Alot of the hard techno artists that I buy now tend to be a bit more diverse. They tend to put out more than just hard techno on a regular basis. Check out Inigo Kenedy's website for an example with all the mp3 releases. Or people like Grovskopa. I think diversity is a big way to avoid stagnation because you have a whole other set of peers to get inspiration or influences from. I personally get alot of ideas for hard techno tracks from production styles in dub reggae. The next person may get a brainstorm for that track he/she is stuck on from listening to that old Slayer track. I could keep going on and on with examples, but you probably get it by now. Musical evolution tends to run in cycles kind of like clothing styles do. Things get lame for a while then the retro craze goes on then someone comes out with something new that starts a whole new style. Yeah hard techno is kind of stagnant right now, but I'm not afraid. Things will get better, it's human nature.