I don't think that Shsu's approach is all that different than what many of the posters in this forum actually do. Just re-read some of the answers to different forum topics here ... who won't buy anything made in China, who will only buy brands that can be resold in 30 days for what he paid, who will not buy anything that is from a mid-fi brand (as defined by price, not performance). There is a good deal of audio snobbery here.
With the shrinking number of audio dealers in many places, the ease of purchasing over the internet, the amount of information easily available about a lot of components, and the reality that most audio equipment is rarely pure crap (or at least to 99.99% of the population) ... is purchasing a well respected, luxury brand name all that crazy an approach?
What might be crazy is buying something sight unseen and sound unheard. But if you buy an accepted brand, you can always resell it. Hell, that's mostly what goes on here.
I am in this hobby for close to 40 years now and I know that there is no substitution for listening and being open to switching around components (it is a hobby after all), but enough people over the years have looked down their noses at the pedigree of my systems. One of the nicest sounding bedroom systems that I ever owned was comprised (all new prices) of a $130 Technics receiver, $120 Pioneer CD player, and $150 Bose 101 speakers (the original butt ugly wedge shaped enclosures made for outdoor use) with Radio Shack cables. The system had a sense of air around the instruments and a soundstage that few would believe.
Regards, Rich
