I've been trialing and selecting speaker and power connections and Stereo Design (and another good…read moreretailer) have been very supportive, lending the products to me for unhurried auditions in my home system. I ultimately purchased Synergistic Research and Transparent Audio products which worked very well for me. Their service and support have been invaluable. And heck, I just plain like these guys. Looking over other recent reviews, I noted a very negative one, bitter about having their effort to pit one dealer against another price wise. It seems to me that the internet purchase culture has further eroded the ethics of the customer pool. In the past, we needed to work harder to identify dealers across the country, call them long distance and shop a product. Today, a couple keystrokes and voila! It's one thing to read a review, see an ad, or remember a product from the past and decide you want it and then go out and shop it on the internet, versus getting a price on a product and then going out to the local demonstrating dealer to educate yourself, listen to it, in order to validate your choice and to then expect the demonstrating dealer to price match. If a price match is your goal then you shouldn't appropriate the dealers resources and time. Let's consider a typical scenario. I go into dealer A who has minimal presence of a product line but is technically a dealer. "Can you get me an XYZ?", "Sure!" says dealer A. "What's the best price?" you ask. Dealer A who will have to do nothing more than order it and take your money says: "25% off". Now, at this point, you think that's great except you really don't want to buy something that expensive without first seeing, touching and listening to it, so you say: "Let me get back to you." You then go out and start looking for a dealer B who does have the XYZ on active display. Do you go into dealer B and say: "Hey, I got a price on an XYZ of 25% off and if you'll match it and demo the XYZ to me I'll get it from you." No, you more likely say, "Hey, I'm interested in an XYZ, can you demo it?" At this point, those of us who don't see the difference, are thinking so what. I'm entitled to get the best price. The problem is that it's dishonest. Dealer B, acting in good faith, is tricked into spending time, resources and in the case of Stereo Design, even lending out the XYZ, to a customer who will never buy it from him. The reality is that a demonstrating dealer cannot stay in business and continue to STOCK/DEMO a luxury product line, in the face of steep discounts. The manufacturers of such products know this and this is why there are often contractual agreements prohibiting such activities. Back to my scenario: Instead, knowing that my motive of primarily wanting to validate my choice would be poorly received, I choose to simply ask for the demo. After consuming significant time, I ask for a discount from dealer B who might only be able to offer 10-15% in the face of his real overhead. Not satisfied, I let dealer B know that I'm willing to give him the benefit of my business if he'll match dealer A's price. Of course dealer B is going to be offended and is going to do what he can to scuttle the UNFAIR competition. Many of you will disagree with my take on the ethics involved here but I suspect that will be due to a one-sided world-view you might possess. The reality is that dealers like Stereo Design, cannot exist in an internet, everything is a commodity world. The manufacturers know this. They know that you won't want or buy a luxury product if you can't first see it , touch it, and evaluate it. While the commodity based, price is all that matters, internet world may allow product to be sold in the short term, eventually, the sales will stop once every retail store front, discontinues demonstrating it. You'll notice that there are some retailers who are catalog/internet based but their overhead is in content. They too are compelled to hold the line on prices because to do so otherwise would undermine their ability to offer the services they offer such as extensive online content and personal consultation. Do I appreciate a discount? Of course, but I try not to let that be the only factor. If your primary goal is the lowest price, then get it, buy it , and don't waste the resources of an unsuspecting retailer.

Stereo Design is one of the best purchase experiences I've had. Over the years, I've been in Stereo…read moreDesign several times along with other mid to high-end audio stores. My experience at Stereo Design far surpasses the other retailers I visited in every aspect. To begin with, their approach is consultative. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and friendly providing helpful information, (general, as well as technical) and quality listening experiences to enable a 100% satisfied purchase. To the music enthusiast, it's important to be able to listen to a variety of equipment at various price points to find the sound that will delight your ears day in and day out. The journey to "finding your sound" is a lot like buying a grand piano - it is vastly about personal preference. Once I decided on my stereo equipment, the team came to my house and did a wonderful job with installation - the neatest in cabling puts my home PC network to shame. My system sounds wonderful. I absolutely recommend them. If you're looking for a great stereo - pass all other San Diego stereo stores and go directly to Stereo Design.

Dear Magma, Just wanted to let you all know the new chassis…read moreis a winner. Plug and Play! Had it up and running with 10 minutes to spare : ) Gotta love live TV. Thank you all so much Ariel and Nate for your time and help! Sincerely, Chris Shepard American Mobile http://americanmobilestudio.com

I've never been treated so poorly by a company in my life, after spending over $2,500.00 on an…read moreexpansion chassis. Back when I purchased my chassis (model PE6R4), the big issue was that they had very loud PSU fans. As do most people that use this product, I use my chassis in a recording studio. You can imagine how awful it would be to have a loud fan blaring all day when you're trying to record music. From the moment I started using the chassis in 2007, I complained to their sales department about the "loud fan" and begged them to switch the fan for a quieter one. At that time I had no idea that the noise was actually coming from the PSU fan, and not the main fan. I just assumed the chassis had only one fan... a LOUD one! Now, you would think that since THEY are the manufacturer of the chassis, that THEY would know exactly where the fan noise was coming from - the PSU. And in fact, I found out later that they DID know this, as the loud PSU was a widely known issue which countless customers were blogging about. But instead of just sending me a new, quieter PSU, they proceeded to give me the runaround for almost 4 years!! One of their sales reps, Jill Nelson, repeatedly told me that there was no alternative fan option and that there was nothing they could do for me. So, for 4 long years I dealt with this noise, which significantly interfered with my work, all the while getting no solution from Jill. However, back in December of last year, an associate of mine purchased a new, updated version of my chassis, on which the fan noise was virtually inaudible. Still at this point I had no idea that the PSU fan was the culprit, or that the chassis even had more than one fan. I got in touch with Jill again, and asked her to replace my fan with the new, quieter one that they use in the newer chassis. She was unwilling to do anything to rectify the situation, except "sell" me a new fan for $90 dollars. I reluctantly agreed. Well, after spending 2 hours disassembling my studio rack, and installing the new fan, the noise was as loud as ever! I called Jill again to tell her that the noise was still loud, and that it seemed to be coming from the PSU, not the newly replaced fan. After 4 years of wasted time and frustration, why was I the one who had to figure out that the noise was coming from the PSU and not the main fan?? Shouldn't Jill have informed me of this by now?? Instead she refers me to Ariel Aquino, their so-called "tech support" person. Ariel would barely give me the time of day, but told me I could go out and purchase "any" PSU and install it myself. Really? ANY PSU? He couldn't be bothered to give me any specifics, or perhaps he is just utterly inept. Either way he proved to be useless. So I went out and searched the web for a PSU I thought might work, emailed him a link, and he said it "should be fine". Based on his approval, I ordered the $80 PSU. Once I received it, I disassembled my rack for a second time, and opened up the chassis to find out that the PSU Ariel said would be "fine" was not compatible! It was not the correct wattage, and did not have any connectors that were compatible with my chassis. I then sent an email to both Jill and Ariel asking them why they gave me this completely incorrect information. No response. So I decided to take it upon myself to get some answers. I did a little research and found a company called PC Power & Cooling. Spoke to the engineer over there, to see if they could do a custom PSU that would be compatible with my chassis. He proceeded to tell me that Magma hired them several years prior, to do a custom PSU modification for their chassis, SPECIFICALLY TO FIX THE NOISY PSU FAN ISSUE!!! Can you believe this?? Ok so this was absolute proof that Magma intentionally kept me in the dark about this issue, and probably countless other customers, so that they wouldn't have to replace everyone's PSU's. I immediately hired PC Power to do the same modification they did for Magma. I installed it. It works perfectly, and it is COMPLETELY INAUDIBLE! Dead quiet. Next step was to try to get Magma to compensate me in some way. I got in touch with VP of engineering Julia Elbert. She was actually very smart, very understanding, and was baffled as to why I wasn't given a new, quiet PSU from the very beginning, as she had been aware of this issue for quite some time. She referred me to Bill Shem, VP of Sales so I could request a credit. In so many words he called me a liar, and literally hung up the phone while I was in the middle of a sentence. Seriously?? This is how the VP of sales treats his customers? Well I'm glad to know that maturity is not a prerequisite for holding an executive position at Magma. Simply put, Magma is unwilling to take responsibility for its wrongdoings, and has no interest in keeping its customers happy. Steer clear of these bozos!

Let me start by saying "wow". This company was very knowledgeable and fantastic to deal with. I…read morepurchased a surround sound system from them over 10 years ago and glad that I contacted them again. I had done a lot of research in replacing my current receiver since I had purchased a 4K TV that would not communicate with my old technology. I thought this was going to be a simple decision but with my system, there were many considerations that I needed to accommodate. I have two amplifiers, several zones and speakers controls as well as surround sound system. Their installation team was exceptional and very knowledgeable. I did not have to teach them about anything regarding my system. I had it professionally installed years prior. I highly recommend this team of specialist! Many thanks to Mark and his team.

There is a reason why this family owned and operated company has been in San Diego I believe close…read moreto 40 years. Mark is the owner but is also in the store to answer questions either in person or over the phone. I believe they were the first store to sell McIntosh gear way back when. Anyone who knows about McIntosh knows that not only are they one of the most revered and respected names in audio going back decades, they are extremely selective about who they allow to sell their products. I have been an A/V enthusiast for 30 years but was new to San Diego and hadn't established a working relationship with a local company. I was in a time crunch to get a whole house system put in my condo while other work was being done so if holes had to be put in walls or wires run I wanted to get it done before drywall and paint would be there. I went with Home Theatre San Diego, huge mistake! I found Brier and they had the unpleasant task of having to try to retrace the other companies steps and mistakes in order to fix them. This is tedious and alot of patience is required. My installer, Dillon is not only amazing at his job but he could not be more friendly. They not only found all of the mistakes, they also offered more efficient or cheaper ways to get the same thing done. Where before I heard a bunch of times "That can't be done" Dillon would say "Yea that can be done and I'll make it extremely user friendly. They don't have a large showroom but don't look let the modest location fool you. I can't recommend them enough and I am very picky/OCD about meticulous work.

I recently worked with North Bridge to update home audio. Jonathan and Steve are great to work…read morewith. They installed a surround sound system in my home theater/bar room that was also compatible with my turn table. They also recommended a great sound bar for my other tv room that is fantastic for playing music as well. They came to my house and looked at the spaces before they made their recommendations. This was a significantly better and more personal experience then going to a large retail store and the prices were the same. And they actually know what they are talking about and are not pushing specific products. I would highly recommend these guys. They may be putting in an outdoor surround system next year for my patio.

Jonathan and Steve have a unique combination of experience and talent that allows them to integrate…read moreaudio quality, architectural design integrity, and user simplicity while staying current on the latest developments in new products and technologies. We used North Bridge to install a new home theater and multi-room audio system that utilized our existing equipment while augmenting with some new pieces, and they helped us design a custom made built-in cabinet that is extremely functional while matching our home's style. They are really good at listening to their customers' ideas while sharing their own advice, and they are genuinely thoughtful about finding economical ways to achieve your goals. They are incredibly patient, flexible and responsive, and committed to their customer's satisfaction. It's hard to imagine anyone better at what they do.

I am lucky that I found this company for all our video & sound work. They are professionals that…read moreknow what they're doing. I will definitely call them again for any future projects or repairs. They are experienced Lutron installers and repair work.

After repeated service requests, we get crickets. Online service portal also doesn't work. Used to…read moredo quality work so not sure if there was management change and this is the end result. Disappointed.

Woke up this morning to discover the cat chewed through the power cord for our router. I found…read morethis store on Yelp, and gave it a try. Perfect experience. The man there helped me out quickly and pleasantly. It's a great resource to remember, without having to go to a big-box store. Thanks!

This is a hidden gem in the University Heights neighborhood for anyone who is tech savvy and wants…read morea good deal on the misc. parts that your electronics need. Want a HDMI cable? At other places a 6' cable would be about $45-$50 but here it's about $20. Seriously. The shop is ran by a guy who could be your honest, hard working uncle. It's refreshing to walk into a store and be greeted by someone who isn't a souless teen working for minimum wave but a hard working business owner keeping the personal touch and charm of a small business. This place reminded me of the stores my dad would take me to when I was younger because he refused to go to big box chain stores. This place has heart so give it a chance. You will find fantastic deals on the parts you need. They even have things for "older" technology like VCRs (yep they are still around!)

I want to thank Ed and Antonio for heleping our home have the optimal wifi network. With two…read moreworking professionals and a high schooler, the zoom meetings were bringing our network to its' knees. Antonio came out, evaluated the situation and we scheduled time for the work to be done. Ed showed up as scheduled, was super knowledgeable, personable and professional. When our quirky home threw him a couple curve balls, Ed didn't flinch. He stuck with the installation, and was super communicative throughout the entire process. I would definitely engage RSF Home Theater again, and would be stoked if Ed was who got the assignment. Great folks, great work, EXCELLENT results.

This company saved us us THOUSANDS of dollars, not hundreds on our dedicated home theater and my…read morefavorite music all over the house and backyard using our voice. So This jeff m. with no picture is seriously WRONG, wrong, wrong about this company. They know what their doing as promised, on-time, and budget. In addition I just wanted to let everyone know what an awesome job they did for us in installing our WiFi system in our home. Its blazing fast now even outside by the pool. Look at the pic I added to the post. I have no clue what beef this guy that has a dog for his face, of calling this organization crap, because they came in and replaced the outdated modem/router we were renting and added these access points around our estate. I would highly recommend rancho santa fe home theater to anyone. Don't let the name fool you, they really are looking after your best interest and long term relationship. Keep up the good work!

John did an amazing job from start to finish. Previously, we had spotty coverage throughout the…read morehouse, with our network running slow and taking a long time to load in certain areas of our home. John proposed a plan to maximize our setup--from equipment selection and placement to installation and reconfiguration of our devices. The result is complete coverage throughout our home, even extending out into the park across the street. The setup has supported simultaneous video conference calls in combination with TV streaming and gaming without issue. Highly recommend RSF Networks for home network installation and optimization.

With Covid, I have been working from home full time with many video calls, so having reliable…read moreinternet has been huge! We have had our service since March, and could not be happier. RSF Networks was so helpful, and cleaned up the disaster of cables we have had for many years. Definitely would recommend!