bondmanp |
02-17-2011 10:15 AM |
karl: A good b&m dealer will accomodate some sort of in-home trial. Especially if you commit to buying one or the other from him (he makes a sale either way).:scratch2: Some dealers will only allow a trial over a weekend, from, say, Saturday at closing time to when they open again for business the next week. But if he does not offer an in-home trial, ask about his trade-in or return policy. If he is completely inflexible on all of this, personally, I would look for another dealer, even if I had to drive a ways.:wefly:
While the idea of bringing your own monitors with you is a good idea, IMHO, it is still a poor substitute for your actual speakers and especially, your room. If you love an amp in the showroom, but not so much at your home, you can proceed to buy all the associated gear, cables and even speakers you heard at showroom in an effort to get similar results at home, but you cannot buy the showroom itself and bring it home with you.
I would suspect profit margins are similar with both brands. I suppose the salesman's preference for Bryston could indeed be a real preference, but his ears are not your ears. Some people might prefer the comfort of a Porche to the better performing, but spartan, Ferrari. And, frankly, I have heard McIntosh gear (higher end stuff) in the past that I thought was all Ferrari in terms of performance. Do you pay up for the pretty looks? Probably, but there is real quality and performance behind the face plate. All of this is not to knock Bryston. And especially since you have custom DIY speakers, it will be hard to say which would be a better match without hearing them in your home.:dunno:
Be honest with the dealer. You're considering spending a lot of money here. Tell him you don't want to make a purchase that you later come to regret.:tears: Ask him how he can help you avoid that. Put the ball in his court, and see what he comes up with. If you don't like his answer (e.g.: "Don't worry - you'll love this amp" is not a good answer), then tell him you are not comfortable spending that much money under those circumstances. I like to support b&m hifi shops, but not if the salesman is going to be a jerk. If he is totally unhelpful, I would go elsewhere.:running:
That's exactly what I say when I get the inevitable funny looks from people who find out about my hifi obsession: "Everybody needs a hobby, and this one is relatively harmless.":chillin:
|