Just for the record, I've bought most of my system based on reviews and reputation without hearing it first. I was never interested in restricting my buying decisions only to gear that I could demo at home. In fact, I have never demoed a piece of gear in my system before I bought it.
I don't know how many people out there are like me but I suspect that it's quite a few - they are just rare on this forum or they won't admit it. Look at all the people who gush over their Chinese ladder DACs that they never auditioned before they got them. How did they even know about these DACS if they never read a review? I've never had the time to mess around with home demos. I have subscribed to Stereophile and TAS for about 40 years and I carefully read the reviews of anything that I am interested in buying. I've never bought a component that was reviewed well that sounded bad.
I have carefully auditioned speakers in showrooms, however, The pair of Mirage M3si I bought in the 90's are a good example. They are big, weigh over 100 lbs each and there was no way I was going to lug home the demo pair and try them out. They sounded great in the showroom and they sounded great in my system. My current speakers, Thiel CS6, I bought from a friend at a very good price and I did listen to make sure they worked OK but I didn't try to make any judgements. I bought these speakers based on the outstanding reviews they received and sure enough, they sound stunning. If I upgrade now I would go with a pair of MBL 101 E MkII speakers. I've heard them at a couple of audio shows and they were amazing. But the nearest dealer is hundreds of miles away from me and even if they were across town there is no way I would spend the time and effort to schlep a pair in my house even if the dealer would let me (oh God, what if I damaged one). I would rather make the transaction as simple as possible and ask the dealer for a discount because I'm an easy customer to deal with.
I don't know how most of the Agon forum participants have the time to adhere to a "demo only" policy but I sort of feel like they need to get a life. The time I spend with my system is valuable and I want to be listening to music, not auditioning gear.
Lastly, I would absolutely trust the opinion of professional reviewers who have heard a wide range of components over a bunch of audio forum hacks who mostly tout the components they have purchased to prove how wise they are. If someone doesn't read professional reviews then it indicates that they only get their information from forums or dealers. In each case the sources of information are totally biased toward what they own or sell. No thanks. I'll get my audio guidance from folks who are paid professionals who do this for a living and have a reputation to protect.