Would you pay to audition speakers

Would not even consider it .............. take my business elsewhere

If he is in such economic trouble (or so fed up with looky loos) that he is
charging $500 to audition speakers, then his door will soon have a sign that
reads, "Going Out of Business".

I think he just said that cause you have been wasting his time and it was his subtle way of giving you the arm.Many paths to salvation they say.YMMV,Bob

I came across this with a dealer who sold a particular brand of amp. This was long before the internet age where people might take advantage of a dealer and then buy online. I believe the policy applied to models other than the ones he had on demo in the store and had to be brought in specifically for you to audition. His rationale was that once the box for a unit was opened, it had to be sold at a discount even though it was new. So he charged a nonrefundable deposit that could be applied as a credit towards the purchase if you subsequently bought. The manufacturer was aware of this policy when a disgruntled consumer informed them of the store. They didn't approve; however, they said they couldn't do anything about it other than withdraw their products from the store, which they did not want to do.

I'm not too old to remember the day that customers came FIRST and salesmen were knowledgeable, courteous, respectful, and jumped at the chance to help...

Now-a-days salesmen are rude, bothered-to-help, and have no idea about what they are selling or even if they have it in stock...

And we are supposed to wonder why sales have fallen off the cliff -- well, it doesn't take a PhD to see. Vote with your dollar (ie -- go somewhere else).