I was in Suckit City today getting some gold pins for speaker wire and while I was waiting I watched as two gentleman were being entranced by a Bose Lifestyle demo. I'd never actually watched this thing before but have to admit it was very slick: lots of overblown effects, dsp tricks, and a cute little LCD to guide you through. Say what you will about Amar, but he's a helluva businessman. Anyway, I overheard one say he had just purchased a 52" LCD from CC and let me tell you, that was like blood in the water to the salesperson. Thankfully before he went in for the kill, the two guys came over to where I was and I had to tell them what I thought...I just couldn't help myself! I had heard the buyer say that he was putting the new tv in a 40' x 30' room (!) and I mentioned I didn't think the Bose would be able to handle that much cubic feet and $2900 can go farther than he's looking. I also told him that with that much space he'd probably want at a 7.1 HT system and maybe even two subs. Without getting into details the end result was they went to a local HT installer I recommended that carries Paradigm, ML, etc. to discuss a suitable install.

A few observations from this encounter:
1) I'm somewhat amazed at how seductive HTIB like Bose is to the general public. They are really taking advantage of people's ignorance.
2) Should I have just stayed out of it and let them buy the Lifestyle system? They obviously didn't know the difference and as the saying goes; ignorance is bliss. I am absolutely convinced he would have been more than happy with Bose.
3) This damn hobby is consuming too much of my mental space!