I know a lot of guys are speed freaks, some like a bow to have a certain grip, or made from a certain wood. The number one quality I look for in a bow is how quiet it shoots. I guess that's why I love my Dwyers so much. They are quiet, smooth and they shoot good. Whats the number one quality you look for in a new bow?

I always seem to be drawn first to a bow by its beauty, but what it really comes down to is how it shoots for me.  Some bows just seems magical in their ability to put an arrow at the spot I'm looking at.  Others that might look good when I first pick them up just don't have that feel when I shoot them.
Quietness is certainly high on the list, along with grip style, smoothness of the draw, and handshock at the shot.  When it comes down to it beauty takes a back seat.

wow. I would have to say....Whip nailed it for me too... I think it all comes down to How the bow feels & shoots for the person (me) shooting it..

Performance and not too long...I like my bows to be 56"-60".

If it dosen't say Morrison on it I don't look anymore.

Yeah, Whip, nailed it for me too.
If it ain't pretty, It don't get a second look  :D

I just recently acquired a Horne brush bow. The bow shoots great, its smooth, arrow goes where I look, its fast, good workmanship. But the one thing I couldn't get past was the sound....Its hard to describe, like a doink sound when its released....I think if I add some wool string silencers it will help. Anyway it made me realize how important having a quiet is to me..

Beauty catches my eye first, then it has to have the right feel...

Good tiller

Feel for me also. That starts with the grip. Also mass weight is key, not too heavy, not too light.

Of course bows are a lot like women, how they look is usually what makes me want to pick one up in the first place.

Mark

Quite,grip,and length 58" or less.Kip

Durability!

Grip is first, because all else being equal,that drives a lot of accuracy for me.  After that, the characteristics of smoothness of draw, quietness, and performance are high on the list.

Claudia

Shootability.  If it shoots good and is quiet it really doesn't matter what it looks like.  The looks are only for you and your buddies.  A deer or any other animal couldn't care less whether you shot them with a pretty or an ugly bow they'll be just as shot.

What Claudia said...but I put performance slightly over quietness--that's just me.

pretty much what claudia said,,,besides: "i'm gonna shoot it right, not display it as art work" (i like ugly bows as it helps me look better).  

I would say stability.  Now, it is not easy for me to define stability or explain how to judge it.  But I think stability could be described as, a bow designed such that the riser and limbs perform without any torsional rotation and can propel an arrow forward the exact same way from one shot to the next.  I've had plenty of top quality bows and tuned properly, they still would only get me pie plate accuracy on my good shots.  I always assumed it was my form and never put any blame on the bows I was shooting.  I have a bow now that has amazed me at its ability to deliver the arrow right where I am looking on the occasions that I do my part.  It has opened my eyes to just how stable and accurate a bow can be.  My advice to anyone comparing bows is to forget about speed.  Take the bow that gives you repeatable accuracy, is quiet and gives you the most confidence to make that shot in crunch time.  Ask yourself, if someone offered me $1000 if I could hit a coke can at 30 yards with one shot, which bow would I take the shot with?  That's the bow you need to hunt with.

Forgiveness.

CLaudia nailed it pretty well I'd say. I don't care what it looks like so long as it SHOOTS pretty.

Beauty, grip and brace height.
And for you guys/girls who want pretty, IMHO JD Berry gets the crown. And that's besides the feel and performace.