>Prefer to audition because IMO speakers are more difficult to evaluate than other gear when they have not been heard.<
Rockdanny,
I see your point, BUT, the speakers in question (any speakers, really) are not going to sound the same in YOUR room with YOUR equipment as they did at the previous owner's home. You strike me as someone who puts little credence in the importance of front end equipment. Hell, my son has an old pair of Polk Monitor 7s in his bedroom that I can make sound fantastic in my big rig. Do they sound that great in his system? No, only average.
Ok, now let's say you have taken ALL your components to the seller's house. Better, but still no cigar. Room acoustics will also drastically change the sound. So either you end up buying a great pair of speakers that sound like crap in YOUR room, or you pass up a great pair because they sounded like crap in HIS room. That's a no win situation if ever there was one.
I agree with what was mentioned before. Buy the best speaker you can for your $$ on the used market and sell it on the used market if it doesn't cut it for you. Beyond that, only buy from a dealer if he lets you bring them home first, or you feel confident that your environment will be better suited to said speakers. In the end, this type of dilemma is what keeps Agon flourishing.
Oz
Rockdanny,
I see your point, BUT, the speakers in question (any speakers, really) are not going to sound the same in YOUR room with YOUR equipment as they did at the previous owner's home. You strike me as someone who puts little credence in the importance of front end equipment. Hell, my son has an old pair of Polk Monitor 7s in his bedroom that I can make sound fantastic in my big rig. Do they sound that great in his system? No, only average.
Ok, now let's say you have taken ALL your components to the seller's house. Better, but still no cigar. Room acoustics will also drastically change the sound. So either you end up buying a great pair of speakers that sound like crap in YOUR room, or you pass up a great pair because they sounded like crap in HIS room. That's a no win situation if ever there was one.
I agree with what was mentioned before. Buy the best speaker you can for your $$ on the used market and sell it on the used market if it doesn't cut it for you. Beyond that, only buy from a dealer if he lets you bring them home first, or you feel confident that your environment will be better suited to said speakers. In the end, this type of dilemma is what keeps Agon flourishing.
Oz