I bought a Benchmark preamp because it had nearly perfect specs and when I put it in my system it was just dull and lifeless. I ran it for a month constantly and it just never seemed to sound good at all. There was a time in my life where I bought a lot of preamps and at times had no preamp. My Classe is as close to perfect as I could find. Very easy to listen to for hours and hours.
Stuff You Tried To Love
I know we talk a lot about confirmation bias- we buy something and then convince ourselves we like it. Or something like that. But did you ever buy something you wanted to love and just couldn’t make it work? For me, Esoteric X-05 SACD/CD player. Bought from a local who was upgrading to the X-03. Big, beautiful piece of gear, but I couldn’t get used to the sound after 6 months of trying. Sold it to another local- I insisted he listen before he bought and I believe he sold it soon after as well. Totem Forest and Hawk. I loved the whole concept. Slim, easy to live with. Couldn’t get them to work in my room. The Model Ones were much better. I had a couple of other pieces, but this is long enough. BTW, these were bought used without audition.