I really really dislike salesmen, And, yes, I do mean men. Here's the back story ... I've been wanting to replace/upgrade my stereo system for some time. Recently, I moved, and now have access to a fair number of audio dealers not previously available to me. Up until now it's been pretty much Best Buy or Circuit City. Oh yeah, and Tweeter. There used to be another place near me when I was but a wee lad, but, it moved many years back, and I think eventually closed. It's a shame. They had some nice stuff, and a decent selection. I bought my Wharfedale Diamond Ritz II's there. Nice speakers, excellent in fact, especially considering how little I paid for them.
Anyway, so I go into this store near me, not knowing what they had, and really only intending to take a look-see. Check out the brands and selection. Of course, I get shanghaied by a sales guy. He's nice and all, but was really trying to push the B&W's down my throat. "B&W's are great, they're used in Abbey Road and LucasFilm, blah blah blah." That's great, but, really, I don't care if the Rockettes use them in Carnegie Hall. I care that they sound good, to me. Long story short, I did listen to a couple of pairs from their 800 series (damned curiosity), and yes, they are impressive. Especially in the treble. But, they're a bit clinical, and more importantly, I'm not ready to buy yet. Truth is I don't know what I want to do with my current setup, including if I even want to replace anything right now. But, he gave the whole sales pitch about how great B&W's and are, how their funky looking external tweeters are just the best thing since the invention of the wheel (my wife thinks they look like vibrators). Fact is, they're $2500 a pair, and I'm not really sold on them. $2500 a pair, and my wife wants to take rip the tweeters off the cabinet and take them for a ride, if you know what I mean. Uh, yeah. Uh, huh, um, yeah.
He then led me to the theater room to show off the McIntosh system. $15500 for an amp and pre-amp. Uh, yeah, I'll get back to you on that. Don't get me wrong, it's nice equipment. And I do know that what my wife and I ultimately want to have will most likely land somewhere in the 30 - 50 G department. But, this is audio equipment, not cars. It takes a much longer time to figure out what rocks your boat. And, truth be told, I want speakers that make me hot. I want to come in to audition some speakers, and come across a pair that make me hot and bothered. I want to dream about them. I want to touch myself when I imagine them in my living room. That's what I want. And I don't care about price.
So, please leave the sales literature in the drawer where it belongs. And please keep the tours to an absolute minimum of 0. Thank you. Also, don't try to sell me on how only the best sound studios use these speakers. I really don't care. Listen, If I'm mixing an album, yeah, I might care. But, I'm not. I'm just trying to get my groove on with some speakers that really get me going. And, uh, preferably don't get my wife going. Cough cough.
So, sorry sales dudes, when I walk in to your store, just do both of us the favor. Put in my Pink Floyd discs, turn the volume to a decent level, not concert SPL's, and let me discover which pair of boxes and cones get me breathin' heavy. Okay? Really, if the gear you've got is any good, it will sell itself. And, I won't give two shits about price. Trust me.
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