Favourite / most impressive audio store


High-end audio (retail, storefront operation) high-end emporiums can thrill or frustrate with equal ease! My favourite store is "Applause Audio" on Queen Street East in Toronto, Ontario. Rob, the owner, always has a moment for those who walk in and has solid, well-founded opinions that are not forced on a prospective customer. In his funky, warm space analog and digital are well represented, everything is labelled and priced, and a useful "pre-owned" section is displayed prominently! (I'm not looking for testimonials or bad-mouthing....just your honest experiences).

P.S. for vintage stuff Steve's "Ring Audio" farther along Queen East cannot be beaten!
stereokarter

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Hi Fi sound in Minneapolis Minnesota is by far my favorite place to shop. The owner, Scott is a pleasure to deal with and his reccomendations have really helped me get the most out of my system.
I think what makes a good shop is the people who work there. I have tried the other Hi End shops here in the metro area and at each one I had a terrible time getting even an acknowledgment while walking into their store. I remember standing in a store that shall remain nameless and waiting 35 minutes for even one salesperson to say hello. The retail actvity consisted of 2 salesman trying to sell a guy with a $340 receiver $185 Kimber interconnects. Another salesmen was attempting to sell a Mark Levinson system (85K) to a couple who had come in for a Sony Mini system. Meanwhile, I wandered around with 3K in my pocket ready to purchase a CDP that day. Finally, a salesmen came over and said he would be over in a minute. I asked him to audition the EMC 1. He told me the player was OK and was in reality a very SLOW player. He was a complete jack ass know it all. So on top of waiting 35-40 minutes to get even a hello they didn't have the player in the store and I had a pompous jack ass telling me what I was hearing. Another salesmen on the way out told me he would like to take my name and number and give me a call when it came back in for an audition. Needless to say they never called.
Scott at Hi Fi sound called about 2 weeks latter and asked me how my system was going. Told him about my experience and he hooked me up with an Arcam FMJ23. Upgraded me to the EMC1 as soon as it came in and needless to say I have never purchased anything locally from another dealer. It is nice to find a dealer who respects the people he does business with. Unfortunatley that is a rarity in the Audio business. StereoLand is also a good place to shop. Ron is an outstanding guy as well. Other than that, most of the other dealers around here are junk.

HATS OFF to HI FI SOUND MPLS!