Japan has been doing this for many years and I'm glad it's catching on in other parts of the world. My neighbor is with his future wife, in Japan, and one of the better known listening bars is a few minutes walk from her place. He loves it there.

If only there was one near me.

All the best,
Nonoise
I think it’s an awesome idea and hope that it catches on here in the states.  Very cool idea!
Its a bad idea to think you can lump as many people as you can into a room and expect each person to enjoy perfect sound. The sweet spot could never be wide enough and every person has a different hearing response so to get the best sound requires the sound to be CUSTOM TUNED to their ears. Why would you pay to go to a listening bar despite this?
you wouldnt even be able to adjust the volume let alone the music that was played. 

 Why have music at all Kenjit? Any show Ive ever gone to Ive never been able to adjust the volume or pick the playlist, but Ive had some awesome experiences. Stop chasing perfection and enjoy the music.
Any show Ive ever gone to Ive never been able to adjust the volume or pick the playlist
why not? is it to prevent you from judging the true performance of the speakers?
As usual, kenjit has missed the point completely. But no one is surprised.

It's not about everyone in the room enjoying "perfect" sound. Most of the people who would ever go to such an establishment are not "audiophiles" by any stretch. Most are just music lovers, some just curious, and others just want to hang out for the novelty of it.

But leave it to you to interject your bias...........


Oz




For all the grumpy old "audiophile" men shaking their fists at clouds, and whining how the millennials "just don't get it", here comes a trend that only serves to expose others to this (HEA) hobby and keep it alive. Let's be sure to crap on it and kill it with fire.
There's a couple of them in NYC and out in LA/Oakland; not sure if there are any others.