It's been years, but Singer and Lyric were always about qualifying the customer. As several have recommended above, wearing $400 shoes will go a long way towards getting you good service at either place.
Lyric was famous for guarding the vault. In the 1970's (IIRC), they had the Magnepan Tympani set up somewhere in the dark recesses of the store, and it was kind of a quest among audiophiles to see if you get a look/listen. I was in my twenties and never got close.
Many years later, I bought both Verity Parsifal/Encores and a Krell KSA50s from Andy Singer over the period of a couple of years and still got sized up every time I walked in the store.
In their defense, I suspect that both places get many hobbyists who have great curiosity about the exotica in these stores but no intention of/ability to purchase. As nice as it might be to see them nurture these potential future customers, I gather that both stores have concluded that it's not practical to do so. In the end, they run their businesses to make a buck. Both places have been around forever - surviving some pretty severe economic ups and downs that have wiped out many competitors - so maybe their judgement is (pardon the pun) sound. Though definitely unpleasant for those in less exotic footwear.
Audio Connection, by comparison, went 180 degrees the other way. Very nice, very helpful. Vandy centric, but I find that almost all Vandy dealers are.
Caveat, all experience are from the last millenium.
Marty
