Buying Without Audition

Purchased without auditioning:

Magnepan MMG and MMG Bass panel (new)
Magnepan 3A
Counterpoint Clearfield Metropolitans
Von Schweikert VR2 and VR4
Magnepan 1.7
Thiel CS2.3
Thiel CS3.5

Quite simply put the direct to consumer offer for the MMG's at $599 was too enticing to pass up. $599 with a one year trade up policy?  I took the risk and...thus the 1.7's later on. I love Magnepan.  

My curiosity with Von Schweikert compelled me to buy the Metropolitans which, compared to the 1.7's were huge - and heavy, though way more efficient. The size of refrigerators - and not a college dorm refrigerator.  Compared to the Maggies they struck me as reserved. Got weary of moving them, or trying to.  Good in their own right. 

I'll spare everyone the IMHO details on the others mentioned but in general it was my curiousity that guided me. And my budgets which swing throughout the years. I've stuck since with Maggie and Thiel.  I've never regretted any purchase, each model had/has its own virtues with my associated gear, Pass Labs, McIntosh, Primare, Audio Research...too many to list here. 

Recently I bought a pair of Maggie .7's AFTER auditioning the new 1.7i's - and I'm adding a Rythymik L12 sub to complement them. I still have my Thiel CS3.5's. 

Yes,. I'm nuts. Ain't we all?

Oblgny, I would love to hear your impressions of those other speakers-Non Maggies. Perhaps a PM to me?

Discretion being the better part of valor, rather than delve into the unknown I decided to have my KEF 105/3 Reference Series speakers (circa 1990) serviced.  The foam surrounds and donuts for the four woofers have been replaced; the crossovers have been recapped; and a bad connection to one of the tweeters has been repaired.  The repair tech says they now sound great. I remember how good these speakers used to sound and I hope when I get them back home (soon) I will be well satisfied and not continue to fall prey to "Speaker Acquisition Syndrome" which affects so many of us.

Larstusor, that is a good way to start. I think having a speaker that you know and love, makes for an easier way to consider other loudspeakers that you do not have access to audition-when the SAS bites.
All the Best- Bob

" If you buy speakers that have a VERY flat frequency response, good quality drivers, good cross over design in a nice cabinet, you can get away without an audition. Mine are 34 - 20k hz +/- 1.5 db and 29 - 45k +/- 3 db. -- VolsFan846

Agreed! Toole's research has shown this to be true with most people and it certainly is for me. I look at the FR at 0°, 15°, 30° and waterfalls mostly. Polars and distortion graphs are good too ... when you can find them. Haven't been disappointed with this approach yet. I totally ignore subjective reviews and the latest forum-hyped speakers. I've been around long enough to see many forum darlings quickly lose their appeal after the herd anticipation wears off.

However, for HT speakers, accuracy isn't as important to me. It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted there. I almost got caught up on the "dynamics" train, but realized I'm not an SPL guy, and what I like is spaciousness and detail ... like a twig snapping three feet outside and two feet behind the left speaker ... the point being, I wanted to be encapsulated by sound like in the real world, so soundstage became more important. Fortunately I heard just the speakers that could do that in someone's home. I don't yet know how to pick this quality out on a graph. Maybe it can be done, I just don't know how.