Audio Consultants

From audition, advice and service it does not get any better. Bruce suggestion fit my home and situation to make the best choice. As for service it doesn’t get better than Jim. So if you want to get good advice and delivery on 2 Channel or Home theater system you found the right place. They are Audio specialist

Fantastic !!! You just don“t find service and a wealth of knowledge like you do here.
First of all Barry listens to what your needs are and suggests some options in your price range. Then gives you time to sit and listen to sound equipment. One on one service from a man who had been in the business since the 70’s. Cant get service like this by buying online or at Best Buy. Purchased speakers and sub woofer here and we know that if we need any help setting up or trouble shooting they wont let us down. You wont find a better price and theres no charge for the knowledge! We met the owner on our second visit here. He too was a great guy and made us feel at home. Great buying experience here! Barry is the BEST!

I’ve bought equipment from these folks — and they know their stuff. They’ve saved me money. It works a lot different than most other stores. They want customers for the long run. They choose equipment that will last — from manufacturers that they trust. The best deal in the long run is having the right system for you.
It is a bit quirky — having to wait one’s «turn» — but then that is part of not being with mass merchandising. AC has been around for a while. I started visiting their Evanston store when it was pretty new — and later when I worked near them. For the past few years, Hinsdale has been my store. They’re excellent — give one a chance to demo equipment and if something goes wrong — they’re there for you.
They did a wonderful job of installing a home theater system — after having helped me put together my audio system. Both work great.
No pressure atmosphere — sales folks don’t work on commission — no funny warranties that one is pressured to buy — just a nice place to do business.

Audio Consultants is a unique, retail organization that has proven itself to 1,000s of customers over a 30+ year lifetime. We’re blessed to have them in the Chicago area. I must admit that my wife and I have been customers for decades.
Alas, I was startled to read the 2 negative reviews here. This company is a family affair and treats its customers like part of that, often opinionated, (vinyl records are real — CDs/​MP3s are garbage) family. Admittedly it is, typically, a wealthy family. They call it high-​end audio for a reason… Just as there is a limited market for the Jaguars, Ferraris, Bentleys and Lotuses which are sold west of Audio Consultants location on Ogden Avenue, they cater to a more discerning, and demanding, consumer.
Of course you can buy OUTSTANDING, entry level AV gear to build a system upon here, just not at the everyday low «AMAZON» price. That said you do get the attention and after the sale service you’re paying for. They also have a constantly changing but pretty deep inventory of «pre-​owned» but, guaranteed, gear at decent (sometimes ASTOUNDINGLY cheap) prices too.
Audio Consultants’ business philosophies remind me of those of an older style of business as well:
1) Build strong business relationships, to benefit your customers, with the best product companies out there
2) Service the gear you sell — FOREVER (They don’t service what they don’t sell, which makes PERFECT sense to me. Do you take your Jeep to a Honda dealer for warranty service?)
3) Don’t sell the hype, let the sound and vision sell themselves.
4) Get to appointments on time with whatever you may need to do the job
5) Educate and demystify things for your customers whenever possible.
6) Don’t try to be all things to all people
Audio Consultants is not Circuit City («Would you like to buy the extended warranty with that?» I wonder if those warranties are supported still?), or a Tweeter or Best Buy (Geek Squad… get real!) Thank god.
The staff of the Hinsdale Audio Consultants’ outpost are pros, and enthusiasts, to the core and considering how frustrating it can be to get tech support on any kind of electronic gear these days, an oasis of. reachable by phone, or in person, straight forward answers in a sea of off-​shore and near-​shore tele-​frustration.
The mere thought of buying high-​end audio/​video electronics on the internet without the ability to listen to it MY home makes me tremble with fear. Much less the substantial cost of shipping, insuring, and dialing in that sometimes delicate gear (tube amps don’t like being bounced around I’m told). Having a replacement lent to me (for free) when, as happens, a piece of equipment goes down brings a smile to my face. I can’t think of another store that offers anywhere near the level of customer service that Audio Consultants does.
So if your eye and ears need what they sell this is the kind of place to head for. If you need a room appliance that you’ll replace when it breaks (just out of warranty) maybe Crutchfield is good enough for you.
Bring your favorite records, DVDs and CDs and hear things on them you didn’t know were there on one of their reference systems, preferably not on busy Saturday afternoon.
I am NOT an Audio Consultants’ employee btw just a happy customer.

If you’re an audio-​phile, this is a great place to visit. The have specialists come in from time to time to discuss various topics from vinyl to HD TVs. They do carry top brands and I’m sure they may seem that they cater to those that appreciate those brands at the same level as they. I haven’t had any of the issues other reviewers have seem to have had in the past.
I recently stopped in to pick up the new B&W C5 ear buds and had a blast talking about them with the gentleman behind the counter. I tried them out with various types of songs. (No, I’m not reviewing the C5’s here, but they ROCK!!)
Anyhow, if you’ve done your homework or just adding to your addiction, er, I mean collection, this is a place where you can find the enabling. Oops, I meant assistance. Seriously, AC may not be the place to start your search, but if you want some serious high-​end audio help, this is the place to go.
Now I gotta go save my pennies for the new B&W 802 Diamond speakers. This might take a while.

I absolutely agree with the other reviewers that the minute we stepped in the store we were profiled. The owner of the store is such a judgmental old freak that I along with my friends was amazed with his horrible and rude behavior, even after us being extremely humble and respectful about his time. He is just full of himself and will keep on lecturing you like you know nothing and he is the god of knowledge. He loves to talk bull, profile people, brag about his knowledge/​experience and make judgments, while making you feel like you are talking to Dr. Phil. Among all the bull he loves to say things like following:
— «I don’t think the demo will do you any good, it’s a waste of time»
— «It’s a waste of time»
— «From my 30 years experience I don’t think …»
— «I don’t think what you are saying makes sense»
— «Wife acceptance… You need to give a lesson to your wife about laws of physics»
So from the whole experience dealing with these snobs I think what they want is that you just go to their store and hand them over thousands of dollars and tell them to give you a system, which they think is best for you, based on their so called 30 years experience, and remember there is no need to ask for a demo, because its a waste of their precious time and you have no clue about what you want or are talking about, because the owner of the store (god of knowledge) thinks he can also read your mind and can make sense out of your facial expressions, like he told me «You are contradicting your own statement because I know when you previously said Denon, You smiled, that means…».
Can’t even believe what a customer has to go through these days.

Ok so I look younger then I actually am… and I don’t drive a Bentley. These are no reasons to profile that I’m not going to send money on my home theater setup. The minute you enter this store you will be profiled and if you don’t fit they type they want you will be brushed aside. Also don’t expect service on something you bought from another store as they will not give it the time of day (even though you are going to pay for the repair). On the flip side they carry top notch gear. They have the high end B&W speakers and Aerie amps as well as some nice Mac Gear. Would be a great store if the service wasn’t so snobby.