Listening to equipment at home before you buy

As a new "audiophile," I have been enjoying reading the many different on-line articles trying to get a an understanding of the relationship between price, sound quality, system synergy, etc and I have found it challenging.  I I am not an electrical engineer but I am a scientist and understand the technical vocabulary that describes the specs of a piece of equipment. I read the reviews of how a particular sound track sounds but ultimately, these "experts" are expressing their personal preferences.

I have visited the two "brick and mortar" stores within 30 miles of my home and recognise I do need to hear what I purchase.

My question the the group is how does a new "audiophile" find their best system at their price point?  There is little chance in today's new or used market to hear equipment.   For that matter what is my price point?  I have the finances to spend 10K on a system but if I cannot hear the difference between 10K and 3K I should stop at the 3K number. 

Good thing I am retired and have the time.

2tuby I would trust your ears first followed by trying to work with a good audio dealer. Try to borrow the gear you are interested in take it home and listen playing music you know very well. I would start with the speakers first and work from there. If you have to strain to hear a difference in the $3K gear compared to the $10K don't bother spending more money.

Sadly a great many brick and mortar shops are incapable of demonstrating a musical experience. This past year I felt I might also like to update my system having also recently retired. One nice feature of the modern era is the ability to call up almost any material. I have the advantage of having recorded and mixed pop music and also listened to some of it for decades on multiple recording studio and home HiFi systems.

In demos on systems costing more than houses, I have endured zero depth, horrendous phase response, foot heft and point 180°, 'cabinet' on DI bass, vocalists a mile wide, no height, no stage, panned multitrack backing vocals as one wide smear, etc. More than once I wanted to say "you're ….ing joking"

OTOH, every internet twit is an expert in their own mind, never having attended an acoustic performance or heard a capable system.

The difference between $10k and $3k system is often inversely proportional to the price. Pricing today is stupid. A great many products are designed rather than engineered. If one is to believe the hype, recordings of yesteryear should be egregiously awful, which they clearly are not.

Unless you want to become a gear swapper, best recommendation is to visit as many B&M establishments as possible in a day's drive radius, find a knowledgeable salesperson and purchase a system that is musically satisfying on program you enjoy. And then just enjoy it.

@viridian 

I do not believe that an amp with a class D output stage is representative of the spectrum of solid state amps that are available. I would try again with a traditional power amp topology. This is not a put down of class D, just a suggestion to consider an alternative.

Class D is exactly representative of the amplifier spectrum. Some Class D amps are excellent.

It is important to mate the amp and the load. Never forget one is building a system and all parts must work harmoniously.

Just as in the early days of AB transistor amps, some early Class D amps left much to be desired.