manufacturers.
Is it worth it for consumers to attend? It depends.. if your hobby is want to see the latest technology gadgets at the Las Vegas Convention Center and wish to buy discount audiophiles LPs and CDS and audiophile show specials then it may be worth it. Otherwise, CES is heavily business oriented show and as a consumer, you probably feel your presence is sometimes unnoticeable.
Is it worth it for consumers to attend? It depends.. if your hobby is want to see the latest technology gadgets at the Las Vegas Convention Center and wish to buy discount audiophiles LPs and CDS and audiophile show specials then it may be worth it. Otherwise, CES is heavily business oriented show and as a consumer, you probably feel your presence is sometimes unnoticeable.