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Only a handful of Best Buy stores have taken the dive on the Combo market, and, according to what I've read in the trade rags, there are no plans to jump into B&O.

bloke wrote:.... This particular BEST BUY is only about two minutes from the local GUITAR CENTER ...

We have a Best Buy and a Guitar Center here in Evansville two doors from each other! I don't know if the Best Buy is selling geeetars yet, though.

Watch out, musical instrument dealers of the world-- Best Buy carries a full line of harmonicas!

Have you been in your local Best Buy recently? Most of those high-end guitars are still there, because they basically have a "no-try-out" policy out of "fear" of depreciating the merchandise. And in my local Best Buy, they have them hung high on a wall and won't even take them down unless you have committed to purchase beforehand without playing.

Best Buy does its core business, consumer electronics, reasonably well. They should stay out of the real world of real, not virtual, musical instruments.

No, I agree that care in the tryout of a prospective purchase is absolutely essential. This requires both supervision of the shop owner and responsibility on the part of the consumer. In my local store, there is none of the former and an assumed none on the part of the consumer.

Any other store, OTOH, I make it a point to get to know the owner, or if a chain, the branch manager, explain who I am and what I am shopping for, and build trust before asking to try something out. And I'm way beyond the years of wanting to tryout everything.

Bloke, I promise you, if I were in the market for a trombone and came to your store, I would not knock a slide. I'd ask for an open area to try it out properly.

Then again, I am lucky. My mom recognized my musical ability, and when I was too young to drive, and would otherwise have been dismissed by store clerks, on the occasion when an actual purchase was in the works, she would accompany me as we both talked to a store representative. Then I got to try what I might to make the purchase. I was also briefed well in advance by my mom about not doing anything to risk depreciation or "floor wear" on the merchandise.

Then again, it boils down to the same issue as has been discussed in this, and many other threads on this forum: proper parenting, consideration for others, and common curtesy.

A long time ago I visited a music store in LR, Ar with a college acquaintance, a fellow trombonist. He asked to try out a new 88H, promptly whacked the slide and then had the nerve to ask for a discount due to the horn being damaged. Had I been driving that slob would have walked back to Russellville. I was too embarrased to ever go back in that store for fear someone would recognize me as having been with the idiot.

I believe the word you want is "courtesy".

bloke wrote:I wonder if BEST BUY is considering expanding into brass and woodwinds? They certainly have buying power...

That is highly unlikely. Your local Best Buy, and certain others, are set up like that with a wide variety of guitars to directly compete with the nearest guitar super chain by that particular store. For example, at my store, we only have around three guitars available and they are all in their boxes. We also carry a few keyboards, a drum set, and various percussive instruments like bongos and a cow bell. Believe me when I say this company does not expand sections if they do not think they can't compete.