Is anyone else getting annoyed with...

I agree, it's initally confusing, and bothersome.

They got you to look. From a pure marketing standpoint, it sounds like their strategy works.

From a marketing standpoint "they did get you to look" is good, but very annoying nonetheless. As I get older "somewhat"; have come to the conclusion that it is my money they want. Have to wonder how much they make versus my negative comments about said company?; expressed this to a friend in regards to the "250 Rule". Annoyed also, but better listening, Charlie

Unless you are a showcase dealer there is no other place to post ads on the site.
This is why there is now a choice to select "NEW" for the condition of the item being advertised rather than only the 1-10 rating.
Also, many mfr's have strict rules about what an item can be advertised for,
especially on the NET, and they are within their legal rights to do so. This also helps
the resale value of the used items and the products overall appeal; products that are blown out all over the place usually also have very poor resale value and poor appeal, or very short lived appeal since they are usually only being bought because they are cheap, not because they are necessarily what the person needs (high turn over on such items is very typical, hence the poor resale value for the same). What a dealer sells an item for vs what it is being advertised for is something else all together.

Now that you have mentioned this issue here people will no doubt search out this dealers ads.
You just increased the views his ads will get and increased his odds for a sale (this is as predictable as Old Faithful). Next time contact the party in question directly and they might take action, otherwise it just looks like a rant by someone that wants to be heard for any reason.

BTW, maybe he would agree with you and not post the ads in the same fashion
16 ads at $5 each that might be posted out of place is not a very good $80 good investment.

Lastly, if you are looking for used items and a dealer only sells them new why would he be interested in "building any good will" with parties that will not be his customer anyway?
Kind of a mute point. Think about it.
Good luck with your search.

Brian,
You made a number of good points. Here are a few observations:

-a single ad per line, listing models carried would seem to suffice for a retailer.

-perhaps others find the new "new" designation useful, but personally I hope it does not lead to more ads of the type I described. Consider what a useless mess the classified section would be if every retailer listed an ad for every model of every line they carried.

-As you mention, Audiogon has a few other, albeit perhaps more expensive, avenues for retailers to advertise new equipment. I had always thought, perhaps wrongly, that the classifieds were primarily a section for advertising used gear.

-You are absolutely right: this was a rant! (I am not looking to become anyone's marketing consultant.)

-I purchased 80% of my equipment and cables new, including a Bel Canto Dac I bought from you, and with which I should mention I received great service. Whether or not other potential customers might also get a little annoyed at paging through these types of ads, and whether retailers are concerned, I cannot answer.

Thanks for the info.,

C.