Charging A Fee To Demo An Amplifier In A Brick & Mortar Store

I am puzzled by the majority of the responses. I remember prior to Audiogon and the other"High End" Audio sites you would go to the dealer.
In my travels Mid 1980"s I would look up Stereophonic in the local yellow pages and visit the store. If I found a product I was interested in based on the reviews from various audio magazines I would ask If they would demo the product. I can’t remember when I was refused a demo. Fast forward 2020.......
A friend of mine works in one of the stores that is still in business. He doesn’t own the store he is an employee. He has worked very hard over the past 23 years.
As the online used market grew he has given in store and in home demos countless number of times. He has educated potential customers that have walked away and bought the products online. That training has allowed him to Identify the tire kickers.
We all know the difference between a retail pair of $30,000 mono blocks compared to a slightly used pair.
This is a fantastic hobby that I have enjoyed during my life time. This forum is a great space to research and I would like to thank everyone for their contribution.

If the dealer wants to charge its up to him. You can always take your business elsewhere.
This is a no brainer...... Enjoy.

Maybe they could give you a 10 year trial and call it good.

Actually, if this gear is that great they might let you try it for 30 days at home before making the purchase.

I live in metropolitan Phoenix and I usually go to a dealer when looking for new components every couple of years .  I never get charged with a demo fee here.  I usually read reviews of the equipment I am interested in buying and then listen to it connected to the dealer's system.  I don't expect the sound to be the same but I do ask for current  issues if any about the product I am buying. He always let me listen to his current components on demo which usually last an hour or so .  We talk about my audio system but my dealer always shows  me a similar component if he has one that I can exchange if the component does not perform sonically and even lends me his burned in cables to use . If I like how he treats me at the demo session , I usually come back to buy other items and he usually calls me if he gets an excellent high end component as a trade in. 
The only reason I would pay a demo fee is if he  brings the equipment I am interested in buying to my house, sets it up, and let me listen to it for a few days and decide I don't like how they sound. 

This dealer has previously been mentioned in posts as one to avoid so stay away.

How about some qualifying conversations before a demo of this sort? Is the buyer SERIOUS enough that he is going to buy them if they work properly? I am not a tube guy, so I don't know how much the "work properly" definition impacts the decision. If they are used and the performance is a big variable, I don't think there should be a charge, if the buyer is serious.

If I was ever (probably not) going to consider amps for $17K, I would want to hear them in my room in my system, and if they want to charge a reasonable fee for that, I'd probably do it. I bought an arm from a dealer who said buy it, take it home and see if you like it, and if not, return it within 30 days and get your money back. THAT is confidence in a product. It blew me away the difference. He knew my system and turntable and knew the difference it would make.

Are there really people out there who want to spend 3-4 hours listening in a store for the hell of it? BTW may car companies pay people to come in and take a test drive with no obligation whatsoever.

Every dealer I've ever dealt with has their own idiosyncrasies. Some refuse to touch used gear, some low ball trades, others will sell your stuff for you with a small commission, others want to charge huge commissions. Some discount, others refuse. Some are rude, and some are warm and fuzzy. Haven't found the perfect one yet. I spent a few grand on a pair of speakers with a guy who did a nice job unloading my old gear on consignment (especially these days), I thought he could be "the guy", and then he wouldn't take a $30 accessory back that didn't work the way they said it would because their policy is they don't take accessory returns at any time. I was shocked.

If you can deal with the manufacturer, you are much better off, because they want their customers to be happy. I was surprised that some will deal direct. I won't name one you surely know, but they are a household name. It helps to be within driving distance.