High end dealers in Frankfurt

I'm sure you'll get lots of responses from our European members, but if you're in the Lufthansa concourse area at the airport, last month when I was there they had an Avant Garde Uno on display in a glass case for one of the high end establishments. Whoever they are, they may be worth visiting.

I saw that Uno during a layover there last September!

I was there with a group from the NJ Symphony Orchestra. They were amazed when I told them that people were still making horn speakers, SETs and the price of those speakers!

Drubin, you are lucky, you reached the right man. Frankfurt high-end dealers:
1. Just Music (Audio Note, Avalon, Ayre, Rowland, Lindemann, Rega, Blue Amp: unfortunately they went out of business a few months ago).
2. Raum Ton Kunst, Neue Kräme 29, 60311. In the Sandwegpassage. U/S Bahn Stop: Hauptwache. Right in the city center. About 20 minutes from the airport. Ask people: "Wo ist die Sandwegpassage, bitte?" (Burmester, ML, Krell, AR, JM Lab, Conrad Johnson, BAT, Graaf, Revel, Bryston, LUA, McIntosh, TGMcLaren, STAX, etc. some second hand, some unusual stuff, mostly SS).
3. HiFi Profis, Eschenheimer Tor 2, within walking distance of Raum Ton Kunst. Right in the center. (LUA, Audionet, Accuphase, Burmester, B+W, Elac, Burmester, McIntosh, alot of lo- and mid-fi though).
4. Auditorium 23, Gabelsbergerstrasse 23, 60389 Offenbach, tel. 465202. Technically outside Frankfurt, in Offenbach, but only a 15 minute cab ride. (Shindo, Roiene, PHY-P, Verdier, EUPHYA, tube and analog from France and Japan). Unusual opening hours, so call first.
5. Cassiopeia, Rödermark, will take about 30 minutes to get there in car. In an industrial park. One man operation. Make an appointment by telephone beforehand: 06074-927682. (Simon Yorke Designs, Odeon, Graaf, Sonus Faber, Einstein, Rega, Lindemann, Lavardin, etc.).
Records stores:
1. World of Music, 4th floor of Hertie department store, Zeil, new CDs, commercial, but many Japanese imports, expensive.
2. Phono Haus, Rossmarkt 7, Frankfurt's largest selection of classical CDs is on their second floor. City center. Right around the corner from Raum Ton Kunst. Even more expensive than WOM.
3. Number 2 records, Wallstrasse 2, Frankfurt/Sachsen Hausen. Across the Main river from the city center. Second hand. Many RCA and Decca original vinyl, as well as Blue Note, Impulse, Japanese pressings. Reasonable to expensive.
There are other high end shops in Erlensee, Mömbris, Wiesbaden, Karben, and Wehrheim. Check out an edition of Image HiFi for their addresses. Happy shopping. BTW, those Avantgarde Uno loudspeakers at the airport are not from a Frankfurt shop.

Wow, the mother lode. Thank you, slawney!

I'm also hoping to find Mephisto shoes in Frankfurt. I love them, but they are $300 here in the U.S. Last Fall I bought a pair for $160 in France (great exchange rate these days).

slawney: i'm looking to be in scotland in september. don't suppose you have a list of highend dealers in glasgow or edinburgh? -kelly

Drubin, your welcome. I only gave you the best addresses, so you won't waste time on disappointments.
Kelly, Glasgow and Edinburgh have not yet been shopped by me. My wife could not put up with me anymore after what happened in London, so I laid low in Scotland. You should have no problem finding the hi end stores: expect Linn, Audio Note, Naim to be the main brands. The addresses are well publicized in the U.K. audio magazines.

slawney: thank you, JAY, for your thoughts. fortunately, the good folks at vantageaudio gave me some leads. BTW, their email server is acting up if anyone's tried to reach them. last time i was in london, i visited a few record shops, hoping to find that rare jewel; they were there, alright, but the prices were outrageous. -kelly

Kelly, was that CD or LP prices -- I remember London being reasonable for CDs (by European -- expensive -- standards, that is). BTW, Paris is even worse on CD prices -- but not bad on LPs, though.

Greg

greg: i was speaking of lp's. they're much more affordable on ebay or at our local indie shops. in my experience, cd's in london are generally about 1.5-2 times the price charged in the usa (at current exchange rates). last time i was in london, my wife and i stayed on picadilly, close by tower records; it was fun watching the young worldly customers in the latest styles of dress and attitude, but i didn't buy a thing. -kelly

About five years ago, I found London was the most expensive European city (for LP, and most everything else), nowadays Paris, Rome, even Vienna, and Zurich are more expensive than London. All of France is extremely expensive for CDs, and the LP prices in and near Paris can be astronomical--although I know Parisian dealers who are inconsistent on pricing, and/or who will discount on large orders or "for friends" (you must speak French, though, and charm them). Prague, and Budapest have the best CD prices, followed by Germany (much better than France on CD). --The problem with London is that, yes, for DECCA, London, Lyrita collectors, the city is a goldmine. I have also found some extremely sought-for (by me, anyhow) 1960/70s free jazz in Camden. What got out of control in London, however, was my visiting the high end stores in London.

Budapest *used* to be good for LP also -- primarily (then) "Eastern bloc" labels. Athens also has reasonable cd prices and titles availability for classical. Classical, 70s and jazz LPs are, also, still reasonable -- but as many French and German collectors have "discovered" B/pest, Athens, etc, I doubt prices will hold anywhere!

I find s/w in Europe generally more expensive than in the States.

Cheers!

Budapest ist still good for lps, especially Mikrokosmos on Dob Utca, but don't expect to make the find of the year there, they are knowledgeable. Paris is medium as far as prices are concerned, for the rest, forget about it. Good stuff is much cheaper to be had on ebay. CD prices are atrocious. Do bargain, when buying hardware in Europe. Discounts up to 20% are sometimes possible, 10-15% the usual thing. The high end market is a bit in the doldrums over here and dealers tend to want to reduce stock.
Cheers,