Blackmsport, Elizabeth is spot on. I think over the years I've put together an enjoyable system, but I haven't bought anything brand new at a hi-end audio store.
My concern about buying from hi-end audio stores is that they try to sell what they have or the brands they are authorized to sell. So the problem is, IMO, that if you are looking for a particular model and your favorite audio store doesn't carry it, what are you going to do; what do you think the store is going to try and sell you??
Suppose after doing research and/or listening to a couple of models at friends' houses, you've narrowed your choices down to two models, but your favoriate audio store only carries one model, how are you going to A/B the two models you're interested in??
OK . . . another problem I have is spending hours of time in a store listening to equipment. On principle, it's really a great way to listen to equipment. My concern is that if I spend a lot of time in a store, I feel uncomfortable because I've taken up a salesperson's time, I've picked their brains, and if their product is carried by other stores that are willing to discount, I might be compelled to buy for price.
So, given my personal buying biases, I read as much as I can on line and in places like A'gon. Then, as Elizabeth says, I'll buy a equipment used, generally on A'gon. As I said before on other posts, I'm pretty careful about what I buy and who I buy it from. So far, I've been lucky.
A real advantage of buying used is that if your dealing in top end equipment, there's generally a good resale market. So, in the case of preamps, I bought and sold 3 pre amps before I settled on my current model. In the case of my amp, I flipped only one model before settling on what I have now. Did I take a hit on the flips?? Yes . . . but not that much.
One other variation is that I will also buy either dealer or factory demos. My current line stage is a demo from a hi-end audio store. I paid $5800 for the unit 2 years ago. Guess what -- I can sell it on A'gon for the same money today. My amp is a factory demo unit that was refurbished and sold as new. I bought the amp about two years ago and it works great, and I can sell it for maybe $500 less than I paid for it. Not too shabby.
And finally, I agree with Elizabeth that I don't consider a 10 to 15% discount a deal. But if I buy used, maybe I'm one model back from what is ccurrently the top model, so what. I bought my stuff for 40% less than MSRP retail.
FWIW -- good luck in whatever you decide.
My concern about buying from hi-end audio stores is that they try to sell what they have or the brands they are authorized to sell. So the problem is, IMO, that if you are looking for a particular model and your favorite audio store doesn't carry it, what are you going to do; what do you think the store is going to try and sell you??
Suppose after doing research and/or listening to a couple of models at friends' houses, you've narrowed your choices down to two models, but your favoriate audio store only carries one model, how are you going to A/B the two models you're interested in??
OK . . . another problem I have is spending hours of time in a store listening to equipment. On principle, it's really a great way to listen to equipment. My concern is that if I spend a lot of time in a store, I feel uncomfortable because I've taken up a salesperson's time, I've picked their brains, and if their product is carried by other stores that are willing to discount, I might be compelled to buy for price.
So, given my personal buying biases, I read as much as I can on line and in places like A'gon. Then, as Elizabeth says, I'll buy a equipment used, generally on A'gon. As I said before on other posts, I'm pretty careful about what I buy and who I buy it from. So far, I've been lucky.
A real advantage of buying used is that if your dealing in top end equipment, there's generally a good resale market. So, in the case of preamps, I bought and sold 3 pre amps before I settled on my current model. In the case of my amp, I flipped only one model before settling on what I have now. Did I take a hit on the flips?? Yes . . . but not that much.
One other variation is that I will also buy either dealer or factory demos. My current line stage is a demo from a hi-end audio store. I paid $5800 for the unit 2 years ago. Guess what -- I can sell it on A'gon for the same money today. My amp is a factory demo unit that was refurbished and sold as new. I bought the amp about two years ago and it works great, and I can sell it for maybe $500 less than I paid for it. Not too shabby.
And finally, I agree with Elizabeth that I don't consider a 10 to 15% discount a deal. But if I buy used, maybe I'm one model back from what is ccurrently the top model, so what. I bought my stuff for 40% less than MSRP retail.
FWIW -- good luck in whatever you decide.