Why do RBH make it so difficult to listen to their speakers...
Their website says there are three dealers in Los Angeles, but all three of them only do custom install jobs. I have spoken to them and they all said that RBH is really more about custom installation than retail speakers. None of them have a listening room, none of them have the ability to let me listen to any of the RBH speakers they carry!
This is really frustrating.
Interestingly the people at the store told me that the speakers are very directional (opposite of what I read in the reviews) and that the MC series, due to the RDAB produced very bright highs that will often need to be toned down (with a switch on the back) in bright listening environments. which is why they are more for custom HT installation, with dampening, and carpet etc...
The TK series are warmer and probably better suited for me (listening to them in me living room with hard wood floors) although they are still largely custom install speakers and therefor they don;t have listening room and I can't hear them...
I am sure that the MC-6C and the MC-6CT and even the TK series all sound amazing, but I am not going to drop that kind of money without listening to them first. This is incredibly frustrating and begs the question - why do RBH even bother making free standing speakers if they are only sold through custom install dealers????
the way the dealers described it, they act as a audio-subcontractors. "people just tell us their budget and we go and make it happen" the dealers gave the impression that the end client never even listens to the speakers before they are installed in their house.
Is Los Angeles an anomaly when it comes to listening to RBH?
Is this simply the national sales model of RBH (we don't care about retail end-user clients, we only sell to super high end custom install contractors)????
I expect i am not the only one with these frustrations against RBH. how have other people worked around this? or have they....
I would like to suggest that in future reviews of RBH products they should unashamedly be criticized and points should be taken off for being so incredibly annoying about giving people access to their speakers. Maybe that will make corporate realize that they should try to expanding their list of dealers....
(sometimes it just feels good to vent)
