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View Full Version : Thank heavens for little independants



hughmc2
04-07-2011, 18:10
Hi all,
not sure if this is the right place to post this Marco but I have to mention some people.
There is a very well known "belt-driven" hi-fi dealer in Leicester city centre, but just around the corner there is also Leicester Hi-Fi.

I went in there a couple of weeks ago looking for help, having been patronised a few doors down. I thought I needed "better" speakers with more bass, cause my living room has wooden floors and we have blinds and we have no wallpaper.. and...and....

The guy in Leicester Hi-Fi asked me lots of questions about my existing kit, didn't treat me like and idiot and didn't look as if someone had trodden in something when I told him my budget. We spoke about possible options and in the end he suggested a B&W ASW608. I went away a searched the internet and read about it. I also saw that I could get it £25 cheaper but the guy had been so helpful I went back for it. I asked if he did bi-wire cable and he gave me 2m of terminated bi-wire for nothing !! top bloke.

Anyway I connected it all up and well, what can i say. I didn't even know I had bass missing from the vocals, acoustic guitars, piano. I never knew they even had any :doh: I spent 6 hours on saturday playing anything I could get my hands on. Grinning !

I am sure you all have similar sources in your own areas but I thought it was great. They are just 3 normal guys. They don't jet off to far off places setting up rich peoples kit like some shops. But they are genuine blokes who always have time for you.

I'm going in this weekend to ask him what cartridge will be better in my SL1210 than the AT440. ...and I'll buy whatever he bloomin well suggests.

chelsea
04-07-2011, 18:59
Let's hope the good guys don't all go under.
And good one for paying a bit more than you had to.

I'am sure dealers must be sick of giving dems then the people running off to buy off ebay.

DSJR
04-07-2011, 21:07
Interesting, your comments about the "other" dealer. A legacy from the orrible eighties methinks - and yes, I know them well..... ;)

The AT440 is known for being a bit "toppy" and the MLa version was judged much better I recall. The standard Techie tonearm will take most magnetic types and will possibly also be fine with a Denon DL110, which may smooth things a touch, if not smother fine details.

The only thing I'd NOT go with myself is one of the dearer non-wooden Grado's around a ton. Thing is, these cartridges have remained pretty price static for over ten years or so and look to be great buys.


Good luck with whatever you do. I must admit that for a ton or so, an old Shure M75 body with new Jico SAS stylus is beginning to look VERY attractive. M75 bodies are available for peanuts if the stylus is shagged or missing and the SAS stylus has many detail improvements, not just the diamond and cantilever.

Peter Stockwell
08-07-2011, 12:37
There is a very well known "belt-driven" hi-fi dealer in Leicester city centre, but just around the corner there is also Leicester Hi-Fi.

I went in there a couple of weeks ago looking for help, having been patronised a few doors down.

Funny that, I went there looking to up the ante on my naim rig, and before the demo he explained what I was going to hear. I thought, and so did my Wife, ohoh this deosn't sound promising.

Kit starts to play, I'd made a "demo" cd with some cuts that I thought would show me what I wanted to hear, and I don't hear anything that makes me want to part with £2k or £3k or £4k. I say, yes I can hear differences, but not, musically, worth the money.

Dealer starts saying it's the CD ripped from ALAC, and he puts on Snorah Jones, still don't think it's worth anything (bl00dy hate Snorah ******* Jones).

In the end it took £10K of upgrade to make a significant musical difference. That demo was the start of where I am today, with downgraded kit that sounds better than the upgrade naim kit.

Most put out the man was!

rednose66
14-07-2011, 20:08
Sadly Cardiff doesn't have an indie dealer. All we have is Audio T who are noteed for being up their own arses at times. Newport on the other hand has HiFi Western who are lovely blokes to deal with and who give excellent customer service. Sadly though the internet is killing the smaller shops and eventually it will only be the big chains that are left.

colinB
14-07-2011, 22:39
Even the chains are screwed. Look at Comet.
I wonder how Richer sounds are doing. They have an impressive business model backed by some pretty cool forward thinking Cambridge audio products.
They have been closing smaller shops though.