salesperson recomends what do you think


going to but new bookshelf speakers for a small room. the salesperson is going to have me listen to b&w sonus faber totem and golden ear. this is in the 1500 range, here in your opinion are there some good choices here. thanks
alrudy55
Personally I think B& W are the most over rated speakers ever made.
Sonus Fabers are great, especially for acoustic music.

Golden Ears are good sounding, very good for large scale orchestra music but the smaller two-ways are not near as good according to my ears.
It's good that you're taking the opportunity to listen for yourself, rather than buying based on reviews or other opinions of personal preference. If possible, I suggest you burn one CD with about 10 tunes in the genres of music you prefer, so you can just sit back and listen without having to get up and change CDs. Just make sure to burn the CD at full bandwith and not MP3!. Enjoy and trust your ears as to what sounds the best.
Agree with Schubert on the SF's and B&W's. The SFs I have heard have all been very musical. Something I could certainly live with.
These are some very good choices - nice range of different styles. Here are some obvious suggestions, which you probably already know. But here goes anyway.

Make sure you listen to all through the same electronics, hopefully something close to what you have. Once narrowed down, the dealer should let you take your top 2 choices home.

To expand Chayro's suggestion, find some particular passages that emphasize things that are important to you - detail on strings or piano, deep bass, speed, sweet mid-range, vocals, large scale orchestra, complex rock, etc. and hone in on them, especially if it comes down to a couple of the options.

Figure out the basic characteristic of each - lots of detail, forward versus laid back, sweet mid-range, bass, etc.

Four brands can be a lot to listen to, unless something really jumps out at you. Don't be afraid to come back to listen to your top choices.

If you plan to use these on stands, think about floor standers also. They often take up the same room as book shelfs on stands. At least listen, if they are an option. Totem Arros, for example, are pretty small. Golden Ears need more space with their side firing woofers.

If these are going to be close to a wall, think about the effect of the port, if they have one. You probably will not hear this at a dealer demo. Think about port plugs.

Should be educational and fun. Good luck.
B&Ws are not to my liking either, plus, they are power hungry

fwiw if you can not decide between two models buy the one that is easier to drive and save money on your amplifier

have fun