Is this rude?

No, it is not rude.

GO for it!

High End audio dealers love showing off thier gear!!!!
Here is what you should do.

Get ahold of a car that just SCREAMS "IM FILTHY RICH"
Come haul'in ass into thier parking lot, slam the e-brake and spin the wheel, make sure when you slide up to the front door that your car door can open into the front entrance of the store while your car blocks the entrance for anyone else.

This will make sure that you have thier attention and they are not being bothered by other consumers.

Next, use the most outrageous accent you can muster, barge in the place like you own it, demand thier attention, and be ultra-condensending. Wave all the cash you have and tell them it is the tip of the iceberg and a personal gift for whichever salesperson sets you up with a nice system.

Make sure you bring a nine pound lap dog and have it piss on thier carpets as you flamboyantly tromp through and be sure to tip thier speakers and check out the undersides and set them back down slightly off of where the dealer had them set up.

Demand a glass of wine, and be sure not to let them get a word in edgewise.

Make them spend the next 4 hours setting up all the different gear and occassionally say things like "I like these, i might buy 4 sets, lets hear another piece of gear"

After exhausing 6 hours of thier time, get all fidgity, then tell them thier product line is pure crap, and that you have no time to waste on such low people as themselves, and leave

When you pull out, make sure you burn the wheels real good and kick up all kinds of little rocks and stuff and chip up thier front windows, and shoot a bunch of debris into thier store.

THen maybe they will know how a 21 yr old with 2k in his pocket feels when he just walked in to buy a pair of speakers.

Actually yeah, it is rude. Almost as rude as some dealers can be to younger patrons.

(the good dealers definatly outnumber the crappy ones, but it only takes 1 or 2 to really spoil somone on buying from dealers)

slappy, too cool man.

to answer your question(rude) no is not rude at all, remember this,the reason your buying used is beacuse you need to stretch your $$$$$$ , its not like audio show rooms are chock full of customers lined up to hear the same gear you want to demo.

you dont need to give a dealer an explaination of why you want to demo the gear,even if you dont intend on doing business with them the demo gear is there for all to hear & im quite sure the manufacturers would agree.

good audio isnt just for the elite,even though alot of dealers say that the internet is killing their business if it werent for guys like us buying used gear they wouldnt sell so much new stuff.

do whats right for your systems needs & not what makes a salesman happy.

mike.

I agree that it isn't ethical to misrepresent your interest and ask a dealer to go to a lot of effort for you if you're sure you won't be buying from them. On the other hand, it can be useful to a dealer for me to know what gear they carry and, in general, how they treat people. A lot of friends have asked for my help in buying gear for themselves and I always send them first to a place I trust with a few suggestions for things they might want to listen to.

So, I don't ask dealers to uncrate gear and set it up if I'm not really in the market for the gear but I do prowl around the shops, listen to what's playing and ask questions when it seems appropriate. I've sent so many people to one shop near here that the owner offered me a hefty discount if I ever do want to buy something from him.

I think its great that you have reservations about your dishonesty. It shows you have real character.

Tell the dealer straight up front your intentions and offer $20.00 (minimum) for his/her service provided. That is, if the speakers are set up and ready for demos. If he has to set up a demo, then it becomes different. The open box speakers will lose a lot of value. Thus, I would feel obligated to, at the very least, compensate for the loss.

In the end, it really is a matter of two questions. How much is it worth to you, to hear the speakers ,and would you be willing to trade your integrity do so?

I have a feeling you will find the right speakers, a dealer who respects you, and maybe even a friend.

PS. You can probably hear the SFs at Tweeter. In that case none of the above applies. They are made for tire kicking. Though be warned, if you continually kick tires at Tweeter you will eventually buy something!!

In Jewish law there is a specific injunction about going into a store and leading on the owner that you are going to buy from him/her. It is akin to theft (violation of 10 commandments) as you are stealing the owner's time and it is also like violating the law against purposely tripping a blind person. There are actually lengthy discussions of this in the Talmud written over 1700 years ago.

There is no injunction about going in to look if you make clear you are not intending to buy.