[Dan_ed]

Have you priced them out on Amazon?
Earlier this year I bought a s52" Samsung lcd off of amazon (and specifically from Amazon, not a reseller) and it was a great price, about 400 under best buy. The delivery was free and good experience. No sales tax collected.

But many states that have sales taxes also have "use tax" laws that would apply to this transaction, meaning that you should pay taxes on the purchase.  See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Use_tax

And THAT is why I live in New Hampshire and not Massachusetts. No sales tax (except on take out food, WTF?), no use fees. We just get to pay very high property taxes. 

[mfsoa]

I've been holding off on this rant for a while and I don't mean it to be directed at anyone, and I am definitely biased and am about to paint w/ a really (too) braod brush, but I have a question for all you audiophile TV buyers -

Is there not a local, small B+M shop you could visit as well as the big box stores for your TVs? (Here's my bias - My brother happens to own a local, small B+M shop trying to duke it out w/ the big boys, and my dad works at one also)

We (audiophiles) seem to complain all the time about the demise of the B+M audio dealers that can actually demo the gear, take time to educate, offer excellent after-sale support blah blah blah...

And we complain that people just buy stuff of the web or at big box stores and that this is not healthy for audiophile-dom in the long run.

Then we shop for TVs and run right out to BB or wherever, acting just like the people we criticize for not shopping at the small, dedicated dealer.

Sorry for the rant - I guess I've just become inundated with so many stories of people buying from big box stores, paying MORE than my bro would have charged, then gotten crappy service and no after-sale support.

He spends hours and hours a week answering questions from these people because they thought they were saving a buck. And also demoing his stock to people who then run out and buy from elsewhere.

I just think that the reasons to support your B+M audio shop might also apply to the local audio/HT shop as well?

Sure, bro cannot compete w/ fly-by-night internet bait-and-switch shops that advertise 30% below cost, but he can usually compete $$wise w/ the "real" stores.

Not saying the small guy will always be the best choice, but do we give them a fair chance when it comes to TVs?

Thanks for listening to my crap-

-Mike

[electricbear]

Mike,
          being the Assistant Manager at a local B+M store I truly appreciate your posting.

[Dan_ed]

Mike,

In a word, yes. I have dealt with a few reputable B+M stores in my area. That is where I bought my last tv before buying my 2 month old plasma. And those experiences with my local dealers are exactly why I will not do business with them. But that is the situation in my area, others may have better dealers about them. I wish your brother the best in his business, especially if he really can offer the same products for less. He just has to get the word out. These days people are going out of their way to find bargains.

I would disagree with you a little, though. I don't feel that I let ANY audio dealer down. In fact, my feeling is that most of them gave us 2-channelers the big middle finger when they chose to go all HT.

I remember a local shop in W. Palm Beach back in the 70's. I can't remember his name but can still see his face in my mind. This guy would let me a couple of friends sit in the hi-end room and listen as long as he didn't have a paying customer in there. We did buy LPs from him and I believe I bought my first car stereo from him. Now days I can almost walk in any HT shop and watch a movie in great surround. But ask them about 2-channel or, gawd forbig, analog and they tell you to make an appointment. So few of them these days know how to do stereo let alone analog, at least in my experience.

[zybar]

I've been holding off on this rant for a while and I don't mean it to be directed at anyone, and I am definitely biased and am about to paint w/ a really (too) braod brush, but I have a question for all you audiophile TV buyers -

Is there not a local, small B+M shop you could visit as well as the big box stores for your TVs? (Here's my bias - My brother happens to own a local, small B+M shop trying to duke it out w/ the big boys, and my dad works at one also)

We (audiophiles) seem to complain all the time about the demise of the B+M audio dealers that can actually demo the gear, take time to educate, offer excellent after-sale support blah blah blah...

And we complain that people just buy stuff of the web or at big box stores and that this is not healthy for audiophile-dom in the long run.

Then we shop for TVs and run right out to BB or wherever, acting just like the people we criticize for not shopping at the small, dedicated dealer.

Sorry for the rant - I guess I've just become inundated with so many stories of people buying from big box stores, paying MORE than my bro would have charged, then gotten crappy service and no after-sale support.

He spends hours and hours a week answering questions from these people because they thought they were saving a buck. And also demoing his stock to people who then run out and buy from elsewhere.

I just think that the reasons to support your B+M audio shop might also apply to the local audio/HT shop as well?

Sure, bro cannot compete w/ fly-by-night internet bait-and-switch shops that advertise 30% below cost, but he can usually compete $$wise w/ the "real" stores.

Not saying the small guy will always be the best choice, but do we give them a fair chance when it comes to TVs?

Thanks for listening to my crap-

-Mike

Good post Mike.

However, I am in the camp that wants the best price possible (whether that is internet or B&M) and I am willing to deal with any issues that arise when that is not the B&M place and involves the Big Box store or an internet purchase.

I WILL NOT go to a B&M establishment and use their time and resources to demo a piece of gear when I have no intent to possibly buy from them.  Anybody who does go to their local B&M establishment (whether for audio or video) just to reduce some of their fear and/or anxiety over their internet purchase should be ashamed and not allowed to continue to do so.

To be honest, many of the local B&M places are no longer experts at their craft and they don't necessarily know more about their domain than many of us do.  With the advent of the internet, the amount of knowledge sharing and transfer has grown at such a staggering rate, that we simply have options today that we didn't have 5-10 years ago.  For me personally, I would rather take that price savings and set things up myself (with the assistance from knowledgeable friends - either local or over the internet) or hire a true expert for things I am simply not capable to doing (such a professional level video calibration).

If the local B&M shop has the right mixture of competitive prices, domain expertise, and quality service, I will be happy to become one of their customers and will urge friends to do the same.  The really good local B&M shops have already figured this out and the ones that haven't are gone or will be shortly.

George