Contact For Price

I guess they figure if you have to ask the price then you can’t afford it 

I would really appreciate manufacturers and importers having list prices for their products on their websites. I don’t otherwise have an idea of whether the products are worth pursuing.

an example was a speaker that I was auditioning at CAF. My guess, depending upon its size and makeup, was about $8-10K. It was actually $30K, flabbergasting me. 

@mahler123 - that's often what I think, as it seems to be mostly the most expensive stuff that has Contact for Price. I don't know what tire kicking and time wasting would have to do with an online website. Nobody's time is being wasted except the computer's CPU. But some possible sales are being wasted. But again, if it's an issue with the manufacturer and discounts, that's another story and quite legit. 

Most high end audio companies carefully select their vendors. They do not allow them to discount the price, or within a very small amount or they will stop selling to them. 

This is not rigged to rip of the customer, this is rigged for survival. High end audio is not a lucrative business and cut throat competition will put them all out of business. So over the last decades they have learned to manage their sales end to preserve enough profit to survive. This means that if retailers are caught discounting they will loose ability to buy. I believe contracts are involved and the manufacturers manage sales territories so there are not too many covering the same area.

Everyone who thinks there is something underhanded about this is missing the mark, I think. The main reason is already listed - having pricing flexibility when wanting to go lower than the manufacturer’s MAP pricing requirements. 
 

I have also found that another retailer strategy is to list an item as used (and e.g., as a 9 out of 10) to be able to sell it for lower than MAP/MSRP, but when you receive the item you realize it’s a brand new unit.