Yep. Most Reddit users are now mainstream average people which unfortunately leads to average signal interactions. This happens to almost every platform when those late to the party tend to push away the cool kids.

The only high signal communities are perpetually the next ones that haven't become too popular yet.

I posit that invite-only via vouching, subscription fees, not run by a corporation, real names+faces profiles, and policed just enough to defend decorum is one of the only ways to build a useful, enduring community that's not a fad.