What are some good things to do when going to an audition

Separate out asking questions from listening.

You might be surprised at the number of people who go to hi fi shops and don't actually listen but spend their time talking over the music.

• Don't take anything food/drink-wise into the shop. 
• Don't audition anything you are not willing to purchase
• Unless they are jerks, don't use them and then buy elsewhere
• If sales tax is in play, see if cash can a) get rid of sales tax and b) get you another 3% off vs a CC

• Don't audition anything you are not willing to purchase

This is not something I can agree with. Often, I don't know what I am willing to purchase. Often, I need to hear the next level up to make a judgment about what things can sound like. One cannot judge diminishing returns without listening to things at the next level. Plus, many salespeople are more than happy to play things at the next level -- helps educate me, and gives them a carrot to dangle in front of my nose, even if it's down the road.

Bring in a CD or record you’re very familiar with so you can readily identify any differences in playback. Bring in a particularly well recorded CD to see how well the equipment deals with that in comparison to your current equipment, and bring in a particularly poorly recorded CD to see how much more the "poorness" is exposed. I tried this with some telling results on my last speakers purchase. Find out if the equipment being auditioned is broken in or not. No sense in the dealer providing the listening material. You know they'll cherry pick extraordinary material. I did ask them at the end of each listening session to play the best recording they had just to see what the speakers were capable of . That was interesting too.

Mike

SPL meter…….