I have bought numerous interesting vintage audio "pieces" from this shop and have recieved thoughtful patient advice from JR and Mark; haven't seen Gordon for a while. Bought a vintage Nakamichi cassette deck which had an "issue"; turned out it was just "slow-thinking" which I came to understand. Mentioned to JR a Garrard Zero-100 would complete my collection and they had one in the back! JR also called to say they had a remote for my Nakamichi CD player! Very glad they're in my neigborhood. Interesting they don't believe in "cables", though. Saw a Phase Linear 400 the last ime I was there. Time-machine. Don West read more

Repair tech could not repair a CD changer. Message relayed by front desk to me was that it had a belt problem and "it is a known issue with such units". Took the same unit immediately to a longtime repair tech who closed his Vancouver store and it was fixed within days. I did not mention he was the second pair of eyes to take a crack at it. Surprised, I asked him to verify if the unit now works, and he gave me a puzzled look as if it was no big deal. And, it works perfectly now. Disappointed that Innovative's repair technician took half my deposit but did not take interest in fixing a simple repair. Having said that, their staff out front are always very friendly and great. The establishment used to feature on premises, a radio studio, which is no longer there unfortunately. Yet it is a museum-like experience with unique vintage Japanese equipment on display and sale. For all of these reasons, this establishment is worth a visit but do not endorse their 'repair dept'. read more

Called on a set of Tannoy speakers and told them 100% I would take them and could leave a deposit. We agreed I did not need to leave a deposit, as I was a repeat customer and they would hold them for me. I get a call in a couple of days and they say when are you coming in to listen to the speakers because there is someone here listening to them now who wants to take them. I said I told you I would take them. The sales guy says OK...will tell him they are sold. I get a call back from the sales guy saying they were sold and that the customer in the store had left a deposit. Obviously the sales guy talking to me forgot our conversation and when someone came in to listen to them they took the better deal that they probably negotiated on them. Total BS and dishonest practices. Considering I am also a repeat customer who previously bought speakers and repaired equipment with them and who would have potentially spent even more on vintage equipment. I guess they do not need my business because I will never deal with them again. They really suck. read more

I was having problems with my 2245 Marantz receiver. After a couple of visits, they finally found the problem. Knowledgeable friendly staff and a very interesting shop. Would recommend for all your vintage needs. read more

I just replaced the speakers in 2 older Braun bookshelf speaker boxes. I brought them in to get the output checked before using. The woman at the front was extremely polite and very helpful. She let me go in back and watch the technician check both speakers. I would highly recommend this company. read more

I was in the market for a record player and was turned on to this place by a friend. Matt or Mike Im sorry forgot the name again was extremely helpful, helped me find the perfect model, showed me exactly how to use it and did not try to pressure me into anything more expensive. Innovative Audio is packed with extremely high quality hi fi at extremely reasonable prices and I would highly recommend. read more

These guys are terrific! Their service is without equal and the quality of their work is solid and dependable. We took four pieces of vintage stereo equipment in for their opinion. They honestly told us that two pieces were just fine; the other two only needed some work. They completed that in the time they had estimated and the bill came in on estimate, too. We were impressed with the new equipment on offer as well and bought new speakers to go with our reconditioned system. It's the best system we've had in years, and now we can play our old vinyl again! read more

Okay okay.....honestly I thought customer service was dead. Go to a restaurant disappointed, get an oil change disappointed, enter a grocery store disappointed all over again. That all changed today when I entered Innovative Audio with my Father's hand me down turntable that need some attention. I was greeted by two more then happy to help gentleman trying to get a poor souls turntable in working order again. I need a new cartridge and belt. While one employee was helping some one else, I was treated to a full test and explanation of my turntable and how great it was going to sound, when I got home. Trust me it does and today's experience renews my faith not only in mankind but in the whole customer service industry. I can't wait to go back, really just to hangout. Thanks guys !!!! read more

From the same-day response to my online request to the time I picked up my amp, the staff were professional, knowledgeable, and SUPER communicative. While they were ultimately not able to fix my unit, I feel like they did everything in their power to try to find the rare part needed for the repair. Right from the start, they prepped me for the various outcomes to expect. Everything was explained clearly so there were no real surprises. The shop is also super cool with a variable museum of antique electronics and a really nice selection of records for sale. It's a half hour drive in good traffic for me but I would certainly go back! read more

I used to recommend Gord to anyone interested in vintage audio...not anymore. I brought equipment to the shop intending to outright sell or arrange a suitable consignment agreement. I left a couple Marantz amps (1 a fairly obscure quad adapter), a sweet Ariston TT (Mission 774 tonearm & pre-amp), a couple Pioneer receivers (incl. SX-1010), couple Kenwood receivers and an M2 pre-amp, a Bryson power amp and a few other items. Half the gear I bought from IAV, I'd estimate around $1600 worth. Gord wanted to test the equipment first and gave me an advance of $200 towards the sale. I'll cut to the chase. I got caught up with sudden Deaths in the family, which took me out of the province to care for my Mother. Now that I got back in touch with them I've been told: "Oh, sorry, but we didn't hear from you. Oh well, nothing we can do now." (I'm kinda paraphrasing here) Gathered old receipts and pictures of items and serial #'s, still hoping they make good on the situation. Until then, I would suggest to steer clear from this shop. read more

Brought a power Amp. with big Vu meter. The light on one side is dimmer than other side, bring it back the next day. They got it corrected at no time. Great Service. Friendly Staff. Most items they sold has 30 days warranty. They check all the item prior to resell, also document what have done to the unit before it put on the show floor. The place is clean and tidy. Looking for a pre-amp now, I will keep checking their website for new stock. read more

Watched gord yell at a customer over the phone calling him an idiot for buying a product pushed on him in the first place. Alot of guys I know in the hobby have similar type stories to tell. He maybe the only game in town but that doesn't make it a great experience, and the few times I have been there have been negative. Lost a customers part from his consignment and the customer was po'd since he was using his consigned item to demo with other items and got told this by his friend. read more

As a relative 'newbie' to vintage audio, I found the staff at Innovative to be VERY helpful. They took the time (about an hour) to demo any speaker I wanted to hear, with the type of music I listen to. I learned the difference between receivers, integrated amps, and I enjoyed the education. I found the selection of records good, I was able to pick out 15-ish albums to add to my collection. On my first trip I walked out with a beautiful set of Sansui SP X9000 speakers in fabulous condition. Second trip I purchased a Marantz 2270 for less moolah than I could find anywhere online. I could literally post it to Ebay right now for $200 more than I paid for it in American dollars to boot! My third trip I brought in 10 receivers that I was able to trade in for a store credit which is wonderful to me as I will definitely be going back, the voyage from Abbotsford is well worth the drive. I found the owners to be both polite and courteous, so I would 100% refute the negative ratings. Go check this place out, spend some time demo'ing the speakers, have a look around at the various 'museum' pieces throughout the store. My only suggestion would be to update the website a little more often with new pieces for sale, I like to browse online and the online inventory gets to be stagnant, however this will not lower my five-star rating. I am a return customer for sure! read more

First time dealing with them. Overall experience is very positive. Just brought a vintage 40 years old power amp with big VU meters from them. One side of the lamp is slightly dimmer than the other, brought it back and them fixed it the next day. They in business for 10 years, they must have done something right. Keep up the good work. read more

Their Records were a bit over priced for what they were but had a wide selection to choose from (classic rock, blues, jazz).

Here's another best kept secret! I found my interaction with this company to be outright fraudulent! Took my vintage hybrid amplifier in for assessment as it had low power and kept shutting down. After paying a fee and keeping my amp for about three weeks I was told that it was defective and could not be repaired as the parts (Mosfets) were not available. Well they had the solution though, buy another amplifier from them !!! A comment from their tech guy about the power in my amp didn't make sense and then I tried an amp their tech guy recommended for my speakers and it was totally inadequate. Something didn't add up here and so I took my amp to a retired audio engineer to get another opinion. After hooking my amp up to an oscilloscope and running some checks I was told in about ten minutes that there was nothing wrong with my amplifier !!! Parts (Mosfets) if needed were also still available!!! My amplifier now works perfectly fine. No repairs needed to the amplifier whatsoever. There was simply a short in one of my interconnects!!! Looks to me like an attempt to prey on the naive !!! Talking to Gord the owner about this was also a waste of time. They are either incompetent or dishonest and I suspect they are both. The audacity of this is disgusting. They do not deserve even one star !!! read more