2. amps-preamps
  3. 160032-79

Charging A Fee To Demo An Amplifier In A Brick & Mortar Store

I Saw a pair of pre-owned tube monoblocs for sale on an onlline forum for around $17k.
The seller has a retail store for hiigh end audio. The seller mentioned that there will be an up-front fee for the demo if a prospect comes to the store the amps are not purchased. The demo fee may also be used for credit towards any purchase in the store.

This is the first time I’ve ever heard of this. Is this now a common occurance in high end audio stores? I sent a note to the seller asking what the demo fee amount was....two weeks and I didn’t get a response.

Does anyone know what amount of fees are charged for a demo?
128x128mitch4t

Showing 3 responses by stereo5

stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,266 posts
 
That dealer has been trying to unload those mono locks for over a year now.  I would run away as fast as I could. 
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,266 posts
 
One thing to consider, with 800 hours on the tubes, its going to cost a few grand to retube the units if you buy them from ARC.   I think why they have been sitting for so long is huge the price to retube them when it is needed.  It is a BIG expense.  I hope you live in Alaska or Siberia as those amps will probably keep your house hot year round.
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,266 posts
 
When I visit Audio Classics, they will set up anything I want to listen to without any fuss and after set up, leave me alone to enjoy.  That is the kind of dealer you want.  When I wanted to hear the Legacy Valors, they took out the big McIntosh speakers and hooked up the Valors to the 1.25kw McIntosh mono blocks with a smile and told me to"enjoy"..
More to discover