has this ever happened to anyone ?
you go to a local dealer to audition a component(s), and in the process you make comparisons between several components of the same type and then buy one of them.
you take it home break it in and some time either during or after the break in, you find you don't like the component ?
the point here is that auditioning a component at a dealer does not necessarily reduce the odds of making a mistake.
even if you audition the component in your own system for a day or 2, you may still make a mistake.
going to a dealer is not necessarily an advantage over not going to a dealer.
buying components is very risky. sometimes buying without the benefit of a review or listening to a component is no worse than reading a review and/or hearing the component at a dealer.
i can cite instances where i bought components after auditioning them in my system only to sell them 2 months later.
i can cite other instances where i bought a component after having spoken to a manufacturer with little or no other facts.
there are many variables here, some of a purely psychological nature.
this question could stimulate another thread, namely, the art of equipment selection, but you guys have probably heard enough from me, so i'll refrain for now, unless requested to do so.
