This is a rather odd retail place.it says open till 6.30 everyday. I trudged all the way from upper west side in 97degree heat. I get there. Shop is closed. I call the number. The guy says yes we are”technically” open. Whatever that means.a retail operation is either open or not Check their website.ODD!

Great place for audiophiles. Steve was so happy to play amazing music and share his views on different brands and systems. He played on a Leben amp, rego turntable, and trenner speakers which was really pleasing to the ears. We went without appointment and still got a great service. Highly recommended.

Unprofessional. They dont even have time to change their Google listing to say that they are By Appointment Only. I checked before I went over there b/c the chart indicated that they were open until 6:00pm and 3:00pm was busy. Yet, when I got there, its gates were down. I wouldnt buy anything from them. I suspect that they have problems meeting the rent or payroll. Theyre going to disappear at any moment...like Judge Crater!

I landed here while searching for a high-end pair of headphones. Wide and great choice, if you are searching for something really good, here you will find it for sure.Thanks so much to the owner for his kindness, unfortunately I didn’t manage to buy a pair of headphones, hopefully I’ll do next time I come back to NYC.

I was looking to upgrade my system and walked into the store without an appointment. Steve spent more than an hour demonstrating equipment for me. He made recommendations which I agreed with. They were spot on. When the components were delivered he helped with the set up. Great store and great service. The system sounds great in my home.

Owner has a very poor attitude, no return policy, and will take advantage of you if you are just starting to get into the hobby. Told me I’d need to wait 3-5 weeks for an Audiotechnica LP120. Ordered it from Turntable lab and it came in three days. You are much better off with Turntable lab. Same gear, same price, will actually get to you in a timely fashion.

The person that works here said that they didnt have a cartridge that would fit my Toshiba sr-250, even though it has a standard headshell.Odd. I took my business elsewhere.

Super nice gentleman and friendly 4 legged friend

I came in looking to just try on a couple pairs of headphones and I had the absolute best experience! The owner was extremely knowledgeable and kind, directing me to an amazing pair and answering my turntable questions! Store is beautiful and the atmosphere is relaxed - such a wonderful place. Definitely will be back, this place is amazing!!

Tried to set an appointment to see the store but they did not pick up. Then tried to get in with a friend and was asked if my purchase was “serious”. I left since I felt judged and offended with that question. Not sure if it was my foreign accent, the fact that I was with a person of color or the man just didn’t want to do his job. Either way, don’t waste your time with these snobs.

Over the years, I’ve bought an amp, speakers, and a turntable here. I like being able to hear the equipment in the listening room, the one-on-one service, and the line of brands they carry. What brought me to write a review is a recent experience I had where I discovered a setup issue with my new turntable after I had already brought it home and connected it. I called the store and we talked it through, and the next day the owner (or I think it was) came to my apartment deep in Sunset Park Brooklyn and personally swapped out the part on my turntable that was causing the issue, gave me a few care and maintenance tips, and was on his way. I feel like the attention I got was really above and beyond and I appreciated the whole interaction very much.

Just wanted to pop in and say, to anyone that left a one star review – you should try walking into any other high end audio store without an appointment and see how youre treated. Steve is hands down one of the nicest most patient people in this business. When I first met him a few years ago I was in the market for a pair of entry level bookshelf speakers, and after making an appointment, he gave me as much time and energy in the demo room as someone buying a $20K setup! I know he couldnt have made more than $50 on our transaction but he made a customer out of me for life. These guys really know their stuff and I cant recommend them enough.

Why you say you’re open when you’re not?!

Really nice store, though if youre not planning on buying avoid sight seeing. They dont take to well to wasting their time 😂 looks like a really nice espresso shop when I walked in. Gotta try that later. Giving it 5 stars cause the hi fi equipment they have is awesome. And dealing with self entitled audiophiles is always fun.

Went to the city from Brooklyn to sample the Shure earphones at B&H, but they closed at 2! Found this store on Google and decided to stop in to drool over the high-end gear. Do not know the name of the gentleman there, but he set up the Woo WA7s for a listen for me, even tho I told him I was not there to buy. Very pleasant experience. When I am ready to buy, I will be coming back. Nice little shop.

I’ve been here twice, with a 2-year gap in between visits. I stopped in today and remembered exactly why I didn’t return the first time - the owner’s disdain for talking, hosting, or even selling to prospective customers is palpable. At the same time, it’s not a store that you can just browse - it’s a small room setup as a museum. And when you walk in, this guy wants you to leave.Despite trying to engage and communicate my real interest in *expensive* hifi equipment, this guy deemed me not worthy of *his* time. I guess I’ll go buy my Devore speakers from someone else.Seems that this is not an uncommon experience based on the reviews. @owner: I’m not sure why you open your store if you don’t want walk-ins. I want to support local businesses - but i won’t be returning here.

My friend whos an audiophile saw this shop and really wanted to try some headphones to help him make his decision.. shop had a nice atmosphere.. however the shop had horrendous customer service. They don’t care about you unless you’re rich or look like you have money. Not worth your time, go to B & H

Great store. Steve was very nice. Let me listen to all the headphone, And they do have almost every high end headphone there. First time I could actually make an opinion on which one I liked the best out of the bunch (Focal Utopia).Thanks Steve. Ill start saving for those Devore Fidelty speakers.

Really knowledgeable staff. Very helpful with any questions you might have. They are definitely geared towards more hi end equipment but they have a good selection for pretty much any budget.

Steve is super chill, very accessible. Tons of headphones to try. Highly recommended. You can pop in/out in 15 minutes, very casual, not salesy.

Steve C has been very accommodating for me to listen to the stereos and giving me advice. I will likely be getting a pair of Davone Studio speakers from this shop. Listening makes all the difference!

I ended up buying a speaker from a different brand they dont carry, but Steve was very nice, helpful and took his time. I figured i can give them a good review at least.....

Seems like a cool shop.. but today I go in and the owner is talking to a single customer and ends up telling me to leave because he can only serve him. Strange experience, just wanted to hear the speakers...

Its almost two year,I purchase the headphone from this shop.Till date it sounds son nice and clearly.

Knowledgeable, not pushy staff that will dote on you even if you arent ready to drop the bucks, which, at this place, are almost inescapably big bucks, but thats the state of audio these days almost anywhere. David Hafler: where are you, we need you more than ever! Decent vinyl selection, great to see the wax coming back.

Staff is very friendly and welcoming. They spent time setting up the turntable with the amp I wanted to listen to. Great service!

Steve made this a great place to buy from. He talked to me about what I wanted, what I had, and where I was going with my stereo system. He let me listen to a good range of things and wasnt at all put off by the fact that I went to another store to look around before making my choice. It seemed his only concern was for my happiness with the decision.Call ahead for an appointment as this place isnt set up to help loads of people at once, its not Best Buy. This is real personal one on one service. If youre serious this is a great place to start.I went to a lot of NYC Hi-Fi shops and this one is by far the best and where I chose to spend my money.

I walked into their headphone annex and asked to listen to a pair of Audeze LCD-X, which I’m genuinely interested in buying. I was one of two customers in the entire store. The only employee was sitting behind a desk browsing his computer. Immediately I was treated with automatic contempt and was basically told that he wouldn’t set them up unless I was actually going to buy. Little did he know that I am serious about upgrading my headphones and am actively saving for high-end pair of Audeze LCDs, I’m just not sure whether the 2, 3, or X are right for me. I live in NYC (recently moved) and I’m a guaranteed future sale to someone who is willing to answer my questions. I do a ton of research on my own and I’m serious about this hobby.I’m relatively young so I’m used to many audiophiles being surprised about my interest in higher-end audio gear. But this was a whole other level. At first he refused to set them up, saying it would take “10 minutes”. Eventually he conceded and the 10 minute setup was actually him grabbing a dac and plugging it into an amp which was already on and warm. Maybe 60 seconds, top. I listened to a few songs but he had no interest in speaking to me and after a few minutes I left because he clearly didn’t want me in the store.I will probably buy the LCD-X soon, but I will be ordering them online because several websites have already written back to me with far more helpful advice and better customer service. People often lament the death of brick-and-mortar audio stores, but frankly, why the hell would someone young like me walk into a store with a grumpy employee when everything can be found online and there are enthusiastic audio reviewers on YouTube and across forums willing to offer a lot more advice? They lost a sale that day and all future sales. I plan to continue working hard, advancing my career, and spending my disposable income on audio gear for years to come ... just not here.

Steve is wonderful, took the time to let us listen to our kind of music, did not try to oversell us

Didnt seem very interested in demoing anything.

Very nice manager/owner, very neat store and great equipment.

Great looking store. Wanted to look at a Naim Nds and the gentleman treated me like I was from Mars. Ended up purchasing it in Chicago where i had quite the opposite experience.

Cool looking store, terrible customer service. Was ignored and told to keep off the rugs and given dirty looks by the pretentious salesman for having a cup of coffee, despite the fact that you literally need to go through a cafe to enter the showroom. Will not be shopping at such a bourgeois establishment ever again, if I need audio equipment Ill go to B&H or Amazon. Shame

Great store. Steve was a huge help. Very knowledgeable and kind.

With no shortage of opinions, brands, and franchises out there, finding my way through the audiophile jungle can quickly become overwhelming.And before I discovered In Living Stereo, the thing in short supply was accessible expertise.On popular forums, one person will swear by a product that another calls overpriced junk, or worse.Big box stores seem to try to sell me whatever they have in stock, which itself is dictated by trendy products and profit margins.On line, brand after brand peddle their product as, hitting well above its weight class, or one that will magically lift a veil to expose audio content of mythical proportions.What Ive found at In Living Stereo are a couple of extraordinarily knowledgeable Steves (Steve Cohen and Steve Mishoe) who know how to deliver what I personally believe to be the key to a really great sound reproduction:System symmetry!Knowing what equipment does and does not work with other equipment is more important than dumping untold sums of money that inevitably leave the audiophile like myself disappointed.And if you do happen to have that kind of big money to spend on a sound system, they can certainly provide you with an astonishingly good set-up which you could pass on to your children after you are long dead and gone (if they deserve it).The Steves have always answered all of my questions, no matter how ridiculous or intelligent (in my opinion) they may have been.Never once have they pushed a product on me or pressured me to buy something. Theyve always listened carefully when Im explaining what Im looking for and what my budget is. Then they show me what could work well for me within those cnstraints.Theyve provided me with lengthy product demos in their beautiful listening rooms time after time and have given me the space to let my ears do the deciding.For me, In Living Stereo is an invaluable resource which has helped me turn my LP collection into something that sounds better than I ever could have imagined possible.Where listening to my music is no longer just an activity, or ambient sound playing softly in the background when I have guests over, but rather an experience that is intimate and emotionally involving.The way music is supposed to be. The way HiFi is meant to sound.-Josh W.Harlem NYC

Excellent place. So friendly, nice and honest man...

Music lovers heaven but better. Just go, there are no words

Found some great vinyl for very fair price.

Super friendly. Great experience.

What a great service.

Nice small place, really really good customer service.

Really enjoyable service.

Free Records!

Superb!

Good place to hear headphones