Save yourself countless hours of research through online forums and call Burt for all your AV…read moreneeds! Home AV is one of my passions and definitely a hobby. One of the frustrating things about getting into something beyond Home Theater in a Box is the barrier to entry. Burt at Seattle Hi-Fi can help you demystify any questions you might have whether you are a novice or interested in bi-amping into a stereo amp bridge to a mono-block. Burt can hang with just about anyone and has the same positive attitude no matter the conversation. One of the key differentiators with Seattle Hi-Fi vs every other company I have done business with is how welcoming they are to your needs AND budget! Any AV shop will cater to your needs if your budget is right. All AV shops can make you feel welcomed if you are spending a huge amount of money. Burt has helped me when I was spending a single digit % of his suggested budget on an item the exact same as when I was spending more than what he suggested! I have felt like an extremely valued customer through every interaction with Burt, regardless of what I needed or what I was spending. Burt has spent time helping me debug problems AFTER the purchase was complete on a new use case I had and just generally is fantastic. Seattle Hi-Fi is my favorite store in the greater Seattle area, and my favorite AV store I have ever been to! Cannot recommend Seattle Hi-Fi enough.

Update - came back after the first great experience to investigate a power filter. I've not had…read moregreat luck with power conditioners - they are expensive and don't seem to do much. If anything, they've limited sound quality. Seattle HiFi recommended the Niagara 1200, and phoned me when one became available. I was open to looking at the more expensive versions but was persuaded that I really just needed the basic 1200 model. With low expectations, I plugged my gear in. Wow. Immediately heard improvements. Cleaner top end, more detail, better bass definition, and less ear fatigue when listening to digital gear. Color me highly impressed again.

Responsive. Knowledgeable. Meticulous. Friendly. Fast. Helped us find the right solution to meet…read moreour needs. Then installed it with no fuss.

I called H2 asking for help in correcting my home theater setup after moving from an apartment to…read moremy first house. The next day I sent an email through their website asking them for help. No response came over more than a week. Hey, I would have understood if they didn't want to take on my project, but they could have at least called or emailed me back to decline so that I wasn't waiting around hoping. It's hard enough to ask people for help - it makes it harder when the request itself is ignored. Turns out I only needed to upgrade my subwoofer from a 10" to paired 12"s - so H2 lost an easy $3.5k sale and gets a bad review out of it. You should probably expect that they aren't going to respond to you either - who knows where their line is if 3k isn't enough money to matter to them. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Though Definitive has awesome listening rooms that might look daunting to newbies not looking to…read morespend over $3k, let alone $100k, they actually have a nice range of brands and equipment at prices starting from fairly affordable price points (for those shopping at big box stores such as Magnolia) to the astronomically priced. I personally appreciate that they have a strong lineup of brands focusing on dedicated 2-channel music listening rather than just emphasizing home theater. What I like best about Definitive is working with Scott. I find that I know what I like and don't like pretty quickly when auditioning equipment. I'm not swayed by brands, equipment prices, visual appearance, or reviews. Only the sound quality is what's important to me (and something visually acceptable to my wife!) I appreciate that when Scott had set up equipment comparisons for me that he is politely honest in his subjective assessments; this is not just better/worse judgments but how he describes the qualities of the music reproduction. And that Scott's subjective assessments dovetail closely with what I'm hearing as well. He seems to have a good sense of what his customers' listening preferences are & is good at providing equipment recommendations to match with those preferences. I had casually asked via email about a specific model of integrated amplifier with active room correction that was well reviewed in the audio media & was surprised to hear his comments that it might not necessarily be the best fit for my listening preferences. I appreciate his honesty and trust his opinions and recommendations. His honesty and integrity may not necessarily get Definitive my business every time (after all Seattle is not lacking for good high-end audio stores), but it has certainly won Definitive a place on my short-list of audio store that I will always consult before making a purchase. If you live on the Eastside, definitely consider visiting Definitive whether you are shopping big box stores or other high-end audio stores.

I had a wonderful experience with Definitive Audio working on a big project for my home. Huge…read moreshout out to Bryce who did an amazing job navigating through the options with me, finding all the components that I needed (including some used ones in perfect condition), and making the overall experience totally fun and enjoyable. Communication was excellent and professional and installation was perfect. Most importantly, the final result is incredible and even better than anticipated which doesn't happen very often! I'm so happy with Definitive Audio and highly recommend working with this team. They are pros!

This experience was almost as bad as it could have gone. Don't go in on the weekend, some of the…read morestaff seems pretty autopilot and perhaps they just want to get off and relax instead of solving your media problems. Once you pay, the help stops. And if your box is missing pieces, prepare to be greeted with skepticism, bad manners, and condescension from the phones all the way to the lair of Magnolia.

Worst place to buy anything. Unfriendly and unhelpful staff. I bought some cable based on best buy…read morereps suggestions, and when geek squad came for installation they had their own cable. The guy at magnolia asked me to buy a cable which was $5 a feet, and the rep at best buy suggested I would need 50 feet. Considering they are more knowledgeable, I went ahead and spent $275 including taxes for the 50 feet cable. Geek squad didn't need the cable as they had their own. I came back next day of the installation which is still within 15 days of their so called return policy, they plainly refused to keep their promise of 15 day returns. I will never recommend anyone buying anything from either magnolia or best buy anymore. As magnolia is part of best buy at the end of the day. Though I truly appreciate the geek squads effort, they are probably of different genes than rest of the group.

John's the best - love going to his place to see what's new in the listening room. He's always…read moretaken care of me and my Dad over the last 40 + years

The Audio Connection is one-of-a-kind. The proprietor, John, has been in the game for 45 years and…read moreit shows; he can assess what you are after quite quickly and you can enjoy the rest of your time there chatting with him. I brought my one of my Single-Ended Triode 300b mono-block tube amplifiers to have an issue addressed and Kevin had it sorted in no time. They have a diverse collection of audio gear for sale and a no-nonsense listening room to let one do just that, listen. They carry all sorts, but if you are a tubehead, you would have to be mental not to see what they have on offer.

We didn't end up buying from this store but wanted to acknowledge the great service. They have top…read moreof the line products (Hunter Douglas window coverings). The storeroom is a nice place to shop, conveniently located in Proctor with ample free street parking in the area. We got a consultation in our home so that we could see the products in our space. The quote was given right away. The salesmen was very helpful and told us that the Hunter Douglas line is a lifetime type of purchase and therefore pricier than other options. Ultimately we chose a less expensive option but I think this store is worth a look, especially if you want something less common or have a more complicated situation.

These might be the most honest company I've ever hired. They did aerobarrier on my addition, and…read moreblower door testing for me. They had a few issues with the process, but what blew me away was that every time I found a problem the owner immediately wrote me a check to cover the damage with no hesitation. Overall though it is a good product, it did a great job of sealing around all of the top and bottom plates, and I'm sure a bunch of other places I can't see. The aerobarrier got me down to 1.2 ach50, which surpassed my target. Their main guy was out of town, so they sent a less experienced tech. They ended up not taping off all of the plumbing penetrations, so we ended up getting sealant stuck in the dryer vent, b-vent, and a few other places. They either sent someone immediately to clean it up, or paid to replace the item when cleaning wasn't possible. They gave me an extra refund for the trouble. I wished I had the more experienced tech for the blower door, as this guy missed several things that would have improved the score. There was a window which was ajar, some plumbing penetrations which weren't taped off, and the HVAC duct work to the original house (which was square footage excluded from the test) needed to be taped off but wasn't. He also didn't know how to do a duct leakage test to the exterior (running duct leakage during blower door essentially). But I can't complain too much, as I still received a score which exceeded my expectations.

Spencer runs his business in an ethical manner; how refreshing. What a concept - good communication…read moreand "doing the right thing"... because it's the right thing to do! Offered me a return for a full refund on an item that things didn't work out on...even though "stated policy" on eBay was "no returns". RESPECT

I really like this unique concept of turntables and outdoor gear. It's a really good idea and I…read morealways see customers in the store. Finding quality turntables in Seattle is hard. Even many record stores don't seem to carry them as much unless you go to Seattle records or inner vision. Spencer, the owner has a niche on the market. It used to be that the Dearborn Goodwill, some pawn shops that weren't sketch, and various record shops had some lp120's or technique 1200's. These days I just see cheap Crosley's for sale at Barnes and Noble. The selection of vinyl is good and prices are solid. The expertise is great and it reminds me of Hawthorne Stereo. I love the big selection of outdoor gear also and the prices are good for new and used. I enjoy shopping here and I'm glad it's part of the Lake City community. seem dated and overpriced, goodwill is often junky with quality, Hawthorne is great but can get pricy, the Ave which used to carry a lot of turntables in the early 00's scaled back. I

Long overdue review. I purchased most of my system from Connon at Tune Hi Fi. He's incredibly…read moreknowledgeable, accommodating and provides great service. In today's world with so many purchase options, it's imperative to have great service w/ in-home demo options. Connon will work closely w/ you to insure you have the best sound system and set up for your listening environment.

I've been in the shop a few times in the last few years and purchased a Rega turntable and phono…read morepreamp in 2020. Each of my visits were with a friend of mine who has been a customer for many years who pre-arranged our visits. Connon has been amazing setting up multiple options and swapping out components so we could listen to the differences in various turntables, preamps, amps, speakers, subs, etc. for my listening room project which I hope to complete this year (summer 2024). Although I haven't personally taken advantage of his offer yet, Connon is willing to buy back equipment for upgrades (less than full price). This lowers the cost and burden of experimentation on the journey to build an amazing audiophile listening experience. Four years in and I'm still super happy with my Planar 6 turntable. Connon gave me a great deal on a demo model with a pre-installed Ania moving coil cartridge on which I've played hundreds of records. I don't know of a better place to shop in Seattle for HiFi sound equipment. Note: I noticed a handful of reviews complained about the hours (not open Sunday-Tuesday), lack of immediate personal greeting, or a verbal caution when interacting with expensive equipment like a $5K cartridge. I haven't experienced the same, but I've only been to the store on pre-arranged visits when we knew Connon would be here. That said, I don't compare this store with a typical "walk in, buy something, and leave" store that's open every day, has prices marked on everything, but virtually no expertise to help you make the best purchase decisions. With a little patience, you can get the most personalized service available, great deals, and fantastic products. Highly recommend!

This store sold me a speaker with no sound, refused to give me a receipt, and when I tried to…read morereturn it they refused and told me to 'just enjoy the aesthetic.' How is that even legal? then to top it off I go to Best Buy and find the exact same speaker selling for the same price they charged me! I was furious! worst brick and mortar electronics store ever!

UPDATE MARCH 29, 2023:…read more This is a shout out for their employees John and Spencer, for their assisting me re: buying a USB charger, and also re: buying some tools that they had on sale today.