B&W in best buy

The Mag stores carry the higher end B&W. Some of the larger Best Buy stores do carry the entry level gear so it depends on what you have around you.

I was suprised when I went to the Mag AV store in Chicago. I was speaking with a girl who acutally knew the products and was willing to demo the 802D's as well as some Summit Xs they had on display. Was being powered by some Mac 501's. She stated they were trying to focus a lot on whole home systems and integration which is a big money maker for them. Their 2 channel selection was good but not anything like a larger dealer would have.

I know they are trying but its still under Best Buy. The Mag stores at least have some hope of helping people who want some decent gear but the main Best Buy stores are just plain awful. Its not about selling the product but to con you into buying all the other junk that they make money on.

The biggest problem is that they need to know what they are selling. Even if you have a great selection if someone doesn't really know the product in the end they really are not doing a service to the customer.

Rumor is that Walmart is going to sell the whole line of B&W but that is only rumor. They were always overpriced boom boxes anyway.

My local BB/Magnolia has the B&W 600 and CM series. They also have entry level Martin Logan, Energy, Def Tech, and Mirage. They used to drive them with Primmare integrateds, but dropped those along with Vienna. I think Sumiko stopped selling to them.

I know people think it's a bad thing, but I disagree. There's nothing wrong with people being exposed to this stuff IMO. They're definitely not nearly as busy as the rest of the store, but they've got a share of people looking around.

If they keep it entry level, I don't think it'll hurt the brick and mortar guys much, if at all. Most people in there wouldn't go to a brick and mortar audio shop anyway IMO. It may also motivate a few to go to one and see what they've got.

I don't think 800 series stuff or Mac and the like are a good move though. My local Magnolia is limited to Pioneer Elete, Yamaha and Denon AVRs and DVD players, so I guess the downside is the customer won't really hear what the speakers are capable of.

Getting better gear into the main stream retail stores is a good thing , maybe , but if the systems aren't setup right people will be turned off by the sound quality verses dollar aspect .

"I can remember when KEF was THE prestige speaker brand in the U.S."

KEF went for a period with no U.S. distibution, that is way the brand basically dried up. A few years ago, the Fry's chain began carrying KEF. The last I knew, KEF brand was owned by a company from Hong Kong and ALL models are made in China. The Fry's chain also picked up Martin Logan.

I dont really have a problem with big boxes picking up "quasi higher-end" "reduced to brand - name products". now that stand alone dealers are almost dead and the manufacture need to sell somewhere - better than buying gear from the back of a "white van" . :)