I am saddened to say that yesterday I went to stop in to Specialized Sound in Madison, WI and found the place empty and dark. These guys have been my low-tech, high-end gurus for over 20 years. (they still swiped my credit card on a carbon paper). I've only made it as far as the new 600 series through these guys so far but if I ever were fortunate enough to enter the 800 series I would have liked to have bought them from these guys. If anyone knows these guys, let them know Lance wishes them the best. If either one is still in the biz somewhere, I'd sure like to know about it. I sure hope that this economy and the new world of music listeners (those who choose accessibility over sound quality) aren't going to take away the market we so wholeheartedly depend on. If all I have to look forward to is cheap phones to listen to my music on....well I don't know. Specialized, you guys made a great thing even better and I consider you mentors and friends. I don't expect any other dealer will compare. If your hands were forced I am truly sorry, If you simply retired, please enjoy turning the page. You will be missed nonetheless.
Suffered a loss
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I too am mourning the loss of Specialized Sound. My last contact with them was in April when I bought my Rotel RSP-1069 and some Audioquest cabling. I have been friend and customer of theirs since the late '80's when I was in college in Madison. I bought my DM640's there in December of 1990. I tried to call them back in November I think it was, and poof, they were not there. CRAZY!! I loved their low-tech approach to high-end audio. Put the technology where it counted - knowledge of the gear they were selling and of the industry. I remember about 3 years ago when they finally got a computer in the store - it was hidden out of site in the back room, of course! From previous conversations with Jon in 2008, he had said that if things did not pick up in early 2009, they were not going to make it. All the best to Jon and Jay!!!-B&W: 803S, HTM4S, M-1
-Proceed: CDD, PDP, PRE, AMP-2, AMP-3
-Rotel: RSP-1069
-Sony: PS3, KDF-E42A10
Office system:
-Arcam DV-89, AVR100
-B&W LM-1, AS-1
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Not a hi-fi store, but a motorcycle dealer that also has been in business for 30+ years in which I've bought many bikes from, used to thrive and sell out all the new year models before the changing of the year (say all the 2003 models would sell out when they came out in the fall of 2002), seemed to up and disappear out of nowhere. I stopped in there one day early last summer to look at bikes and a new pair of boots, all looked fine. A couple months ago I was driving by and decided to stop in and get some supplies for my bike and the place was, yup you guessed it, dark and empty!
It's like I remember my parents taking me there as a kid, buying many bikes over the years, and poof, it's just gone! I hope I don't find the same fate with my local B&W dealer. I don't go there too often, but it's nice knowing that a high end audio dealer was only 15 minutes away if I up and get the "itch" out of nowhere.... If that dealer wasn't there, I definitely wouldn't have driven farther just to "try" the brand on a whim...- Bottom
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Hi Lance,I did a few demos of products at Specialized Sound back in college when I lived in Madison. It was a very nice store and the employees were very personable and informative. I live closer to Milwaukee now though so when I finally did invest in some nice hifi gear I went with Audio Emporium. Luckily they are still kickin'. They have a newsletter they put out periodically and Dave is always on top on the new technologies.
I highly recommend them if you are looking for another B&W dealer in the area. You can even download a PDF of their catalog on their website: http://www.audioemporium.com
Hopefully a new store will open in the Madison area soon. The more hifi shops in Wisconsin the better!
Cheers,
Bryan- Bottom
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Thanks for the referal Brian, I called them and got a good feeling I will be setting my gps to take me there. They seem a little one sided when recomending a HT processor/pre though. Anyone here have anything to say about a Marantz AV8300? I need to upgrade from my Rotel RSP985.B&W 683/685/HTM61/ASW610
Rotel RSP985/Rotel RMB1095/Rotel RCD1072- Bottom
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Dave at Audio Emporium actually let me take home and demo the Marantz AV8300. I did a few A/B comparisons with my RSP-1068 and concluded they were about even sonically. I don't think I would be able to tell a difference in a blind test.
The AV8300 would have given me the ability to bitstream the new HD audio codecs via HDMI and do HDMI video switching, but in the end it just wasn't worth the price tag. That and the fact that pre/pros lose their value so incredibly fast since the new latest and greatest is just around the corner (for example HDMI 1.4 compatibility for 3D HDTV which NONE of the current generation processors have now). The AV8003 is a solid piece of gear (with virtually no bugs unlike the Rotel RSP-1570) and its performance is exceptional. Just keep in mind you won't get much for it if you decide to sell it down the line (I think your RSP-985 is worth around $250-300 or so on the used market right now...)
Instead of buying the AV8003 and a decent Blu-Ray player I invested in a great Blu-Ray player (the Oppo BDP-83) to do the HD codec heavy lifting via 7.1 analog out to my RSP-1068 and bought an HDMI switcher from Monoprice.com to handle video switching. It cost me over $1000 less than the AV8003 route I am very happy with my decision.
I haven't had any experience with the RSP-985, but would think it's at least similar to the RSP-1068.
I hope my experience helps but would highly recommend you go check the Marantz out for yourself at Audio Emporium and take a look around at what else is out there.
Cheers!- Bottom
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Originally posted by bniemanThat and the fact that pre/pros lose their value so incredibly fast since the new latest and greatest is just around the corner (for example HDMI 1.4 compatibility for 3D HDTV which NONE of the current generation processors have now). The AV8003 is a solid piece of gear (with virtually no bugs unlike the Rotel RSP-1570) and its performance is exceptional. Just keep in mind you won't get much for it if you decide to sell it down the line (I think your RSP-985 is worth around $250-300 or so on the used market right now...)
Instead of buying the AV8003 and a decent Blu-Ray player I invested in a great Blu-Ray player (the Oppo BDP-83) to do the HD codec heavy lifting via 7.1 analog out to my RSP-1068 and bought an HDMI switcher from Monoprice.com to handle video switching. It cost me over $1000 less than the AV8003 route I am very happy with my decision.
However I would recommend the PS3 as a amazing blue ray player, it can do tons of other things. It was also announced by Sony that with a simple firmware update they will be releasing that it will be compatible with 3D HDTV which other players cant do. I guess because its also a multimedia/game machine under the hood it has some room/power to handle newer things.- Bottom
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Originally posted by Industrial
...However I would recommend the PS3 as a amazing blue ray player,...
I value sound quality much more than the latest and greatest connections and codecs. I would definitely opt to buy an out of date pre/pro with a excellent DAC than to buy a brand new pre/pro with all the new bells and whistles but only an average DAC.
Anything that is capable of LPCM (multichannel PCM) over HDMI is somewhat future proof for a while since most players will convert the newer codecs to LPCM for you.
HDMI 1.4 is only necessary for 3D and the new 3D players have 2 HDMI outputs, 1 for your TV and 1 for your pre/pro or AVR so I wouldn't worry about it being integrated into your pre/pro.- Bottom
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I think this happening all around the country. It`s the best buy, wal mart mentality. I live in the Louisville, ky area and the only place i can get Hi end gear are places that do custom ht installs. ID is probably the future for more and more co.- Bottom
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Originally posted by bniemanHDMI 1.4 is only necessary for 3D and the new 3D players have 2 HDMI outputs, 1 for your TV and 1 for your pre/pro or AVR so I wouldn't worry about it being integrated into your pre/pro.- Bottom
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