How far would you drive to audition a component?

About 3 years ago I drove from Michigan to New Hampshire to buy a pair of Coincident Super Eclipse II speakers. I did this over a two day weekend. I swore I would have the speakers forever. I enjoyed them very much but they only stayed for about 1.5 years. It was an adventure but I was really sick of driving and being in the car that long.

A couple of hours each way is about the limit for me. I've done 4 trips (2 stops on one of them). Only one resulted in a purchase, but the others were well worth the time considering each trip saved me $3-5k on equipment that would not have satisfied me.

6-8 hours. Of course when I take longer trips, I always look up shops.

I flew from Albany NY to Denver CO to audition the Galibier. While one can read about the product, and chat with the maker - the proof is in the pudding, so to speak. In this price category, it would be nearly analogous to buying a new car without first taking it out for a test drive. Happily, my expectations were exceeded on my trip to Boulder, and I am one very happy Galibier owner.

-Richard

Audiotomb,

A little off topic but the Tallamena Parkway is worth that trip on its own. I've ridden my motorcycle and driven it in my sports car on several occasions. It's kind of like a 30mi piece of the Blue Ridge Parkway on the edge of Arkansas and Oklahoma. Unfortunately, that's about all there is to do unless you head to northern Arkansas where you'll find more terrific roads.

Thanks to everyone who has responded so far. It sounds like we are all pretty much the same. A few hours or while out on business or vacation is the norm it looks like. I've auditioned pieces from San Francisco to NY, Minneapolis to Orlando myself, but only when I'm there for another reason, too. As I've moved to a more rural area, the nearest "city" has dwindled their offerings over the past decade for the high-end market. So I am envious of you who get to hear the latest and greatest in person. Often when I enter my zip in a dealer locator I get "no dealer in your area." Usually I'll put in a zip 4-6 hours from me and will sometimes get a hit, but not often.

So I've tinkered with the idea of opening a shop of my own, but then it dawns on me that there isn't the population to support it within 2 hours or so. Oh well. Just leaves more time for listening, what a shame.