This might just be the end of brick and mortar

Oblgny- I don't know if you remember what made the Stereo Exchange special in the early days- it was a bazaar of used high end- you could walk in and find the last flavor of the month at a decent price compared to retail or the usual discount. I bought tons of stuff from Dave in the old days- after the used market shifted to A-gon, the store lost that mojo. And, SE shifted to home theatre, as a lot of dealers did. I have fond memories of the place and used to enjoy some of the staff, who have moved on in different directions. I still speak to Dave occasionally- he is a good guy.

Home Theater and Computers, SmartPhones, ate up the income that used to buy audio.
For 90% of the buyers it was never the music, just what was kool at the time.

Schubert- true, and since my niece, a millennial, seems perfectly content to watch a film or listen to music on her computer with a small ancillary sound system, this stuff has functionally replaced hi-fi and even 'home theatre' gear, rather than just being a diversion to something else.

"11-16-14: Taters
Zd 542, I totally disagree with you. They have a guy that works there named Bess. He probably knows more about analog than any other dealer in the country. I would bet music direct sells more turntables than the top 5 audio dealers in the country. Besides Bess they do have some other knowledgable phone reps. If you want to deal with reps that have no knowledge call Audio Advisor."

With something like this, I've got no problem with being proven wrong. I haven't dealt with them in a few years, so maybe they fixed a few problems. Although, I don't know if I would agree that they know more than any other dealer in the country. I can name a few others that may be just as good. I also agree on Audio Advisor. They set the bar pretty low. Its hard to believe, but they used to be really good. It was a long time ago, but they used to have a great reputation.

I can promise you that Nick at Audio Connections knows as much about set up and sound than all the other old timers. How can say that Bess knows more than anyone else in the country? How do you know since you don't got to B&M stores? I have been to many great stores recently. These guys all know a ton about analog. Does Bess know how his turntables, arms and cartridges sound with preamps they don't sell? How about how well they mate with my Ayre integrated amp and Vandersteen Treo's with top AQ cables? I bet he has no clue unless he recently went to a B&M to listen to Ayre and Vandy's, which I doubt. I get that you love Music Direct and I use them for vinyl purchases. I have nothing against any good dealer and I consider them a very good dealer, but aren't putting anyone out of business. Those of us who shop B&M don't want to deal with mailing stuff back etc....