Take home a demo, listen at home - Audio Note & Music First Audio

I have put together a selection of demo equipment, from Audio Note (UK) and Music First Audio, that I would like to offer to Steve Hoffman members, to borrow and listen at home. The Music First Audio passive transformer preamps, and MC step-ups are available to ship anywhere in the USA. The Audio Note equipment is only available for local pick-up or delivery, to members located in Central and Southern California. Here is a list of what I have:

Music First Audio Baby Reference preamp
Music First Audio Classic preamp
Music First Audio V2 MC step-up
Music First Audio Classic MC step-up
Audio Note AN/K-Spe speakers
Audio Note AN/E-Lexus-HE speakers
Audio Note Empress mono amplifiers
Audio Note Ginrei mono amplifiers
Audio Note Oto Phono SE integrated amp
Audio Note Oto Phono SE Signature integrated amp
Audio Note M2 RIAA phono stage
Audio Note M6 RIAA phono stage
Audio Note M6 Phono full function preamp
Audio Note CDT Three transport
Audio Note DAC 2.1x D/A converter
Audio Note TT-2 Deluxe turntable with Arm-3 and IQ-3
Audio Note, various interconnects, speaker cables, and power cords.

And more demo equipment is coming soon:
Audio Note CDT Four transport
Audio Note CDT One transport
Audio Note DAC 4.1x D/A converter
Audio Note AN-S2L MC step-up
Audio Note AN-S4L MC step-up
Audio Note Io-1 MC cartridge

Please contact me by private message here, or using Google search for my contact information, "Warren Jarrett, Fullerton, CA". For any demo loan there will be matters for discussion, such as deposit, a contract for duration of loan, and agreement to shipping terms.

 

I have a question for everyone. Do audio dealers generally encourage borrowing equipment to listen at home? Or is it generally difficult to find the opportunity to take a component home for a few days?

 

Wow. Wish I lived in SoCal; I'd certainly love to listen to the AN-K's at home.

 

Very nice selection.

 

My normal dealer is closed on Sunday and Monday. So they allow you to take something on Saturday and bring it back Tuesday. They will pull it out and go over it with you at the desk and they will swipe your CC for security. I know they do this for regulars, not sure if they would do it for a one time walk in. I'm friendly with the McIntosh dealer as well and he has offered to let me take something to demo if I ever wanted to.

Offering a demo via mail order is very cool and seems like a much better option than using the 30 day return policy many offer. Seems like a great way for the dealer to offer a fair demo and maybe not have to deal with so many returns. You know the cost of those returns has to get passed on somewhere.

 

Mr. Jarrett this is incredibly generous of you, I don't recall ever seeing an offer like this.
My fear in borrowing such treasure is in becoming attached to it which would then predicate a life of crime to pay you for it.
Sir you are a scholar and a gentleman.

 

What a fantastic idea! I think the thing that made me hesitant to upgrade in past years is the question of how good a piece of gear sounds integrated into MY system and room, with all its problems and quirks.

Most high-end stores would probably impale themselves on a fence rather than offer something like this.

Well done and best of luck!



Dan

 

Yes.

Thank you Warren, for thinking of the SHF in particular.

 

It seems that Martin Colloms thinks highly of Audio Note digital:
http://www.hificritic.com/digital-audio.html

However, it doesn't look like level 6 digital is available for home sampling.

Btw, what the heck is Force Power?

 

Auditioning in your own listening space for a few days is the only way to audition IMHO A component will always sound different in the showroom unless you bring all your other components, speakers, etc. Even then you will have to consider differences in room acoustics of showroom vs. your space.

Develop a relationship with a dealer and they will let you take stuff home to audition for a few days if they are smart. I have a great relationship with my local shop and they don't even ask for a deposit anymore.

They let me borrow some high end speaker cables a couple weeks ago that were out of my price range. I told them no way I could afford them but they let me take them home anyway to try them out. It was fun auditioning them but realized they made too small of an improvement to my modest system to justify the cost and I would be better off upgrading my equipment first. I kind of knew that anyway but confirmed it by hearing with my own ears. They also have let me try out different speakers and amps until I found the right combination for my room. It's the only way to really know as I have a quirky room setup. I listened to an amp in their showroom and loved it. Brought it home listened for a few days and decided I hated it. Took it back tried another until I got it right.

However Im dealing with equipment miles below what Mr. Jarrett's is offering. Great opportunity for you folks in California. I would almost consider driving from Chicago to take him up on that offer! I've heard nothing but great things about the Audio Note equipment.

 

Force is Audio Note's name for the separate power supply that comes with the CDT-6. Apparently it is more complicated than the power supplies for other units, as it uses three separate ambilical cords between it and the transport.

 

Three cords from the power supply to the transport? Do you know what each is for?

 

Other AN dealers will probably ship stuff for a home demo - I believe Bob Neil of Amherst Audio in New England will as well - (but my memory is fuzzy). They probably have dealer regions and can't step on other dealer's toes. There are a fair number of AN dealers in the US and Canada now.

Metralla - here is the Fifth Force DAC Manual I found - it shows the connections http://www.audionote.co.uk/downloads/manuals/Fifth Element Fifth Force Manual smaller.pdf

This is the manual for the CDT 6 transport http://audionote.co.uk/downloads/manuals/CDT Six smaller.pdf

EDIT: It seems from my reading they're not divulging much about the power supplies so not giving up the secret sauce in the recipe.

Man this is making me want the M6 even more. Must hold temptation.

 

[ThaTE="Warren Jarrett, post: 11842244, member: 47011"]Force is Audio Note's name for the separate power supply that comes with the CDT-6. Apparently it is more complicated than the power supplies for other units, as it uses three separate ambilical cords between it and the transport.[/QUOTE]
Thanks. So it's not the gala power supply from the few years ago? Perhaps the third ambilical carries the ambiance information.

 

Would never purchase a piece of gear without hearing it at home for a week or two, my local dealer is very helpful that way. No deposit, no contract and sometimes even delivers it.

 

I am thinking that there are audio enthusiasts who know about Audio Note, are curious about Audio Note, but wouldn't buy Audio Note unless they heard an undeniable benefit with the inclusion of Audio Note at home. In fact, I don't think anyone should buy a new cartridge, speaker, or anything else in-between, unless they hear it in their own audio system and find that it brings sonic improvements they had never imagined possible.

So, I need more advice please (1) how can I promote my offer to existing audiophiles that frequent various websites and do internet surfing about high-end audio, but also (2) how can I find music enthusiasts who don't yet realize that upgrading their audio equipment will bring home sonic qualities that "they had never imagined possible"?

I am thinking of record playing events, on a small scale, similar to the "Classic Album Sundays" in the UK. But here, in California, maybe at record stores, in library multi-purpose rooms, and/or combined with events (such as winery promotions). Anyone have any suggestions how to succeed at this and introduce new people to the hobby?

 

In all honesty I was never an Audio Note fan.

 

Great, but I don't think that's the intention of this thread.

 

A demo at a record store would be an interesting idea as it seems to me, that vast majority of folks that buy records haven't got a clue how good they can actually sound. Unfortunately, I can't think of any here in Orange County that are set up in such a way to have the space for even non-critical listening. As for the take home demo offer, I'd love to take you up on this but the last thing I need to do is take home audio gear I know I'm going to want. Perhaps sometime in the coming year I'll stop buying pinball machines with the money I've been saving for better speakers, and then we'll talk.

 

Actually, I am interested to read, in more detail, about what you've heard (2nd hand or with your own ears) that makes you unimpressed with AN.

I think many of us here would agree that we have heard Audio Note show displays sound warm, boomy, bland, and overly "British". Unlike, say Harbeth displays, which always sound great. Many Audio Note show demos hadn't impressed me either, until I was lucky enough to hear a pair of AN speakers myself, with my equipment and my music. They were so vastly better than any speaker THAT SIZE I have ever heard, that I listened more carefully. What I found was (IMHO) that anything/everything Audio Note makes is capable of reproduction far beyond what I had ever imagined was possible. If thrown in a room, randomly, it can sound WORSE than anything... but, wow, when carefully installed, and either used in entirety or used with complementary equipment, AN can sound more detailed AND romantic AND realistic (all at the same time) than any other audio equipment I have ever experienced.

Now, I display Audio Note equipment at shows, and I can make it sound the way that I want. It is NEVER warm, nor boomy, nor bland, nor "British" in my hands. Anyone that has attended my room (either at a show or in North Hollywood) will agree, that if they sit and listen for more than 15 minutes, my Audio Note displays are simply magical.

I would like to give people the opportunity to agree or to disagree; to become a fan or to confirm they are not, with the most effective opportunity, to investigate at home.

 

Very generous offer to SH forum members, Warren. Many thanks. Speakers are going to be my next upgrade sometime this year, and I've got my heart set on something in the Marten line after hearing couple different models in two different setups. But it would definitely be nice to evaluate AN in my own room as well. I'll definitely message you when the time is right.

 

Good shout to the OP. It's the only way I buy gear these days. A visit to a shop means I will at some point ask them to home demo it. No other way I'd consider buying and those stores that don't offer this or won't consider it won't get the business.

 

Warren - with respect to #1, you could contact Bob Levi, President of the Los Angeles and Orange County Audio Society (http://www.laocas.com/). I'm guessing he would be willing to forward your offer to the society's members.

 

In sales, it's called the "puppy" theory. Pet shop lets you take a puppy home on trial, you fall in love, and puppy winds up living with you. But, yes, it is quite the generous offer and wish I either lived in California or had a dealer here that did the same thing

 

Warren, what's in North Hollywood?