Buying Dealer Demos

Your concerns would in theory apply equally to any used product, not just dealer demo's, so maybe we should be surprised to find you on the A-Gon! Seriously though, if they sound fine (with an ear to each driver) and look fine (with the grilles off), and you have a manufacturer's warranty, stop worrying and enjoy your new speakers. I bought both my Thiel speakers and my C-J amp as demo's with warranties from different dealers, was able to audition them both at home with return privileges, saved a lot of money, got wonderful performance, and when service was needed down the road, got it covered at no charge by the manufacturers (and this even though the problems, strictly speaking, were in all probability not the results of manufacturing defects) . What's not to like?

I bought about half of the speakers I have owned as demos. Saves money. If the place you shop has high quality electronics, I would like to see them damage a speaker just by playing it loud. It is many times harder to damage a speaker with too much power than with too little power. Plus, if they give you the full warranty still and something does go wrong, you get a new set of speakers. I don't see how you can lose. If they are as good as you say they are, they will last 20 or 25 years, so 3 times the use up to this point should have no effect.

Thanks for the feedback. Zaikesman,there is a difference in my mind between used and dealer demo in the sheer number of hours a dealer puts on equipment as opposed to an average user. Your responses all give me more of a "warm,fuzzy" feeling in moving forward with this purchase.

Having worked in a local shop you'd be surprised at how little playing time most demo speakers get.Even the most popular models only get short burst of use even on busy days.It's not like there hooked up playing all day.The most likely source of potential damage is less than carefull employees knocking them about.So get a feel for your dealers concern for the eqipment he sells.Take a peek in the listening rooms to see if care was taken in set up and cableing.It won't take long to figure where the shops heart is and yes well cared for demo gear is a good investment.

This may be obvious, but get up-close-and-personal with the speakers and listen for any scraping noises (from a really donged voice coil), fuzzy noises (burned out tweeters) and anything that doesn't sound like music. Also, check for excessive wear of grill cloth covers (if you intend to use them) as these come off-and-on countless times and can make noise if stretched out. Finally, check for physical damage (smashed corners, scratched verneer, damaged binding posts) as this will definitely affect resale value.