LuckyLucy Messages: 46 Registered: December 2013 Location: United States
Baron
It's always been buyer beware, and I guess electronics are no exception. I've been reading about how electronics stores get you to pay good money for cheap products.
One thing to do if you are shopping is to take your own musical sample. It seems that it is a common practice to use high bit-rate MP3s to make a system sound better than it is.
I don't know how you would guard against the other practice I've heard of. Some stores will attach "enhancement units" to their low-end music systems to improve the sound.
No wonder systems are never as wonderful at home as in the store!
gofar99 Messages: 1950 Registered: May 2010 Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
Hi, Yes indeed. Bose as set up in places like Best Buy were (are) masters at this. All sorts of things went into the setup. Exact speaker placement, room treatments and so on. The tip about bringing your own music is good. It might not ferret out all funky stuff, but sure will eliminate that one. The process reminds me of when I bought my Martin Logan Electrostatics. I brought my music, my amps, my preamp and allowed them to use a Rega Apollo. I figured it was equal to my Oppo. They were of course nice about it and I went home with the ESLs and the store bought a pair of my amps. Some things do work out.
love2play Messages: 134 Registered: March 2012 Location: GA
Master
Taking your own music is a really good idea, and I am certainly not surprised that stores try to trick you into thinking something is better than it is. That may just explain a lot about the sound bar we have in the living room.
Wow, I didn't realize these stores had tricks up their sleeves like that. I bought a mid-range system not too long ago and was very disappointed by how it actually sounded once I got it home. I'll definitely take some of my own music next time; thanks for the advice.