Would you buy speakers with out first listening ?

Back in my "civilian" days, I bought speakers without listening to them first on several occasions, generally with good results.

If you count all my DIY projects (which I had to pay for before hearing), then that would add another fifty or so. Results here were mixed - most of my own designs sucked.

I would say the key to buying speakers unheard is to first know yourself - know what you like and what you don't like a loudspeaker to do, and know what you're willing to compromise if you have to. Second, it helps to understand speaker design to the point where you can make a reasonable assessment of what a given design will and will not do based on objective data - especially as it relates to your priorities (what you like & don't like). Finally, you can give credance to rave reviews, but I have found this to be an unreliable predictor of whether or not I will fall in love with a given loudspeaker.

Duke

"Science is not a democracy" - Earl Geddes

Actually, Duke, that's an excellent piece of written advice (if I may say so)! Cheers!

It's my opinion that you have never heard speakers even if you audition them. Every other factor is different. The room you listen in, your amp/preamp or integrated, your cd player, your turntable, your cartridge, your speaker cables, your interconnects are all different and in some case where people have small odd shaped rooms with windows, doors and furniture in them, very, very different. I find buying audio equipment one of the most difficult things I have ever tried to do. I think that if your research finds a consensus of people liking a component, that's as good as you can get.

Absolutely NOT. I have heard so many very expensive pairs of speakers that I could never live with for any length of time. I realize that it is not practical to expect a home audition, but one can tell quite a lot from hearing a speaker that is set up well in a showroom that one is familiar. If I buy from a dealer, I expect the dealer to help with set up, finding a suitable amp and tweaking.

Currently, very few commercial designs interest me. But, I've heard a number of custom designed systems that sound very good. If I do change my speakers, something I don't expect to do for a long time, I will go that route. That necessarily involves close interaction with the designer and listening to different options, etc.

My next interim upgrade will probably be an active crossover. I know a builder/designer who I can work with towards getting a complex active system to work correctly.