Would You Pay to Listen?


Imaging the best sounding system you've ever heard. My question is, would you pay (say on an hourly basis) to listen to that system. You bring the music, friends, refreshments, etc. and you have the use of a state-of-the-art system in a professionally designed acoustic space.

Possible reasons to pay to hear such a system:

- unlike the local audio salon, you could listen without the pressure of a salesman trying to sell you equipment

- you could use it as a reference to your home system

- you could use it as a refuge, a place away from the spouse and kids where you could truly experience dedicated listening

To be honest, I'm not sure I would pay for such a service, but then again if it were cheap enough, occasionally, maybe I would. What's your thoughts?
128x128onhwy61
I'd pay to rent a house, far from civilization, with conditioned beefy A/C and a first rate sound system.
Or the same house where I could bring my own system for a week or so. Being an apartment "Dweller" puts a crimp in
your listening capabilities!
A really good reason to pay would be to audition equipment you're interested in, but don't necessarily want to buy from that dealer. I got so sick of being ripped off by buying new equipment at retail, then having to sell it at wholesale when I wanted to upgrade, that I have stopped going to regular audio dealers and buy almost everything here on the used market. But, that means I don't get to hear new equipment as much. To avoid the bad karma of listening to a dealer's equipment without intending to buy, I would be willing to pay something.
I'm with seth. I would pay for a no-pressure listening session with gear I'm interested in. A corollary to this: I would pay for in-home evaluation, if a dealer wanted to offer, say, rental units.
Several months back I wrestled with this very same idea, thinking that the majority of folks will pass through life never having heard an ultra high-end system. So why not invest in the necessary acoustical space and requisite equipment and open it to the public for a "modest" fee. One could offer different time slots from a one cd session to a full length movie. Even considered structured affairs with limo, dinner, etc. Although such an establishment may well entice a lot of one-time visitors, I suspect repeat business would be virtually nil. I surmised that the general populace, although probably impressed, would not feel the need to incorporate such an experience into their lifestyles. So I wrote it off as a somewhat deranged excuse to get my hands on the killer stuff. But you never know...