What products AREN'T available here? Compared to what is available here in Taiwan versus what is available to us in all of Oregon.....is kind of like comparing a Superstore to a 7/11 convenience store.
I'm in Taoyuan (pop. 430,000). To my knowledge there are just 4 hi-end audio shops here, but there could be more - I just haven't discovered them yet. There are many many more shops in Taipei. The best looking store here is clearly set up for wealthy Taiwanese. When I walked in there last week, everyone had this look on their faces that said something like, "Ignore him. He can't possibly afford our wares." After all, I'm a FOREIGNER. It's hard to break through that level of prejudice.
Admittedly, most foreigners not only really can't afford their wares, but they can't speak Mandarin well enough to talk the audiophile slang. I walked in asking appropriate questions, dropping names of hi-end gear, and clearly demonstrating that I know something about audio....yet the owner/manager really did ignore me. A single unlucky salesman answered some of my questions. He didn't quite believe me when I told him my two-way LS/5-R monitors were better than their bunch of two-ways. When I told him I'd like to bring them in so he/they could understand what I was talking about, he said, "No. That's not allowed." Pfft!
More later...
Just discovered two more shops in town. One looks to be very high-end. I'll try to visit one or both tomorrow. The worst that will happen is I'll be politely ignored. I'm looking for speaker stands. I've already found teak stands that weren't designed with speakers in mind that would work okay, but they'll stand out instead of disappearing.
