Hi miatadan,
Also consider that this is, ultimately, a personal decision. Different dealers may well have different opinions; different owners may have different experiences. McIntosh has been around a while and has a strong track record. I'm sure the 830s sound good; whether they sound good to you is what counts.
If an in-home audition isn't possible and an in-store one isn't either, you're left to rely on anecdotal experiences, reviews and your own research. It may take a while for the reviews to appear. I'm an inveterate, methodical researcher, and auditions are only part of my process; some of my gear was bought without benefit of audition, and I don't regret those purchases (sound-wise, that is; I'm sure my wallet would object). If you can get any kind of audition with familiar gear, go for it. I took my own speaker cable and interconnect to an audition once. A patient pursuit of your process, whatever that entails, should get you where you need to go on the 830s.
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SOTA, Grado, SME, Van den Hul, Gingko turntable setup; Pioneer Elite LD, BDP; Sony OLED TV; Magnum Dynalab tuner, antenna; MIT S-video cable; Pangea HDMI cables; DVDO video processor; McIntosh SACD, preamp, power amps; Telefunken Black Diamond preamp tubes; Kimber IC; Transparent IC, PC, SC; Mirage speakers; PS Audio, Shunyata PC; Audio Additives RCA caps; Furman power conditioning; Sanus: racks
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