I was looking for a new cartridge and found a great cart at a good price on Audiokara from a guy about 45 years my senior who lived nearby. So we set up a time to meet and we met in the parking lot of a grocery store near his place. He pulled up and I gave him the money and he gave me the cart and all was well. Then he took a look at my car and noticed the NPR sticker on my window and asks, "oh do you like NPR? I love that radio station. You seem like a nice guy, do you want to go back to my place and check out my system?" I had the rest of the day off, and admittedly I was nervous, but I figured, why not. So I followed him back to his place and he lets me in and leads me to his basement. I was getting really nervous at this point, but he opened the door to the basement and I see the most beautiful system I've ever seen and a wall full of great records. We sat down and listened for a while and I was truly impressed. We swapped numbers and have been good friends ever since
That’s a great story. I’ve had CLS’s from their first version, modified to IIa, maybe z’s and still love them. They’re in my multichannel system with a 16 inch Hsu subwoofer and with Audyssey XT Pro, so are “corrected.” Their transparency has not been matched. I did love my old Magneplanar triple panel room divider-like huge speakers that preceded them.
This reminded me of a time I demoed a pair of speakers in someone home, although my experience was the complete opposite. I had read about LSA1 Monitor speakers and contacted the company to see if they had any dealers in the Seattle area (where I was living at the time). They did not, but put me in touch with their engineer who lived in the area and I could go demo a pair at his house. Their engineer turned out to be John Tucker, after I listened to the speakers, he graciously offered to demo his Exemplar Horns he had set up in the room. To this day those horns are still some of the best sounding loud speakers I've ever had the opportunity to listen to.
I have no clue why YT showed this video to me. But it was worth every second. Very interesting story. I could feel how arkward the situation was. Thank you sir. Now i have to check those speakers on Google.
Your story is hilarious and made me laugh out loud when you said you found yourself alone with the elderly woman and cats. It was like listening to a scene from a good comedy movie. Your ability to tell a life event and help the listener see what you saw is excellent. I tend to do the same thing when I am replaying strange events in my life - I want the listener to experience what I experienced, so I try to provide as much context and detail as possible. I can appreciate your delivery and a funny story. Thank you.
In the 70's I worked for an industrial laundry, delivering shop rags, doormats, dust mops, etc. When I stopped at chain hi-fi shops, I'd often get a quick demonstration of loud rock and roll on big, cheap speakers powered by big Japanese receivers, which, as long as there was lots of loud bass, impressed me because it was louder (therefore obviously better...) the junk I had at home. One independent store sold mostly the high-end stuff like KEF speakers, McIntosh electronics, etc, and one day when things were slow, one of the friendlier salesmen did a proper demonstration of the details and spacial information effects in a Joan Baez recording that really good speaker and electronics could reveal. It both ruined me and gave me a new hobby (and obsession?) that's stayed with me the last 50 years, although that hi-fi shop has long since become an Afghan market.
I love the story. So much of your story parallels how I started down the abyss of being an audiophile, and later a videophile, of which I'm neither now. I just can't spend that kind of dough anymore, but I've had some great equipment and a great experience in the process. I've also gotten rid of equipment that my GF or wife didn't like - B&W 808's are insanely big and placing them into the room a bit away from the walls, takes up a lot of space. Then there's the Mark Levinson ML-3, an amplifier bigger than most microwaves. Great videos!
Loved your story! And yeah, it was weird. Funny, I've had many strange experiences in my life and I too like to look back on them fondly. (Like dining with blue-faced monkeys while stranded in Mombasa.) Anyway, I had a similar audio experience with Magnepan speakers when I was in high school in the late 70s. I had a friend whose older brother was really into high end audio and we accompanied him to a shop in Phoenix one day. A sales rep in a listening room way in the back was playing a "Fresh Air" vinyl album on a turntable machined out of a solid slab of marble, through a set of power amps that could have doubled as arc welders and into these massive Magnepan speakers. The sound was nothing like I had ever heard and nothing like I've ever heard since. It was an out of body experience. I understand Magnepan speakers are pretty much useless if not in an optimal sound room with optimal placement. So, I doubt I'll ever buy them. But man, what a memory. And thanks for sharing yours.
Hilarious story. I listened to it on my phone during my drive home. I was laughing out loud. For a moment I was thinking, "Surely I missed something and Andrew is reading a David Lynch movie script?!"
This reminds me of my weird coincidence story: Around 1989 I sold my pair of B&W 801-FS's via the Los Angeles Recycler Classifieds. (I had just purchased Martin-Logan Sequels!) About 8 years later, I find a pair of used B&W 801-Series2's in the Recycler, and I go to LA to check them out. The seller was an Asian man that looked oddly familiar. It turns out he was the guy who had purchased my older 801's 8 years earlier!.... and now I was buying the newer Series2's from him. I still own the 801-S2's, still in near mint condition! I've owned many, many other speakers since then, trying to replace them..... but they might be my all-time favorites.
The BEST stereo store In Lincoln Nebraska, (in the 70s) was in a house, up a long gravel driveway. Huge custom speakers and amps THE BEST OF EVERYTHING. BOUGHT MY FIRST Klipsch speakers (Heresy’s) there. Missed that kind of store every since.
I met Brooks Berdan in the late '80s at GNP Audio, before he struck out on his own. Great sense of humor; very knowledgeable. He asked me about my equipment. The obvious weak link of my system was a David Hafler kit preamp. He went in the back room and emerged with a conrad johnson PV-5 box. "Here, take this home and try it. I just finished modding it" It had new tubes and lots of new signal-path components. I took it home and listened for a few days. The next time that I was in Pasadena I asked him what he wanted for it. I wrote a check for $800. He promised to buy it back for $800 if I decided I didn't want it. Kept it for years.
I remember I guy I dated briefly in 1989 had magneplanars, these were only short 5ft version. I could not believe what I was hearing when he put on Lou Reed....it was in short incredible. Like being enveloped in the music.
Andrew, you’re my kind of guy. First, because you’re an audiophile. Second, you tell a great story. And third (and most importantly to me personally)... you drove a Ford Probe. My first car was a 1993 Ford Probe GT, and I still have it to this day. Looks and runs like new. Cheers!
I first heard the cls in a New Jersey high end audio store, had to make an appointment, when I first saw the speakers with a friend, I thought they were broken, because it was a large wooden frame, & could see through them, I remember listening to jazz on a Cambridge audio cd2. Never forgot that day
I’ve very fond memories of the original CLS’s as well.........., and still recall them as having one of the best sounds I’ve encountered like ever. Good story.
Andrew, I am a new subscriber and am enjoying your videos!, this story was 'spooky' for sure, glad you made it out alive (O: How weird right? I wanted to comment on your most recent video and also sort of goes with THIS video. You were mentioning the decline of Brick and Mortar stores. I agree, however, thanks to my local upscale brick and mortar store, I sold and passed on my beloved Klipschorns of 11 years of enjoyment , and went into a completely different direction. This dealer has a showroom, and they also carry the Martin Logan line. I have visited this store and have purchased a number of quality items to continue MY SUPPORT to help keep them going and when my interest in ML began a couple months ago, I set up an 'appointment' if you will, a few weeks back from this writing. They had the Classic ESL 9.2's ready to go at my request when I arrived, handed me an iPad with Tidal and left me alone without interruption! I spent a good 45 minutes listening to my familiar music and was SOLD. This is was my FIRST experience with Martin Logan! Just watching all their professional videos was cause to go and HEAR them first hand! My dealer did not have the GLOSS BLACK in stock, but they placed my order with my modest down payment. They were delivered a few days later to their warehouse, and I had to make TWO trips to fit them into my new Ford Escape, as the boxes are HUGE ! The speakers have consecutive serial numbers! Once home and connected to my Marantz AVR, I realized I needed a much larger amp, and since they carry Parasound products, they suggested the A-21 and the matching P6 preamp. I trusted the owner in suggesting they would all be a nice match together and so, I bought those as well. After only two weeks of listening, I can honestly say, this is certainly the finest audio 'kit' I have ever owned, and I am 67 years of age and been doing this for most of my life. The depth and width of a great orchestral recording's sound stage is beyond any box or horn speaker I have ever owned! The listening space is fairly large, so they are 15' center to center apart, and my seating area is 17' back... My dealer is 'Safe and Sound' in Chicopee MA. and they are THRIVING! They just purchased a 19,000 sq. ft. warehouse and are going to move the store from the current location of over 35 years to this new space. I was given a TOUR and it was like going into Home Depot!! The same floor to ceiling racks all in long rows the length of the building only ALL new audio gear. Then, I was shown the markers laid out on the floor for the THREE 14x24x9' listening rooms about to undergo construction! The owner said "This space will be built for guys like YOU, who want to sit and have a serious listen." They will also have a 'casual' showroom as well. I am VERY lucky to have such an audio business right here in my own backyard, one of the last, rare and few brick and mortar stores for sure! Sorry for my long story, but I just had to share with you and your readers, as I felt it was very timely. I will continue to look forward to and enjoy your video presentations! Kind regards.... Gary
Gary, thank you for watching and THANK YOU EVEN MORE for sharing your personal story. I will look up the dealer in the morning but sincerely appreciate you turning me on to a hi-fi shop doing it “right”.
@@andrewrobinsonreviews Thanks so much Andrew for reading my longish letter and responding. I am always happy to mention Safe and Sound when appropriate to do so in the comment sections and the guys at the store surely appreciate that (O: Meanwhile, I will keep watching your presentations, always GOOD content and goes well while enjoying dinner after a day at work ((O;
Great funny story Andrew. Brookes was a great dealer and gentleman. Really miss him and his TT knowledge and wisdom. I sent many a customer to see him when I was working in the industry.
What a hilarious story 😄 I can completely understand the situation you found yourself from, walking into a strange home and having the homeowner’s grandmother show up. But when you said the cats showed up I lost it 😂 I also have met sellers of used stuff that expect far too much for damaged goods. It’s unfortunate that some people have unreal expectations for the resale value of what they have.
Well told! I’ve been in some awkward situations where I emotionally fluctuate between what I am there for and fear. I half expected a police raid to come up! Glad it all went well.
I've had a pair of cheap, old Australian Linear Design brand speakers for 20+ years. They're about 1m high. Each one has a tweeter, a mid-range and 2 x 12" woofers. They're not ported and one woofer is active and the other passive, and not actually connected electrically. A weird setup but they pump, with way too much, (And way too boomy) bass. They're pretty ridiculous actually but I love them, and have a weird sentimental attachment to them. My wife has always disliked them as they don't look cool, but so far I've resisted getting rid of them. I often think about spending some money on better speakers, while wanting to keep these but haven't really been able to justify doing that as these work as well(?) as when they were new.
ohmygod, I LOVE this story - having worked for many years in the audio world in the 90's and early 2000's, I can certainly appreciate a good "bad audio demo" story as I've sat through several on the opposite side of the coin (from the dealer perspective). Glad you didn't die.
Nice story! I ones sold a pair of NAF speakers to an audio friend at the time. The buyer later contacted me and said he was not amused ‘cause one of the speakers didn’t sound quite right. As an honest seller I told him they did ok when I last heard them So ….. Later on he called me back an said the base port was filled with LEGO. It appears that the kids filled her up with building blocks.
As someone who likes old vintage hifi and old tube equipment, this is not even close to as weird as some of the places I’ve gone to find gear. Dealing with cats, messy places, and strange old people is par for the course.
I've also made money on speakers once. I had a pair of B&W 805N for 6-7 years and I sold them for around $100 more than when I bought them. Was pretty happy with that!
Truly harrowing. The grisly details of venturing into the unknown territory of private sellers can bring chills in the retelling. You actually went into someone's home, in a suburban neighborhood? Madman, you deserved every bit of menace that old woman and her cats deployed on your quaking soul. I'm going to have nightmares now. Maybe I can hide under a couch in the Magnolia listening room and sleep there tonight.
I have Q Acoustics 3020i and it's affordable luxury at its finest. They sound better than anything I have demoed in big box electronic stores and listened to them in the Dallas Makerspace hooked up to a lepai amp many times and started to want them. Made the informed decision to buy a pair of amazon. Wired it to my vintage Pioneer A-9 integrated amplifier and shocked me really hard with such impressive sound quality that I have never heard before in person. Sounded better than anything I ever heard in big box stores even the much more expensive B&W 703s. I love my Q Acoustics 3020i bookshelf speakers.
I have these as well. Upgraded from the factory as to panels & boxes from II's to IIz's. I am the original owner & still enjoy. At the time I was making a clarity or warmth decision as to these or B & W 802's. I wanted both. Still do or Klipsch. They are in a small area now with a PrimaLuna EVO 3000 tube integrated amp & still phenomenal. I do use some old Velodyne subs matching wood aesthetically also upgraded cones once. Not as great as subs today though. A great review as well as the best speakers.
That's an incredible story. The only way it gets better is if you walk out with a hidden jewel. I guess still having your wallet and your kidneys when that visit was over should definitely be counted as a win too.
Oh man, what an awesome story. I've had a few weird moments like that doing IT support calls and they're the reasons I don't do home support anymore. The money wasn't worth the weirdness.
That was a great story told. And yes buying used and going to a person house (necessary for hearing) is always a unique experience. I need to visit the stereo store you mentioned, not too far from me. My story FROM HELL was looking for Kenwood FM Tuner to match integrated amp. This was at beginning stages of Virus. So, get the guy on the phone, he is quite freaked-out over this virus, I tell him I am immune (long story) but wants nothing of it. I get to house and he ran extension cord to sidewalk so I would not containment even a blade of his grass on his yard, this just about blew the sale because I said I wanted to hear the thing. Well, took the gamble, bought it (was cheap so no big lose) stereo light was burned out, replaced that and cleaned it up, sanded and painted cover and looks and functions nicely......................luckily.
Sounds like he'd be right at home in a host of vintage obsessions, from watches to cars ;) As far as neighbourhoods go, the classic IME has to be an acquaintance of mine from the 80s. I can only imagine what the barrio looked like at night but anyone crazy enough to buy a car in Mexico was clearly up for it. 10pm, pitch black and dogs barking like the Spanish were at the gate - Tarantino would have loved it. '57 Chev that had been painted with a brush and an owner with little English, but money talks and AFAIK he still has that car. If you want something bad enough, no amount of dirt roads and barking dogs will stop you ;)
Great story Andrew! My beginning audiophile story started in W. Germany as a soldier. I was a flight paramedic and the German national that drove our ambulance (his name was Johannes) took me to his house and showed me his Luxman, Infinity RSIII and Thorens turntable and we listened to jazz. i was in love and never looked back.
Have a similar story but they were Martin Logan sequel 2s. I bought them out of a guys house and they lasted about 10 years. Always loved those speakers and ended up trading them for some wood flooring once the panels went bad. Every time I hear a good electrostatic panel to this day it gives me goosebumps, just like the first time I heard them in that guys house.
I thought he was going to say that the speakers sounded SO REALISTIC that when demo tracks from the musicals "Cats" and "Miss Saigon" were playing he was transported on location! But when he was taken to a closet with four monster speakers and feeling very uncomfortable it all became "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe!"
What a fun story! Mine is not so freaky but this reminded me of an experience I had when I was looking for used speakers. I could get a good looking set of electro-stats nearby. The seller had set them up in the middle of a very large living room. It turned out it was not his house but of his parents. He had moved the speakers there and hooked them up to his parents humongous PassLabs amplifier. I had brought my finest audiophile record with me and ignored the parents talking to friends in another corner of the same huge room. The speakers were fantastic, the sound was all around me, it was unlike I had ever heard before. The price was right, the owner even agreed to bring them to my home but I caught myself in time and asked for a day to think it through. I realised the young man had the same problem that I had. An audiophile ear, but a living room and amplifier several sizes too small. So with regret I turned the offer down.
I love this. I have similar story that make absolutely no sense. When i freshly moved into my new apartment with 3 other guys for studying, i quickly befriended with one of them really close. Soon he sat on my window at night, smoked a small joint while i was on my couch, listening to music. We talked for hours and just hanged out. Next day later i said something about sitting on my window and he said "i never sat on youre window or in youre room". Im like.. dude... yesterday u smoked a joint while sitting on my window, talking with me. He made clear that he hasnt done this at all and cant remind it. haha. We still have this like some kind of a insider running gag between us like "hey, lets chill later today, u can sit on my window if u want". Sometimes life is strange. I really love storys like that. Thanks for sharing!
Loved the story. I owned CLSs as well, and paired them with 2 Janis sub bass systems, as John M referred to them. I was, and am, a horn guy, so I did not own the CLSs for very long. To each his / her own.
Oh, damn man! Haha! Now, that be some good story tellin’ right there! Dude, that was so funny! You just made me pee myself laughing aloud, while sitting in my listening chair. Haha! Did the cats wave goodbye back? Oh man, Andrew. Thanks so very much for the huge laugh. You had so many funny little phrases in that story, and it was obviously off the cuff. Bravo, my good sir! Have you ever tried standup? Seriously. If not, I think you could be good at it. Absolutely excellent vid, Andrew. Many thanks. 🎶👍🔊🙂
That was HILARIOUS!!! GREAT story! I kinda got scared when you said that the guy came back with completely different clothes on. I thought you were going to tell us that he came back with pajamas on. THAT would've been creepy!
Eerily similar story about Martin Logan first time experience! I was in my early 20s, budding audiophile, hadn't ever heard a speaker like this. I was at a dealer and a couple guys asked me to sit down and listen to them. When they started playing music the sound was so detached from the speakers and so enveloping around me that I looked around the room for other sound sources. I saw other speakers in the room and with a puzzled, yet shocked demeanor I asked them if the other speakers were on and creating some of the sound? They laughed at me and said no. I didn't believe them and felt as if I was being punk'd. I went over and listened to the other speakers, which were dead silent, then sat back down to listen again in amazement and with my mind blown. Never forget it.
I had an experience trying to sell my dad's JANKY surround system. We're talking the smallest, cheapest junk you can find. And we drive to a potential buyer in a nice house, go in, and he's an elderly wheelchair bound gentleman, and my dad immediately sits down and becomes pals with him. And he keeps yelling "It should be CLINICALLY CLEAN! CLINICALLY!" while I'm trying to hook up this system, having a hard time at it, in his living room which is ANYTHING but clean, and my dad starts repeating my name as in "what are you doing? why are you taking so long?". At that point I wanted to kick the damn speakers out of the window and bolt it out of there, it was awful. But sure enough, we somehow got some type of sound out, and the gentleman did buy them, but it was the single most terrible experience I've ever had dealing with a sound system.
Great story! Definitely worthy of a reenactment on UA-cam. Somebody see if Johnny Depp is available for the part of the man selling the speakers from his living room. Rhea Pearman for Grandma perhaps? Who will play the young Andrew Robinson? From the early part of the video, I can't stand stores or salespeople that won't divulge prices. I simply refuse to buy anything from any stor businesse that doesn't prominently display or somehow readily offer prices. And we still ask why brick and mortar are going away. You know what is a given on the internet? Prices. I don't know what people think they're doing when they withhold prices, but whatever it is, it doesn't work, unless they want people to go away without buying anything.
Andrew Robinson: I enjoyed this video more than any of your others. Obviously you've had some weird experiences in your life, but many of my weird experiences can beat this one by a mile. I somehow feel I can identify with you though I lack your extensive knowledge and experience when it comes to audio equipment. I just assembled my second audio system; the first - a true audiophile system - was destroyed in the flood waters of hurricane Katrina. That system consisted of components that were all top notch in quality; the speakers were TDL (Transducer Developments Limited) 0.5 Studio Monitors and the Denon receiver had a class A amplifier in it! My second system is composed of a Yamaha A-S701 integrated amplifier, a Denon DCD-800NE CD player, a Yamaha T-S500 tuner, a pair of TDL RTL-1 transmission line speakers, and a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 anniversary edition bookshelf speakers. I'm thinking of replacing the TDL RTL-1's with a pair of Klipsch RP 600M speakers. Please let me know what you think of them.
LOL, great story! I have ML CLS 1's. I live here in Austin. Let me know if you want to come over and refresh your memory sometime. I promise "Grandma" or the cats will not be here! :)
My weirdest hi-fi experience was when I won a pair of Stax headphones on fleaBay. I like the electrostatic sound too :-) The seller was in Texas and I’m in Tasmania. The seller was livid because I wasn’t American! How dare an Australian win the auction! It took months to resolve with him initially wanting hundreds of dollars to pay the freight, when I’d already paid him the freight as fleaBay and I explained to him many times over the next three months! Eventually he caved in, but I’ve never quite enjoyed listening to my music as much as I expected on those headphones after so much grief. The price was right, less than half what I would have paid, but price isn’t everything.
I was looking for a new cartridge and found a great cart at a good price on Audiokara from a guy about 45 years my senior who lived nearby. So we set up a time to meet and we met in the parking lot of a grocery store near his place. He pulled up and I gave him the money and he gave me the cart and all was well. Then he took a look at my car and noticed the NPR sticker on my window and asks, "oh do you like NPR? I love that radio station. You seem like a nice guy, do you want to go back to my place and check out my system?" I had the rest of the day off, and admittedly I was nervous, but I figured, why not. So I followed him back to his place and he lets me in and leads me to his basement. I was getting really nervous at this point, but he opened the door to the basement and I see the most beautiful system I've ever seen and a wall full of great records. We sat down and listened for a while and I was truly impressed. We swapped numbers and have been good friends ever since
Awesome 😎
This was going to have one of two endings and I'm glad it was the good ending
That’s a great story. I’ve had CLS’s from their first version, modified to IIa, maybe z’s and still love them. They’re in my multichannel system with a 16 inch Hsu subwoofer and with Audyssey XT Pro, so are “corrected.” Their transparency has not been matched. I did love my old Magneplanar triple panel room divider-like huge speakers that preceded them.
This reminded me of a time I demoed a pair of speakers in someone home, although my experience was the complete opposite. I had read about LSA1 Monitor speakers and contacted the company to see if they had any dealers in the Seattle area (where I was living at the time). They did not, but put me in touch with their engineer who lived in the area and I could go demo a pair at his house. Their engineer turned out to be John Tucker, after I listened to the speakers, he graciously offered to demo his Exemplar Horns he had set up in the room. To this day those horns are still some of the best sounding loud speakers I've ever had the opportunity to listen to.
Andrew, what an amazing story. Man, you had me laughing. Love your videos and thanks for always keeping it interesting.
I would have sold the girlfriend before the speakers...lol.
Needless to say, we didn't work out. Got the perfect woman now.
Gotta say Andrew, you're a gifted orator. Thanks for sharing a part of your journey with us
Thanks for watching!
Love stories like this. Thanks for sharing.
I have no clue why YT showed this video to me. But it was worth every second. Very interesting story. I could feel how arkward the situation was. Thank you sir. Now i have to check those speakers on Google.
You had my full attention from beginning to end Andrew. Awesome story! You really have a storyteller quality.
Your story is hilarious and made me laugh out loud when you said you found yourself alone with the elderly woman and cats. It was like listening to a scene from a good comedy movie. Your ability to tell a life event and help the listener see what you saw is excellent. I tend to do the same thing when I am replaying strange events in my life - I want the listener to experience what I experienced, so I try to provide as much context and detail as possible. I can appreciate your delivery and a funny story. Thank you.
In the 70's I worked for an industrial laundry, delivering shop rags, doormats, dust mops, etc. When I stopped at chain hi-fi shops, I'd often get a quick demonstration of loud rock and roll on big, cheap speakers powered by big Japanese receivers, which, as long as there was lots of loud bass, impressed me because it was louder (therefore obviously better...) the junk I had at home. One independent store sold mostly the high-end stuff like KEF speakers, McIntosh electronics, etc, and one day when things were slow, one of the friendlier salesmen did a proper demonstration of the details and spacial information effects in a Joan Baez recording that really good speaker and electronics could reveal. It both ruined me and gave me a new hobby (and obsession?) that's stayed with me the last 50 years, although that hi-fi shop has long since become an Afghan market.
I love the story. So much of your story parallels how I started down the abyss of being an audiophile, and later a videophile, of which I'm neither now. I just can't spend that kind of dough anymore, but I've had some great equipment and a great experience in the process. I've also gotten rid of equipment that my GF or wife didn't like - B&W 808's are insanely big and placing them into the room a bit away from the walls, takes up a lot of space. Then there's the Mark Levinson ML-3, an amplifier bigger than most microwaves. Great videos!
Probably your best video. Gold, loved it
Loved your story! And yeah, it was weird. Funny, I've had many strange experiences in my life and I too like to look back on them fondly. (Like dining with blue-faced monkeys while stranded in Mombasa.)
Anyway, I had a similar audio experience with Magnepan speakers when I was in high school in the late 70s. I had a friend whose older brother was really into high end audio and we accompanied him to a shop in Phoenix one day. A sales rep in a listening room way in the back was playing a "Fresh Air" vinyl album on a turntable machined out of a solid slab of marble, through a set of power amps that could have doubled as arc welders and into these massive Magnepan speakers. The sound was nothing like I had ever heard and nothing like I've ever heard since. It was an out of body experience.
I understand Magnepan speakers are pretty much useless if not in an optimal sound room with optimal placement. So, I doubt I'll ever buy them. But man, what a memory. And thanks for sharing yours.
I heard the 1st iteration of the CLS back in the 80s or 90s and they blew me away in the almost tactile realism they presented.
Hilarious story. I listened to it on my phone during my drive home. I was laughing out loud. For a moment I was thinking, "Surely I missed something and Andrew is reading a David Lynch movie script?!"
Thanks for listening ;). Not even the craziest AV story I have...
This reminds me of my weird coincidence story: Around 1989 I sold my pair of B&W 801-FS's via the Los Angeles Recycler Classifieds. (I had just purchased Martin-Logan Sequels!) About 8 years later, I find a pair of used B&W 801-Series2's in the Recycler, and I go to LA to check them out. The seller was an Asian man that looked oddly familiar. It turns out he was the guy who had purchased my older 801's 8 years earlier!.... and now I was buying the newer Series2's from him. I still own the 801-S2's, still in near mint condition! I've owned many, many other speakers since then, trying to replace them..... but they might be my all-time favorites.
Great story, appreciate you sharing!
You truly are a good speaker/storyteller! I'm going through your back catalogue! Good vids man!
The BEST stereo store In Lincoln Nebraska, (in the 70s) was in a house, up a long gravel driveway. Huge custom speakers and amps THE BEST OF EVERYTHING. BOUGHT MY FIRST Klipsch speakers (Heresy’s) there. Missed that kind of store every since.
I loved listening to this story. Just goes to show you never know what you may encounter when you enter someone's home.
I met Brooks Berdan in the late '80s at GNP Audio, before he struck out on his own. Great sense of humor; very knowledgeable. He asked me about my equipment. The obvious weak link of my system was a David Hafler kit preamp. He went in the back room and emerged with a conrad johnson PV-5 box. "Here, take this home and try it. I just finished modding it" It had new tubes and lots of new signal-path components. I took it home and listened for a few days. The next time that I was in Pasadena I asked him what he wanted for it. I wrote a check for $800. He promised to buy it back for $800 if I decided I didn't want it. Kept it for years.
I can listen to you, telling stories all day man.. just uniquely awesome!
You're quite a story teller. I enjoyed the listen 👌🏽
Appreciate you hanging out with me for a bit! Be well!
I remember I guy I dated briefly in 1989 had magneplanars, these were only short 5ft version. I could not believe what I was hearing when he put on Lou Reed....it was in short incredible. Like being enveloped in the music.
Andrew, you’re my kind of guy. First, because you’re an audiophile. Second, you tell a great story. And third (and most importantly to me personally)... you drove a Ford Probe. My first car was a 1993 Ford Probe GT, and I still have it to this day. Looks and runs like new. Cheers!
i would NEVER EVER sell my speaker for a gf !! if she loves me .. she will accept my audio hobby !!
Good luck.
I first heard the cls in a New Jersey high end audio store, had to make an appointment, when I first saw the speakers with a friend, I thought they were broken, because it was a large wooden frame, & could see through them, I remember listening to jazz on a Cambridge audio cd2. Never forgot that day
I just obtained a pair of Aerius's; very happy
Same. Had them about a month now and likely the best $400 bucks I've spent on audio.
I’ve very fond memories of the original CLS’s as well.........., and still recall them as having one of the best sounds I’ve encountered like ever. Good story.
Andrew, I am a new subscriber and am enjoying your videos!, this story was 'spooky' for sure, glad you made it out alive (O: How weird right?
I wanted to comment on your most recent video and also sort of goes with THIS video. You were mentioning the decline of Brick and Mortar stores. I agree, however, thanks to my local upscale brick and mortar store, I sold and passed on my beloved Klipschorns of 11 years of enjoyment , and went into a completely different direction.
This dealer has a showroom, and they also carry the Martin Logan line. I have visited this store and have purchased a number of quality items to continue MY SUPPORT to help keep them going and when my interest in ML began a couple months ago, I set up an 'appointment' if you will, a few weeks back from this writing.
They had the Classic ESL 9.2's ready to go at my request when I arrived, handed me an iPad with Tidal and left me alone without interruption! I spent a good 45 minutes listening to my familiar music and was SOLD. This is was my FIRST experience with Martin Logan! Just watching all their professional videos was cause to go and HEAR them first hand!
My dealer did not have the GLOSS BLACK in stock, but they placed my order with my modest down payment. They were delivered a few days later to their warehouse, and I had to make TWO trips to fit them into my new Ford Escape, as the boxes are HUGE ! The speakers have consecutive serial numbers!
Once home and connected to my Marantz AVR, I realized I needed a much larger amp, and since they carry Parasound products, they suggested the A-21 and the matching P6 preamp. I trusted the owner in suggesting they would all be a nice match together and so, I bought those as well.
After only two weeks of listening, I can honestly say, this is certainly the finest audio 'kit' I have ever owned, and I am 67 years of age and been doing this for most of my life. The depth and width of a great orchestral recording's sound stage is beyond any box or horn speaker I have ever owned! The listening space is fairly large, so they are 15' center to center apart, and my seating area is 17' back...
My dealer is 'Safe and Sound' in Chicopee MA. and they are THRIVING! They just purchased a 19,000 sq. ft. warehouse and are going to move the store from the current location of over 35 years to this new space. I was given a TOUR and it was like going into Home Depot!! The same floor to ceiling racks all in long rows the length of the building only ALL new audio gear. Then, I was shown the markers laid out on the floor for the THREE 14x24x9' listening rooms about to undergo construction! The owner said "This space will be built for guys like YOU, who want to sit and have a serious listen." They will also have a 'casual' showroom as well.
I am VERY lucky to have such an audio business right here in my own backyard, one of the last, rare and few brick and mortar stores for sure!
Sorry for my long story, but I just had to share with you and your readers, as I felt it was very timely.
I will continue to look forward to and enjoy your video presentations!
Kind regards....
Gary
Gary, thank you for watching and THANK YOU EVEN MORE for sharing your personal story. I will look up the dealer in the morning but sincerely appreciate you turning me on to a hi-fi shop doing it “right”.
@@andrewrobinsonreviews Thanks so much Andrew for reading my longish letter and responding. I am always happy to mention Safe and Sound when appropriate to do so in the comment sections and the guys at the store surely appreciate that (O: Meanwhile, I will keep watching your presentations, always GOOD content and goes well while enjoying dinner after a day at work ((O;
Great story, well told. I think most audiophiles have some weird stories of their own. It goes with the territory. Thanks
Great funny story Andrew. Brookes was a great dealer and gentleman. Really miss him and his TT knowledge and wisdom. I sent many a customer to see him when I was working in the industry.
I always have a funny suspicion that audiophiles are hoarders who lives with their moms.
What a hilarious story 😄
I can completely understand the situation you found yourself from, walking into a strange home and having the homeowner’s grandmother show up. But when you said the cats showed up I lost it 😂
I also have met sellers of used stuff that expect far too much for damaged goods.
It’s unfortunate that some people have unreal expectations for the resale value of what they have.
I went to school with Brooks and work for UPS in Monrovia. Use to go into his shop at lunch all the time. Great guy, great store, miss him lots.
Miss him dearly and think about him often.
🤣 this story made my week. Something eerily similar happened to me buying some drums. Why is there always cats involved in these type of stories?
Well told! I’ve been in some awkward situations where I emotionally fluctuate between what I am there for and fear. I half expected a police raid to come up! Glad it all went well.
After he cam back in different clothes, I was expecting you to say that he asked you "You like Huey Lewis and the News?"
I've had a pair of cheap, old Australian Linear Design brand speakers for 20+ years. They're about 1m high. Each one has a tweeter, a mid-range and 2 x 12" woofers. They're not ported and one woofer is active and the other passive, and not actually connected electrically. A weird setup but they pump, with way too much, (And way too boomy) bass. They're pretty ridiculous actually but I love them, and have a weird sentimental attachment to them. My wife has always disliked them as they don't look cool, but so far I've resisted getting rid of them. I often think about spending some money on better speakers, while wanting to keep these but haven't really been able to justify doing that as these work as well(?) as when they were new.
Great story. You should do a series of 'Tales From The Audio Files'.
My dad had a pair of CLSzII many years ago: I'm still missing that sound... now something better is playing but that sound was incredibile and unique!
You are a great story teller. That is why you are a great UA-camr!
I think the lesson to be learned here is any girlfriend who doesn’t like your speakers based on how they look isn’t worth keeping.
Daniel Daniels
You're god damned right!
That is grounds for divorce...!
If it was between my girlfriend and a pair of awesome speakers, I'd keep the speakers.
I have to admit that’s one of the best stories I’ve heard yet from you
ohmygod, I LOVE this story - having worked for many years in the audio world in the 90's and early 2000's, I can certainly appreciate a good "bad audio demo" story as I've sat through several on the opposite side of the coin (from the dealer perspective). Glad you didn't die.
Me too!
Nice story! I ones sold a pair of NAF speakers to an audio friend at the time. The buyer later contacted me and said he was not amused ‘cause one of the speakers didn’t sound quite right.
As an honest seller I told him they did ok when I last heard them So …..
Later on he called me back an said the base port was filled with LEGO.
It appears that the kids filled her up with building blocks.
16:23 LOL. I was picturing in my mind he returns in a full gimp suit, and asks "What do you think?" LOL
As someone who likes old vintage hifi and old tube equipment, this is not even close to as weird as some of the places I’ve gone to find gear. Dealing with cats, messy places, and strange old people is par for the course.
Brilliant! - you inadvertently gave a fitting name for that seller's 'company' - 'Audio Experience'.
I never expected to see a VinWiki video... on loudspeakers
Was thinking the same thing!!
Okay so it's not just me
"All the cats" LOL - great story! Thank you for your videos
Thank you for watching!!!
I've also made money on speakers once. I had a pair of B&W 805N for 6-7 years and I sold them for around $100 more than when I bought them. Was pretty happy with that!
Truly harrowing. The grisly details of venturing into the unknown territory of private sellers can bring chills in the retelling. You actually went into someone's home, in a suburban neighborhood? Madman, you deserved every bit of menace that old woman and her cats deployed on your quaking soul. I'm going to have nightmares now. Maybe I can hide under a couch in the Magnolia listening room and sleep there tonight.
I have Q Acoustics 3020i and it's affordable luxury at its finest. They sound better than anything I have demoed in big box electronic stores and listened to them in the Dallas Makerspace hooked up to a lepai amp many times and started to want them. Made the informed decision to buy a pair of amazon. Wired it to my vintage Pioneer A-9 integrated amplifier and shocked me really hard with such impressive sound quality that I have never heard before in person. Sounded better than anything I ever heard in big box stores even the much more expensive B&W 703s. I love my Q Acoustics 3020i bookshelf speakers.
I have these as well. Upgraded from the factory as to panels & boxes from II's to IIz's. I am the original owner & still enjoy. At the time I was making a clarity or warmth decision as to these or B & W 802's. I wanted both. Still do or Klipsch. They are in a small area now with a PrimaLuna EVO 3000 tube integrated amp & still phenomenal. I do use some old Velodyne subs matching wood aesthetically also upgraded cones once. Not as great as subs today though. A great review as well as the best speakers.
Love it! One of the best weird demo stories ever.
That's an incredible story. The only way it gets better is if you walk out with a hidden jewel. I guess still having your wallet and your kidneys when that visit was over should definitely be counted as a win too.
I had a pair of CLSs and love them, love them a lot!
Oh man, what an awesome story. I've had a few weird moments like that doing IT support calls and they're the reasons I don't do home support anymore. The money wasn't worth the weirdness.
That was a great story told. And yes buying used and going to a person house (necessary for hearing) is always a unique experience. I need to visit the stereo store you mentioned, not too far from me. My story FROM HELL was looking for Kenwood FM Tuner to match integrated amp. This was at beginning stages of Virus. So, get the guy on the phone, he is quite freaked-out over this virus, I tell him I am immune (long story) but wants nothing of it. I get to house and he ran extension cord to sidewalk so I would not containment even a blade of his grass on his yard, this just about blew the sale because I said I wanted to hear the thing. Well, took the gamble, bought it (was cheap so no big lose) stereo light was burned out, replaced that and cleaned it up, sanded and painted cover and looks and functions nicely......................luckily.
That was one of the best audio stories ever. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for watching.
Sounds like he'd be right at home in a host of vintage obsessions, from watches to cars ;)
As far as neighbourhoods go, the classic IME has to be an acquaintance of mine from the 80s. I can only imagine what the barrio looked like at night but anyone crazy enough to buy a car in Mexico was clearly up for it. 10pm, pitch black and dogs barking like the Spanish were at the gate - Tarantino would have loved it. '57 Chev that had been painted with a brush and an owner with little English, but money talks and AFAIK he still has that car. If you want something bad enough, no amount of dirt roads and barking dogs will stop you ;)
Amazing story....LOVED IT.......Cheers Andrew.
Great story Andrew! My beginning audiophile story started in W. Germany as a soldier. I was a flight paramedic and the German national that drove our ambulance (his name was Johannes) took me to his house and showed me his Luxman, Infinity RSIII and Thorens turntable and we listened to jazz. i was in love and never looked back.
OMG! I was laughing so hard when the old lady took her seat back.
It sounds like you were trapped in a deleted scene from Pulp Fiction.
It sure felt that way. Appreciate you watching!
Asian man: DAMMIT, MOM!!! You cost me another sale!!!
Have a similar story but they were Martin Logan sequel 2s. I bought them out of a guys house and they lasted about 10 years. Always loved those speakers and ended up trading them for some wood flooring once the panels went bad.
Every time I hear a good electrostatic panel to this day it gives me goosebumps, just like the first time I heard them in that guys house.
My full range electrostatic speakers are 40 years old and I'm still enjoying them.
I thought he was going to say that the speakers sounded SO REALISTIC that when demo tracks from the musicals "Cats" and "Miss Saigon" were playing he was transported on location! But when he was taken to a closet with four monster speakers and feeling very uncomfortable it all became "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe!"
Greatest story I've ever heard from a UA-camr . Awesome .
What a fun story! Mine is not so freaky but this reminded me of an experience I had when I was looking for used speakers. I could get a good looking set of electro-stats nearby. The seller had set them up in the middle of a very large living room. It turned out it was not his house but of his parents. He had moved the speakers there and hooked them up to his parents humongous PassLabs amplifier. I had brought my finest audiophile record with me and ignored the parents talking to friends in another corner of the same huge room. The speakers were fantastic, the sound was all around me, it was unlike I had ever heard before. The price was right, the owner even agreed to bring them to my home but I caught myself in time and asked for a day to think it through. I realised the young man had the same problem that I had. An audiophile ear, but a living room and amplifier several sizes too small. So with regret I turned the offer down.
At least he didn't come back with a bottle of Nivea and say, "It puts the lotion on it's skin. It does so when it's told."
That would've been real bad. Appreciate you watching!
Love this story!! You’re an excellent story teller!!
Thank you! Appreciate you watching it!
Just a great story, told with skillful grace
Vittorio Martini Donati Indeed, despite some of the comments, some of come here for exactly that.
honestly that wasn't that weird, but you t old the story in an interesting and engaging way.
I love this. I have similar story that make absolutely no sense. When i freshly moved into my new apartment with 3 other guys for studying, i quickly befriended with one of them really close. Soon he sat on my window at night, smoked a small joint while i was on my couch, listening to music. We talked for hours and just hanged out. Next day later i said something about sitting on my window and he said "i never sat on youre window or in youre room". Im like.. dude... yesterday u smoked a joint while sitting on my window, talking with me. He made clear that he hasnt done this at all and cant remind it. haha. We still have this like some kind of a insider running gag between us like "hey, lets chill later today, u can sit on my window if u want". Sometimes life is strange. I really love storys like that. Thanks for sharing!
Great storytelling. It reminds me a little bit of those vinwiki car stories
At least grandma didn't took your kidneys.
Loved the story. I owned CLSs as well, and paired them with 2 Janis sub bass systems, as John M referred to them. I was, and am, a horn guy, so I did not own the CLSs for very long. To each his / her own.
Great story! Loved every minute of it! Crazy where circumstance will take you huh? Thanks Andrew!
Just looked them up, they are 6k speakers. You got them for 600 bucks!?? The curiosity of how they sounded is killing me!
Never had anything close. Loved the story and more importantly, the way you told it.
Thank you for watching.
Oh, damn man! Haha! Now, that be some good story tellin’ right there! Dude, that was so funny! You just made me pee myself laughing aloud, while sitting in my listening chair. Haha! Did the cats wave goodbye back?
Oh man, Andrew. Thanks so very much for the huge laugh. You had so many funny little phrases in that story, and it was obviously off the cuff. Bravo, my good sir! Have you ever tried standup? Seriously. If not, I think you could be good at it.
Absolutely excellent vid, Andrew. Many thanks. 🎶👍🔊🙂
That was HILARIOUS!!!
GREAT story!
I kinda got scared when you said that the guy came back with completely different clothes on.
I thought you were going to tell us that he came back with pajamas on. THAT would've been creepy!
I was expecting him to go looking around the house for the asian guy, only to find him smiling in a hot bath holding two glasses of wine.
"It's like the door from The Shining. It is beat to shit!" 😂😂😂
Eerily similar story about Martin Logan first time experience! I was in my early 20s, budding audiophile, hadn't ever heard a speaker like this. I was at a dealer and a couple guys asked me to sit down and listen to them. When they started playing music the sound was so detached from the speakers and so enveloping around me that I looked around the room for other sound sources. I saw other speakers in the room and with a puzzled, yet shocked demeanor I asked them if the other speakers were on and creating some of the sound? They laughed at me and said no. I didn't believe them and felt as if I was being punk'd. I went over and listened to the other speakers, which were dead silent, then sat back down to listen again in amazement and with my mind blown. Never forget it.
When you get them dialed in, they are something truly magical. Thanks for watching!
I had an experience trying to sell my dad's JANKY surround system. We're talking the smallest, cheapest junk you can find. And we drive to a potential buyer in a nice house, go in, and he's an elderly wheelchair bound gentleman, and my dad immediately sits down and becomes pals with him. And he keeps yelling "It should be CLINICALLY CLEAN! CLINICALLY!" while I'm trying to hook up this system, having a hard time at it, in his living room which is ANYTHING but clean, and my dad starts repeating my name as in "what are you doing? why are you taking so long?". At that point I wanted to kick the damn speakers out of the window and bolt it out of there, it was awful. But sure enough, we somehow got some type of sound out, and the gentleman did buy them, but it was the single most terrible experience I've ever had dealing with a sound system.
Great story! Definitely worthy of a reenactment on UA-cam. Somebody see if Johnny Depp is available for the part of the man selling the speakers from his living room. Rhea Pearman for Grandma perhaps? Who will play the young Andrew Robinson?
From the early part of the video, I can't stand stores or salespeople that won't divulge prices. I simply refuse to buy anything from any stor businesse that doesn't prominently display or somehow readily offer prices. And we still ask why brick and mortar are going away. You know what is a given on the internet? Prices.
I don't know what people think they're doing when they withhold prices, but whatever it is, it doesn't work, unless they want people to go away without buying anything.
Wow! Just discovered your videos and all 3 I've watched have been excellent! This story made me subscribe. Signed - a new fan!
Thank you so much and be well!
Me too, looking forward to many reviews.
Frank
Andrew Robinson: I enjoyed this video more than any of your others. Obviously you've had some weird experiences in your life, but many of my weird experiences can beat this one by a mile. I somehow feel I can identify with you though I lack your extensive knowledge and experience when it comes to audio equipment.
I just assembled my second audio system; the first - a true audiophile system - was destroyed in the flood waters of hurricane Katrina.
That system consisted of components that were all top notch in quality; the speakers were TDL (Transducer Developments Limited) 0.5 Studio Monitors and the Denon receiver had a class A amplifier in it!
My second system is composed of a Yamaha A-S701 integrated amplifier, a Denon DCD-800NE CD player, a Yamaha T-S500 tuner, a pair of TDL RTL-1 transmission line speakers, and a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 anniversary edition bookshelf speakers.
I'm thinking of replacing the TDL RTL-1's with a pair of Klipsch RP 600M speakers.
Please let me know what you think of them.
Nice system.
Nothing wrong with upgrading if you’d like.
You should feature more stories like this! Kind of like the VinWiki style of video!!!
That was great! It’s one of those stories you’re sad when it ends cause it’s so good you just want more lol and I bet you have plenty more.
LOL, great story! I have ML CLS 1's. I live here in Austin. Let me know if you want to come over and refresh your memory sometime. I promise "Grandma" or the cats will not be here! :)
I live in Pasadena and have been here for 20 years. Curios what the Pizza place was?
Great delivery and had me laughing out loud 😁
What a great story, and to this day, the first time I heard CLS is the best music revelation I have ever had 👍
My weirdest hi-fi experience was when I won a pair of Stax headphones on fleaBay. I like the electrostatic sound too :-) The seller was in Texas and I’m in Tasmania. The seller was livid because I wasn’t American! How dare an Australian win the auction! It took months to resolve with him initially wanting hundreds of dollars to pay the freight, when I’d already paid him the freight as fleaBay and I explained to him many times over the next three months! Eventually he caved in, but I’ve never quite enjoyed listening to my music as much as I expected on those headphones after so much grief. The price was right, less than half what I would have paid, but price isn’t everything.
Awesome and very funny story. Most of us have had a creepy audio audition. Luckily, most have resulted in audio friendships.
You should be a writer if you are not one already. You have fantastic story telling skills.
Man I wish you kept those speakers
WOW what a journey! Sounds like some of the situations I was in to get my audio fix as well ( Magnepans were my pic). THANK YOU FOR SHARING!
What a great story, masterfully told!