What have been your BEST and WORST experiences with stereo dealers?

[Lee]

My best: Mike Kay giving me a tour of Lyric Hifi and introducing me to his reference system before recommending something more affordable.

My worst: Stereo Exchange not letting me audition a piece of gear I had saved up for and they were keeping behind a red velvet rope in their better listening rooms.

 

[Tuckers]

The Best: The Audible Difference hiring me as a poor college student after two years of abject fandom for all their cool gear Changed my life!

The Worst: Tone of Music Audio, San Francisco - fairly recently and not particularly bad. Stopped by 4 times on walks through my neighborhood, seeing if I could check out their shop, only to be told that I needed to book an appointment, and possibly pay a fee for the luxury. I just wanted to check them out to see if their setup was sympatico with my tastes. They have a few lines I really like, like DeVore. If I thought they were worth listening to, then I might make an appointment to take a listen. My point was to not waste either of our time if things didn't click in a 10 minute inspection, and otherwise to build a relationship. But the frosty reception I got each time and denial of entry was enough to lose me as a potential customer. They are about 1 mile from my place and I fit the physique of an audiophile with taste and credit .

I should add that my previous hifi retail experience has made me sensitive to the various types of time wasters and cheapskates, and I have vowed to never be that guy.

 

[keithc]

But the frosty reception I got each time and denial of entry was enough to lose me as a potential customer. They are about 1 mile from my place and I fit the physique of an audiophile with taste and credit .

If I'm going shopping, whether it's for gear, property or an exotic car, I'm wearing t-shirt, shorts and flip flops. I dress like I'm a post-college kid who rolled out of bed, to my wife's chagrin that I can't dress my age. But personally I don't really GAF how they see me, their job is to take my money and give me the service and product that comes with it.

So that speaks to my best and worse dealers. The best are those who can get past themselves and entertain my interest. The worst are those who miss out on my sale.

 

[Another Johnson]

My worst experience was at Nicholson’s, the now long gone McIntosh dealer in Nashville. They had one salesman who would use the technique of declaring that the customer did not have the resources to buy their reference demo system. In those days it would have required a $20k check … and he would make snide remarks like “Money talks. Bullsh*t walks.” I could have written the check, but I had nothing to prove to him.

Some of my favorite salesmen were also at Nicholson’s. So it wasn’t the dealer, but that particular guy.

My best experiences have been at Paragon Sight and Sound in recent years in Ann Arbor. Great demos. Great understanding of the gear. Larry Marcus has a great team there, and I’ve enjoyed trading with them even though it’s an 1100 mile round trip from my present location.

One other great experience I had in recent years was with Music Direct. MD and Clearaudio went the second mile to fix a $7000 problem that was of my own making. I was shocked to be treated so well.

Like @Lee, I’ve made it a point to not be a time wasting tire kicker. I know how hard it is to be a serious high end salesman, and I try very hard to be a rational customer.

 

[Lee]

I feel like dealers are a key part of the audiophile journey. A good dealer can provide advice on how to match components, can do (hopefully) a proper setup, and can facilitate any repairs that are required. I think they can create events that educate consumers or at a minimum demonstrate the latest technology.

 

[Stevet]

Best: Long term I have had great service and a great relationship with Pearl Audio in Portland, Oregon (great and very honorable and down to earth people). And recently I have had a great experience with Ken Songer of Songer Audio, also in Portland, Oregon, and Bob Vineyard of Rhapsody, in Oregon City, Oregon (just south of Portland). I recommend all three of these very highly. I can also highly recommend Glen at Arizona Hi Fi in Phoenix, Arizona.

Worst: Frankly, I would rather not say as the shop is no longer in business and a complaint would not do anyone any good.

 

[bruce1800]

The Best: The Audible Difference hiring me as a poor college student after two years of abject fandom for all their cool gear Changed my life!

The Worst: Tone of Music Audio, San Francisco - fairly recently and not particularly bad. Stopped by 4 times on walks through my neighborhood, seeing if I could check out their shop, only to be told that I needed to book an appointment, and possibly pay a fee for the luxury. I just wanted to check them out to see if their setup was sympatico with my tastes. They have a few lines I really like, like DeVore. If I thought they were worth listening to, then I might make an appointment to take a listen. My point was to not waste either of our time if things didn't click in a 10 minute inspection, and otherwise to build a relationship. But the frosty reception I got each time and denial of entry was enough to lose me as a potential customer. They are about 1 mile from my place and I fit the physique of an audiophile with taste and credit .

I should add that my previous hifi retail experience has made me sensitive to the various types of time wasters and cheapskates, and I have vowed to never be that guy.

Bad was at Tone Of Music, bought a used component, had an issue with it he wouldn't even respond to my enquire about it. Obviously lost me. Worst was at Music Lovers, Purchased a Berkeley DAC and not too much longer afterwards was told how inferior it was compared to a DCS unit that they were demoing. Lost me on that but incredulously, later when i was inquiring about up grading my Sonus Faber speakers i had purchased from them to possibly Magico M3s was told how inferior they were to anything they were selling ( Wilson ) but then a couple of months go by and they had a pair of M3s saved special for me ! Yeah right. What a business.
Done with vent.
The best experience has been with Mike Woods of Elite Audio Systems of San Francisco. Professional, expert, integrity, good guy. His sales ability is actually entertaining, being in retail myself. During the past 7 or 8 years he has guided me into a most wonderful system and we're not done yet !

 

[exupgh12]

I value dealers who prioritize understanding my needs and helping me upgrade my system, rather than just pushing a sale. I've cultivated strong friendships with many of them, even inviting some to personal events.

Conversely, I've encountered dealers who treat customers impersonally, like a big-box store, and offer no follow-up service. Luckily, that's only happened to me once.

 

[andromedaaudio]

My best was listening in a very friendly environment to ML 32 / 432 ML 390 S Avalon ascendants .
In a nice sealed quit listening room ( No sttrings attached listening at Mijn Hifi in Nijmegen no longer there unfortunately )

The worst was when i pulled up a at a famous Hifi store in NL ( which i will not name ) with my motorcycle and the owner looked at me all snobbish and said " I dont think motorcycles are allowed to park here ."

Most Funny thing was when a dealer i visited once in a while always told me how much he disliked Wilson audio .
And when i came back a year later and he had the opportunity to carry the brand in his shop it was suddenly the best thing ever

 

[andromedaaudio]

These days i hardly go to dealers anymore , its more and more by Appointment only , and im left feeling all guilty i did nt buy anything lol .
I do go to the occasional dealer show

I like walk in walk out no strings attached stores with good listening rooms

 

[bonzo75]

I value dealers who prioritize understanding my needs

So there is more than one dealer with whom you share music and sound tastes? Given the list of dealers are already filtered for who will prioritise for you and be in a location to supply you and have the gear you seek.

 

[andromedaaudio]

I always filter out whats the best through magazines/ reviewers lol.

After that i just go to the closest dealer that carries it and post about it on WBF.
If one disagrees about the SQ i contact the moderator lol

 

[DasguteOhr]

Best listing was in hannover( hifi meile), germany audiophysic medea with convergent audio pre& poweramp source forsell air reference turntable. Never heard soo good music again at a dealer.
Worst dynaudio arbiter pre&mono amps(over 400kg weight) source ml 31.5&ml 30.5 dac with a dynaudio consequence.
The person giving the demonstration was a totally arrogant person. He said, "Now we're going to turn off the mains voltage and switch to battery operation." We were practically expecting the eighth wonder of the world, and it sounded horribly musty and lifeless. We drove 200 km for it, and the listening experience was very disappointing. The demonstrator rigorously pushed through his program; music requests were ignored.
A good example of how not to do it.
Otherwise, visits to local hi-fi stores were always very relaxed and a lot of fun. My favorite store is Art & Voice in Hanover. It always had a lot of unknown small brands on offer that sounded surprisingly good. He was also a DIY speaker developer on the side and now has his own speaker and cable brand. I'm advertising it now because I'm convinced of it

Lautsprecher Referenz AV6: GERMAN HIGHEND

GERMAN HIGHEND Lautsprecher, State of the Art Lautsprecher, die besten Lautsprecher

german-highend.com

 

[VinylSavor]

My worst and best dealership experience happen to coincide. A bit over 30 years ago I was ready to spend big bucks on a DA-Converter. Back then I visited a boutique High End dealer in Munich. Not sure if they still exist. Their lack of enthusiasm or interest to make a sale made me in turn loose interest. Which was good luck because only a year or two later that DAC would have been outdated and basically worthless. Instead I built my own DAC which then fuelled my general interest in DIY which then expanded into building my own tube amps and preamps. And that in turn ended up in me doing this professionally and even having my own small tube production.

 

[puroagave]

When I entered the hobby decades ago, I'd travel to every high-end dealer within a day's drive from San Diego. The ultimate at the time was Christoper Hansen Ltd, the original store on Robertson. Joe Cali was running it for Chris and was the first person the greeter would send you to. They were kind of like Lyric's West coast cousin carrying a lot of the same gear. I was in my early 20's then, and Joe always treated me like I was spending 6-figures when he knew I didn't have two nickels to rub together. Several years ago, I bumped into Joe and reminisced about those days, his memory was fuzzy but he was still that affable and unpretentious guy.

like anyone else I've had bad encounters with dealers. All salesmen have some sort of pitch but badmouthing other dealer's products or especially that of a customer is a big red flag and a situation--for me--that most dealers fail to recover from. Under-promise and over-deliver is what the best dealers do and let the gear speak for itself. If it doesn't sound like music to you nothing the dealer says will likely change your mind.

 

[exupgh12]

So there is more than one dealer with whom you share music and sound tastes? Given the list of dealers are already filtered for who will prioritise for you and be in a location to supply you and have the gear you seek.

Yes. you've asked me once how many dealers live close to me, around 10 - 12, with 7 of them I have good relation, some of them became my friend.

its a small country, almost every one knows every one in this hobby.

 

[JackD201]

Here in the Philippines, I deal mostly with two brick and mortars and 2 indie distributors as a customer. The B&M guys are AV Driver and Architectural Audio. We may be distributors ourselves but I have never been known to get high purely on my own supply LOL These two companies helped me before I got into the industry and continue to help me today for various needs. I recently purchased a Wavac Preamp from AA to go with my 833s. For systems I have in different properties I run to AV for Aurenders which I am very comfortable with. They are truly long time friends with after sales service that is impeccable. The indie guys are George (Clear Audio, Aesthetix, Ikeda) and Maddy (Air Tight, formerly Koetsu). Both have been extremely helpful in my continuing analog education and are two of my fave cart pushers LOL

For outdoor applications, I run to In Tune Music who supply me with professional PA gear as well as common area fixed installations (Void Acoustics mainly). They dip their toes in the high end and I got my 2912 stats from them along with some Quad 2s.

As for the worst experience, they were the reason I got into the industry. It was the classic, yes I can get those for you song and dance stringing me along while trying to get me to buy stuff I didn't want. I ended up contacting the manufacturer directly and so it began. The company closed down a few years back so no, I will not be naming them.