Good stores in LA

LA Audio on Western had Wilson (Alexandria, Sophia, & Watt Puppy), VTL, Audio Research & a whole bunch of other very high end gear when I last checked. They keep all the expensive stuff upstairs, so you'll have to ask them to take you up there.
There's also Ahead Stereo on Beverly, between La Brea and Fairfax. They sometimes have interesting pieces.

Brooks Berdan, GNP and Sound Factor are all relatively close.
One can easily do all three in a few hours. I'm assuming GNP is still in Pasadena and Sound Factor is in Rosemead. I left LA in 2005. I know Brooks is still in Monrovia.

Wendell

Here's my $.02 worth - most of the high-end audio stores in L.A. went out of business (or appt. only; almost the same thing) because they got too snooty. Prices too high, service too low, and they forgot how to attrect new customers.

Here are the stores that I still visit:
1- Sound Factor in Encino. Dr. Azzhole is gone (thank God) and Murray runs the store. Good place to deal, but they mostly seem to deal in mid-fi lately. Usually lots of good junk to haggle over.
2- Shelleys in Woodland Hills. Good store and staff. Most of of their gear is not my cup of tea (Linn & Mac). Usually not a lot of used gear.
3- Upscale Audio in Upland. Great store, great prices. Hard to get an appt. Appt. only, so not a good place to just browse. Lots of used and demo gear.
4- Optimal Enchantment in Santa Monica. Randy is a great guy, but you had better be looking for Audio Research and Vandersteen or else. Not a lot of used gear last time I was there. Appt. only.
5- Sound Asylum in Venice. Currently my favorite store for hi-end gear. James is a great guy and he carries a lot of good brands. New, used and demo. Appt. only.
6- L.A. Audio - not my cup of tea, but I go in there occasionally. Sometimes you can snag a good deal.

I would pick a couple of stores in an area (the valley, or santa monica/venice, etc.) and spend the rest of my time looking at used vinyl.

Thanks for all the info! I will be there on business, so I have only one day to relax and go check out a few places. Again, thanks all for your thoughts / opinions!

FourFour

I have lived in LA my entire life (I am 50) and have been in music business around live touring for 30 years. My father was a known session player. I have been around "pro gear" all my life, been in numerous studios, and have never really had to deal with the consumer retail electronics market here in LA before 2007.

I was introduced to the site about two years ago. My wife wanted a simple system for a den we have off our kitchen. My first posting on this site (you can see it in my threads)was looking for dealers in the OC, LA and SD area.

My experience with the retail community here has been underwhelming at best, humourous in the extreme personalities I have met.

Constants have been:

a) rigs that are more expensive than some of the standard pro gear I see in recording studios and not as nice sounding or musical to boot
b) suggested offerings not in tune with dimensions of the room--I am always being "upsold" into gear with greater than needed capacity (i.e. amps with more watts and floor standing speakers that will overwhelm a room--the loudness factor)
c) "shuck and jive" sales tactics around promoting older model inventory--what was "hot" three years ago with Stereophile or TAS that is now the has-been road kill inventory on this site
d) products selected through their "total line" relationshps with wholesalers rather than through real musical synergy.

So here is what I have personally found:

1) Audio Revelation: a man and a beagle in a room freighteningly small--a narrow living room in a condo. Brought a few reference albums down--Jay proceeded to reject all of them (my favorite--told me my personal copy of Van Morrison's Astral Weeks "was no good") and proceeded to play Alison Krause on a pair of $26 k Magicos that are about 6 times the price of the ATC monitors I professionally edit on, with the same sound clarity. The beagle apparently stepped in gum, which then got transfered onto the couch, causing the session to end, as he went to clean his sofa. Depressing.

2) Brooks Brendan: nice retail space--one premier room. Based on my request, offered up a VTL and Wilson combo that would totally overwhelm the den, played at a sound level that recalled Led Zep at Madison Square Garden. Priced at $30,000, so I could see $15,000 in depreciating assets while just walking out the door.

Would not reconfigure a cheaper and more practical solution involving smaller Vandersteens which were in the front room--"it would take too much time to set up" and "you really would not like them compared to the Wilsons." Also, did not have a functioning turntable, so I could only demo on a CD player.

The son was nice, no pressure, but there again, never heard a more practical setup based on need or budget. A lot like peeing down your leg--you don't know why you did it but it leaves you with a warm feeling for 5 minutes.

3) Digital Ear: nice spacious environment. The junior sales person was nice, and recommended a nice demo involving Gallos and simple ss amp. Mid-stream into the session, we were interrupted by the owner who insisted that I move into another room. I had to listen to AP Scorpios driven by a BAT amp--again the magic $20 to 30k, under the Madison Square Garden loudness scenario. Nothing I could do would persuade them to allow me to resume listening to the original smaller rig. The hardest sell ever. I gracefully walked out. PS: never see anything about Scorpios on this site--were evidently hot in 2005.

4) Gene Rubin: nice on the phone; suggested I forget about driving up to Ventura to personally demo at his house. His recommendation: he would let me demo any of his gear shipped against my credit card to my house. While I think this is reasonable, I did not also want the liability of stolen and undelivered goods left by UPS, plus the possibility of damage brought on in the installation process.

5. Upscale Audio: Friendly people with a tube slant. As someone mentioned above--hard to book an appointment but a nice selection of moderate to mid priced gear to view. Realistic in sizing the rooms--showed me a nice ERA speaker. Build quality is not rugged, but not cheap--If it is made in China--it is sold here.

Bottom line: Viewed the experience as a complete waste of time, not professional given the price range of the products, had anything but a luxury end user experience, and wasted a bunch of time along the way.

My solution: ended up buying via the net from my pro suppliers a ATC/Benchmark solution for a fraction of the price with equal the sound of their best systems.

My advice: go to Amoeba Records in Hollywood and enjoy one of the best record shops in the world. Then have some margaritas and some real Mexican food and take a nap at the beach.

I wholeheartedly agree with Jaybo's comments.