Magnolia Audio Video Design Center

These guys seem to pick and choose their customers if you don’t look like you’re going to spend any money they will not show you any attention seem a little racist to me I felt the discrimination as soon as I entered stay far away.

Don’t let these guys profess to be expert in anything. All they did was try to sell me the most expensive TV in the store. Then sold me to range extenders for my wifi — which were entirely incompatible to my Comcast dual-​band router. When I emailed my Magnolia guy — he basically brushed me and said to come back in. Lame service from an apparent premium service. At least I would’ve hoped for an outbound service to replace the useless $ 200 extender they sold me. Figure it out Magnolia.

Had a great experience with Magnolia AV in San Francisco. In particular John Johnsen, the sound designer who helped us choose our system, was extremely knowledgeable and easy to work with. He helped us cut through the high end audio B.S., helping us make great selections without trying to oversell us.
The Magnolia experience itself was good, overall. They have a nice selection, a lot of stock, and the prices are competitive. Really, my only gripe was the ‘technical difficulties’ Magnolia was currently experiencing with their switching system. It was a bit of a pain to listen to the systems we wanted to, mainly for John! This sounds like a temporary issue, and when its fixed I imagine this would have been a five star experienced. I rounded up. ;-)
Final advice — LISTEN to the speakers before you buy, side by side if you can. There’s few places you can really do this, and it makes a difference. I really feel confident in the system we chose.
p. s. This review *does not* apply to Best Buy’s main floor audio experience. The speakers on the main floor were all visibly damaged, and the setup wasn’t that great.

My first salesperson was clueless about the technology he was selling and ended up selling me the wrong product, which I had to return.
The second salesperson (I think his last name was Pryor) clearly felt he was too sexy for this customer, made no eye contact and was more interested in watching something on TV than answering my questions and ultimately making a sale.
I decided to take my business elsewhere.
ps
During my first visit I wanted to test the quality of the speakers I was buying, but Mr Pryor rudely told me and my salesperson to turn down the volume.

We went to Magnolia to purchase an in wall/​ceiling multi room audio and video system in our house. We are technical but didn’t want to have to spend a ton of time having to program equipment or understanding where to place speakers to have a rich sound. We just bought a Samsung TV that we also wanted hung and integrated.
We had a number of problems that occurred along the way including speakers that would not fix, cabling issues, and receiver configuration problems. It took Magnolia a total of five times to correct all of the problems but eventually they did.
I feel that they didn’t do a very good job of listening to what I wanted and most of the subsequent trips could have been avoided if they just listened or read the details of our emails. Each trip means that we had to plan on being home to accommodate the appointments. This is exactly what we didn’t want going into this experience.
Ultimately we figured alot of it out on our own but that took many hours of messing with things. If your not technical you might have trouble.
If you are going to purchase a system like this I might consider finding a local AV person. Ultimately we got everything working and it sounds great but it took many iterations. I changed this from 2 starts to 3 since they finally did get everything working and it sounds great now. The equipment is excellent and the prices were competitive. The installation was done nicely. The TV hangs level and square and all of our in wall cables are hidden.

Great experience with Magnolia recently.
Think you have to be looking at higher end than the best, most expensive stuff that Best Buy carries to evaluate Magnolia fairly — no looking for the cheapest deals or equipment that is sub-​par — they don’t have it to sell. But if you’re looking for high end high performance big name equipment AND installation, Magnolia works for me.
Last month went in and worked with Joe Vasquez who was great, low key, didn’t push anything on us. We have a very long and high living room with B+W CM9 stereo speakers flanking the fireplace (we took pictures to show him), which sets up our music listening position nicely in the middle of the room on our couch in a bay window. Then at the far end of the room we have our TV set-​up where we have also located the stereo receiver, Blu Ray player, Sony home theater system. Because of our room layout we didn’t want to combine everything into one home theater system for music and video, instead keeping two systems for this.
In short, we could have bought a home theater and stereo receiver but had a perfectly good Onkyo stereo receiver and didn’t want to buy another receiver, plus more higher end speakers than the cheap Sony’s we already had — we wanted something that matched our B+W CM9’s without buying another whole system to do so.
Joe immediately understood the situation (with help from the pictures) and recommended a B+W Panorama 2 soundbar. It has the video receiver built into it to control sound, will give the surround sound experience with just one piece of equipment, has tweeters etc. that match our CM9’s and gives us a cozy (we sit 8 feet away from the TV and speaker) home theater experience that can knock our socks off. The Panorama 2 is not cheap at $ 2,000 as of this writing in 2013 — I know other soundbars run around $ 3 – 500. But again cheap was not our priority — having a sound experience that is consistent going from stereo audio to video is what we were out for. And it didn’t add more pieces of equipment and instead we got rid of the 6.1 Sony speakers and receiver and replaced it with one elegant black curving bar of sound.
We then opted to have Magnolia install everything.
A little nervous after reading some reviews, we went ahead and let them charge our credit card for $ 1,500 for the labor and parts in advance. Were having them re-​direct speaker wire to where we had re-​located the stereo receiver, set up the new soundbar, and mount two TV’s on wall swivel brackets. Again didn’t mind the price if everything went well and done on time. We wanted it completed before Thanksgiving.
And well it went.
Five (5!) guys showed up on November 22^nd and one — Tim — arrived ahead of everyone else and I walked him through the install. He led the team and directed people here and there, under the house, another to each TV, etc. In about two hours it was all done, working perfectly. Each installer had their role and I was able to ask each one questions about what they were doing and they explained with good technical clarity.
Would work with Magnolia again and highly recommend them for products and installation.

What a satire for crap service.
Id suggest you stay far away from this «high roller» room unless you walk in there with your own con guy who can talk to the other con men on the floor.
Its almost like when you would walk onto a car dealership floor and those shady guys would crawl out of holes and approach you with unscrupulous strategies up their sleeves and bad doughnut jelly stain on their ties. Well now that we buy cars from brokers and never go to dealerships in order to avoid these types, they have all gone and gotten jobs at magnolia.
Think Vegas, off the strip, meets Carnies, meets low level IRS guys, meets undertakers and youve got Magnolia.

I can’t vouch for the entire store, but I will guarantee you an amazing experience if you ask for Anthony. In addition to his passion for electronics and incredible product knowledge, he is a person of incredible integrity who never once tried to push me into products beyond my budget. Moreover, he went way beyond the call of duty: I’m not an audiophile and frequently needed help with some of the AV equipment I bought: Anthony made himself available at all hours of the day and night, including a Saturday evening when he was out to dinner with his girlfriend. He did right by me.
Magnolia isn’t cheap, but their prices actually were considerably better than a popular SF AV store whose owner was always nickel and dimeing me. And they stand by their products if you aren’t happy with anything you buy.
Unless you are an AV wizard, you are much better off buying from a store like Magnolia that cares about its reputation. My understanding is that Anthony is their top salesman, and if you deal with him, you will quickly understand why.

I can’t remember the last time I wrote a review but I’m motivated this time to report on a company that I’m growing to love. In the Best Buy (here in SF) I have been dealing with Magnolia A/​V Design Center. I had a complicated issue with a TV that had a problem (no details necessary because it’s boring). Suffice to say that the employees of Magnolia are polite, professional, responsive and most importantly if they tell you they will do something for you — they actually follow through. I’m a huge fan of this company and their employees. A big shout out to Ron who has been the main person helping me. He is a pleasure to work with and indicative of all of the people I encounter at Magnolia and at Best Buy. While my TV issue was somewhate complicated (mounted on a wall cabinet and hooked up to Tivo, DVD, Bose, etc — they got everything working perfectly.) The best part about Ron, he stays in touch and doesn’t leave me wondering when they are coming. (We need more people like this dealing with the public.) Thanks Magnolia. You solved my problem with a minimum amount of effort on my part. Which is how it should be…

Was wandering around lost in Best Buy looking for a new tv… when our knight in shinning Magnolia name badge showed up to save us from the wrong purchase. =-}
Ron Jackson is his name and good tv is his game!
Seriously though… walk a little further past the television section to the Magnolia Design Center (which, I admit I used to walk right past because I thought they only did home theater SYSTEMS… but they deal in all of it) and find Ron Jackson (with the the shining name badge)…or really any one of the VERY friendly, VERY knowledgeable, VERY patient (with two very technologically challenged people) Magnolia associates.
Ron took the time to walk us around looking at this and looking at that, he answered ALL of our questions and made us feel confident with our purchase. He even helped us get it in our little car.
Thanks Ron, we love our new 55″ Samsung 7500 series… like Arnold…“we’ll be back”!

Ron Jackson has been extremely helpful. Ask for him when you go or call.

Major props to Brian Chan at Magnolia. I recently worked with him and the team to dial in my new home entertainment center as well as Sonos throughout the house. Brian was very professional and helpful. The installation teams were fantastic. Highly recommend you talk with Brian about your needs.

big props to Matt for securing maybe the last Sony HX85 55″ in the Bay Area for me.
I was searching for this set all over the Bay Area the week before Christmas and my call to Magnolia was the last one of my search. Other Best Buy stores had advised me several times that their inventories were depleted and on back-​order for this über-​popular TV.
I called store and Matt answered the phone… I was just another caller from out of the blue on a very busy Saturday Dec 22. He checked the storeroom, found one, consulted his GM and promptly made it available. I placed a deposit over the phone and scurried to the store to complete the purchase. Matt helped with the paperwork, carted the behemoth out to my vehicle and helped to load it in. Above and beyond the call of duty after many other Best Buy folks at several other unmentioned locations couldn’t be bothered to make a $ 2000 sale.
nice job Matt. I hope others see this and give you the business you deserve.

We had overall a very good experience with Magnolia San Francisco
They offer a true one stop shop for all audio and video needs
We upgraded our audio and video system for a very nice amount
They didn t try to oversell us even though I was asking them for each item if they would recommend an even slightly better one
We worked with Ron there, who was very responsive and was able to answer all our additional questions over email usually in a matter of hours
Note that they offer only high end items which means they are not allowed to suggest items they don t carry, which might be cheaper or lower end
The installation crew was very good and fast

Avoid.
They will try to oversell you.
Impossible to get a quote. A sensible quote. With actual line items for item, brand, model, price. We got the run around for many weeks re what each item was, how much each item cost, etc. Instead, we got a massive quote as one lump sum ($ 21K) and they could not delineate items by price, nor seem to easily or quickly reduce the total amount.
Sales guys pushed me to do the pricing homework, send them Amazon or other retailers’ prices for similar items so they could match (still could not match apples-​to-​apples since we never could get a brand/​model list). Thanks for the homework. Not.
Lots of hassle, work, time and cost. Go elsewhere.

The sales guys I worked with was great. I believe his name was Mike. However, their delivery team needs some work. I had a delivery scheduled for Saturday. Due to personal reasons, I was not going to be able to be home at that time. Knowing this in advance, I called them and asked to reschedule my delivery for the following Tuesday (I was told they only deliver on Saturdays and Tuesdays). Well… it’s now Tuesday and obviously, I did not get my TV. I called in at around 3PM to confirm the status of my delivery. No one picked up. I called again at 4PM. I was finally able to get someone on the phone and I was informed that my delivery was not on the schedule… and likely not on ANY schedule. Um ok…
For how much I spent on this television, I expect top service across the entire staff, not just from the sales people but the delivery people as well. To be told my reschedule was confirmed and then to later find it was not is very disheartening. The guy I spoke to one the phone, Brian, was willing to waive the $ 50 delivery fee since they obviously did not provide the service I paid for. In order to get my refund, I’ll need to go into their store.
Come Thursday, if my TV is not delivered at the promised time, I am cancelling my order and purchasing the same television from elsewhere.

These guys tried to sell me useless stuff at the highest possible price.
They showed me a method to hook up my new plasma to a 2 – 3 years old powered speaker system for $ 215. Elsewhere, I found a similar solution (they should have been able to offer) for $ 30 that works great. They also tried to sell me a Sony Blu-​Ray player «Open Box item» for $ 120 instead of $ 200. When I went home, I saw this player was a model from last year and the newest model, just released from Sony, was selling at $ 139 with many more features and better reviews. I also tried to buy seakers and was sold 2 Martin Logan speaker at $ 200 each, which didn’t sound good at all when I brought them home (actually worse than my 10-​years old TEAC stereo…). And these speakers would not have been compatible with my TV…
Oh, I forgot the new HDMI cable, which supposedly performs better than the one you could find 6 – 8 months ago.

Having enjoyed our new HDTV recently purchased from Magnolia, it is my pleasure to write a glowing review recommending this group particularly Brian and Thomas who were extremely helpful and knowledgeable about their products. The installation went perfectly exactly as requested from these guys and the installers too were courteous and efficient. The sale does not stop there for they are available to not only answer continuing questions, they actually know the ansers, given cheerfully and efficiently. I would not hesitate to make my next purchase with this group.

The people who staff the design center, know their stuff, didn’t bullshit me (well a little, but I’ll explain) and provided excellent service. I was replacing my total entertainment system and they, Jeremy specifically, provided patient information as I waffled back and forth. I was a nightmare customer, I wound up returning the 40″, it was too big, for a smaller TV, no problem. No restocking fee. Jeremy worked very hard to find me the TV I was after and make me a happy customer. I swapped cables, multiple times, no problem. Excellent service, personability, and product knowledge made the sale. It’s a good bunch of guys here. You can tell they like their work.
I did buy the expensive cables and returned some of them, to experiment with cheaper cables, Jeremy sold ‘em to me but it was my bad, as a consumer, I knew what I was doing. But the easy return policy allowed me to experiment with the expensive stuff at no deficit to myself. The expensive cable does fit the most snuggly in the inputs, but the cheaper ones are, so far, equal in delivery. You don’t need $ 100 cables, check Cnet reviews, but the pricey cables are very nice and sturdy, very sexy, but it is up to one’s own definition of need.
I bought an LED/​LCD HDTV, new surround sound receiver, 3 new speakers and got a fair deal for what I wanted. The new TV is pretty awesome and I truly feel I got my money’s worth. You can go fairly high end here, if you want, but it is not the highest end in this town, and it will suit most middle class person’s needs. I spent a chunk for me, but you could spend what I spent in total, on one television if you wanted. I’m frugal.
They have TVs available at the design center that aren’t available, on the floor, at the other Magnolia/​Best Buys. This is an island inside the Best Buy. The other «Magnolia Audio Video» inside Best Buys aren’t design centers, they are Best Buy integrated franchises and it shows. The quality of items and service are subpar at You can’t even return items from the Design Center to the pseudo Magnolias. So this is a genuine Magnolia HI-​Fi don’t accept the substitutes.