stereo amps and preamps for rent,what do you think

I would love it, but I don't see it flying as a viable business. On the other hand, wouldn't it be nice if many more manufacturers kept a component or two for test rental purposes. Of course, many manufacturers could do this but don't since the reality of the component often does not live up to its marketing and reviews. But, for those who really are confident in their product it would be a wonderful service.

I wonder how successful it would be if Audiogon established an advertising page just for manufacturers who were willing to rent a demo piece of equipment or who offer a 30-day refund period. Would members be interested in that? Jeff

The advantages for the manufacturer to offer this service include: they are not required to cut out the brick and mortar store or distributor; they have the lowest cost invested in the demo; they control the number of demo units on hand and thus their investment level; the investment on behalf of the audio community is spread across many versus one; and they already have the tech support in place to keep the demo operating. Last, they could charge for the service. I doubt they will make money on the rental, but the good ones will increase their sales by getting their product into the hands of more consumers. Last, a list of such suppliers on audiogon is an inexpensive way to get their product into the eyes and hands of their demographic most likely to buy, especially in areas where they have no retailer (not that many retailers will loan you the component anyway).