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  1. #1
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    Shopping On Line??

    Hello All,

    Have anyone brought HT equipment from an on line store? I'm thinking about purchasing a reciever & it's almost $200.00 cheaper on line.

    Which on line store do you recommend? Any problem buying from on line stores?



    june

  2. #2
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    Do it but check out feedback and stores reputation

    I do about 80% of my purchases online where I can get from 30-50% cheaper prices then i can get from stores. If the savings is less than 30% I don't bother & will buy it from the store unless its a high priced item. I bought both of my receivers online. I definately recommend though if you buy online to check the seller/seller stores feedback and reputation out before you send payment. For anything over $50 that had little or no feedback rating, I wouldn't do business. Nor would I do business with a place that has lousy or mediocore feedback. Besides using Amazon.com sellers (which are alot cheaper then Amazon) & epinions.com, I'd do a google search on the model humber your looking for where they usually give online stores & their prices which could vary quite a bit.

    One interesting fact, apparently on Amazon.com, if you order a TV bigger than 27", they won't pay for any delivery damages to it.

    Good luck.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by juneaudrey
    Have anyone brought HT equipment from an on line store? I'm thinking about purchasing a reciever & it's almost $200.00 cheaper on line.

    Which on line store do you recommend? Any problem buying from on line stores?
    I’m sure the folks here would be happy to make recommendations for good online retailers. But they'll need more information. Can you provide some detail about what you’re considering?

    I've bought equipment online and, as you've noted, you can get some really great deals. But there are a few things to look for when you buy HT gear or most any other consumer electronics equipment online:

    First, look to see if the company is an authorized dealer. If not, there’s a good chance the product manufacturer won’t honor its warranty through that dealer because they aren’t legally obligated to do so. Some unauthorized dealers also sell "gray market" goods. Let’s assume you live in the U.S. This means they’re offering you a deal on something that isn’t meant to be sold in the U.S. market. It may have a Canadian or other foreign warranty and a different model number. The instructions may even not be in English. The manufacturer won’t honor its warranties if its products are sold this manner.

    Check the return policy posted on the web site carefully. There is no automatic right to a refund and you may not be able to get your money back if the return policy doesn’t clearly state it. This is another danger in buying from the web site of an unauthorized dealer. If the dealer does allow you to return the item, also check to see if there’s a restocking fee. If the product is not defective, but is still within the return policy they could hit you with something like a 15% restocking fee.

    Check the shipping costs. There’s lots of websites out there that offer what appear at first to be great deals, but aren’t so good after the shipping costs have been factored in. If you’re looking at saving $200 on a $500 AV Receiver, but the shipping cost is $75, you might want to rethink purchasing it online. Consider this, if you have trouble with it and you bought it locally, you can just take it back. If you have trouble with it and bought it online, you may have to eat the shipping plus spend another $50 ship it back to the online retailer. The $75 you end up saving may not be worth the hassle and time without the unit.

    Be sure the site has a safe payment system. When paying by credit card online make sure that any purchasing is done through a secure web site, preferrably with an SSL connection.

    Make sure that all accessories that are supposed to accompany the receiver or other item are included. Check the web site’s product description, then check the manufacturers web site and make sure the descriptions match.

    Make sure the company is reputable. As Hershon says, check out feedback. A number of sites like Pricegrabber will give ratings and let you read customer feedback. You can also check for complaints against the company to the Better Business Bureau at: http://search.bbb.org/search.html

    After checking against these criteria, a lot of the really incredible deals disappear. But you can still find some really good ones that are worth the added effort.

    Hope this helps.

  4. #4
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    I always tend to lean towards the convenience of a local retail as stated before because of alot less hassle if any warranty issues should arise. For example I purchased a receiver locally and had trouble right away, took it back and all was resolved in about an hour of my time as oppossed to several weeks and perhaps more money out of my pocket. Working for a small local business I make every effort to contribute to the "little" guys as much as possible. (although sometimes the idea of saving some cash means I'll take my chances). You may want to check out crutchfields outlet, you can catch some deals there from time to time with full manufacturers warranties on everything. And no I dont work for them

  5. #5
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    If you can get manufactures warranty buy online screw little guys

    I totally disagree with the above post by cashiz if in fact you can get a warranty from the manufacturer. I've never had trouble getting that & its usually in most sealed items. All you have to do is ask the seller to verify this. But if you can't get a manufacturer's warranty then I in fact agree with cashiz, don't get it online. In regards to helping out the "little guys" as opposed to helping yourself, you think they'd help you pay the bills? As I said, if you save after shipping 30% or more (or 25% on higher priced items) and you can buy from a reliable source online, you'd be a fool not too as long as you're willing to go through a little hassle like waiting time, for it to arrive.



    Quote Originally Posted by cashlz
    I always tend to lean towards the convenience of a local retail as stated before because of alot less hassle if any warranty issues should arise. For example I purchased a receiver locally and had trouble right away, took it back and all was resolved in about an hour of my time as oppossed to several weeks and perhaps more money out of my pocket. Working for a small local business I make every effort to contribute to the "little" guys as much as possible. (although sometimes the idea of saving some cash means I'll take my chances). You may want to check out crutchfields outlet, you can catch some deals there from time to time with full manufacturers warranties on everything. And no I dont work for them

  6. #6
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    The point I was trying to make is that if it means I pay say 5%-10% more (depending upon total dollar amount) to help support the local businesses then I will. I dont know how much your time is worth to you hershon but to me its not worth the headache of fighting shipping and waiting if there is a warranty issue. How often have you ever been reimbursed for return shipping a defective item? I know for a fact J and R doesnt do it. I also stated that there are acceptions to this and that there are times where the savings are significant enough to make it worth while. Are the little guys going to pay my bills? No. Are the people who shop at their local "little guys" going to pay my bills.Yes.
    cashlz

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    I do everything online. There is more variety.

  8. #8
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    Here's my $.02- I only buy online if the deal is absolutely amazing (>35%) and it's an authorized dealer. The interesting thing is that you will very rarely find that type of a deal. If it's too good to be true, it probably is. My wife bought a few non-audio equipment things online from a store that had a good price. When we received the box, the contents were broken- she tried to contact the online store and they went out of business the next week! Luckily, American Express reimbursed us.

    If you find a good retailer, they will work with you on the price. For example, I was shopping for a Yamaha 650/5760 receiver and saw them online for around $300 (msrp is $499). The online dealer wasn't authorized so my local retailer wouldn't match the price. However, what he did do was sell me the floor model for $325. Cashlz made a good point- this way I can return it/exchange it with ease and bring it right to their store if there are any issues with it!!

    I'm all for shopping at the local, privately owned shops- I admire how they compete with the corporate, mass market retailers. Remember, if your local retailer really wants your business, they should be able to cut you some type of deal. Just think about what the ease of returning and exchanging is worth to you in dollars and go from there. The thing I hate about the huge, corporate retailers is how they are so impersonal and non-flexible.

    I remember when I was shopping for a TV years ago at Best Buy- Sears had it for $75 less, but they were out of stock, so I went to BB to see if they would match the price. They said they can only match the price if I had an advertisement with the sale price. There wasn't an ad since it was Sears' regular price. They wouldn't even call them or look online- needless to say, I didn't buy the TV from BB.

    I do agree with HokieVT about the variety online- that's hard to beat!

    Regardless of what you decide, make sure you enjoy what your doing. Remember, this is a hobby and we're supposed to enjoy it!

    Good luck!
    Eric

  9. #9
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    You should have sued Best Buy if that were true!

    First off I'm not defending Best Buy but if in fact they truely wouldn't match a price for you, which is the store motto, you would have had grounds for a great legal suit. Best Buy or any of the large chains are not stupid or obnoxious enough to attempt that. Personally most of the people who work in Best Buy are morons but if you know what you want ahead of time without having to ask them about the product, they're a great place to shop. Same as Circuit City. Some of these chains have online sites where prices on their products differ from what is sold in their retail stores. The Chain store will give you the lower of the 2 prices.

    If you have the choice to shop at a chain/"name store"store or a "little guy store", you'd be a total fool, if money were a factor, to buy at the "little guy store" over the chain/"name store". The chain/"name store" store is basically obligated to give you the lowest price being offered locally and will refund the difference, with proof, if in fact you paid more, on a 14-30 day period. Nobody in their right mind seeks to negotiate prices in a store if they can buy the same item at the guaranteed low price from a chain store/"name store".

    Your philosophy of 35% sounds reasonable to me (I have a 25-30% after shipping philosophy) but I don't agree with your too good to be true, probably is, philosophy.
    I have bought some items at totally amazing prices from (authorized) dealers (who had decent online feedback) at these prices. IE, on Amazon for example, you could see a variance of price on a receiver of several hundreds of dollars between one seller and another for a sealed item. The same on Ebay. In a bunch of these cases, they're selling an excellent product that say, may have been replaced by a "newer model" which is why they've gone down so much in price, but the item is a great deal for the customer.

    The best advice is to just use common sense and your gut instinct.




    Quote Originally Posted by Eric Z
    Here's my $.02- I only buy online if the deal is absolutely amazing (>35%) and it's an authorized dealer. The interesting thing is that you will very rarely find that type of a deal. If it's too good to be true, it probably is. My wife bought a few non-audio equipment things online from a store that had a good price. When we received the box, the contents were broken- she tried to contact the online store and they went out of business the next week! Luckily, American Express reimbursed us.

    If you find a good retailer, they will work with you on the price. For example, I was shopping for a Yamaha 650/5760 receiver and saw them online for around $300 (msrp is $499). The online dealer wasn't authorized so my local retailer wouldn't match the price. However, what he did do was sell me the floor model for $325. Cashlz made a good point- this way I can return it/exchange it with ease and bring it right to their store if there are any issues with it!!

    I'm all for shopping at the local, privately owned shops- I admire how they compete with the corporate, mass market retailers. Remember, if your local retailer really wants your business, they should be able to cut you some type of deal. Just think about what the ease of returning and exchanging is worth to you in dollars and go from there. The thing I hate about the huge, corporate retailers is how they are so impersonal and non-flexible.

    I remember when I was shopping for a TV years ago at Best Buy- Sears had it for $75 less, but they were out of stock, so I went to BB to see if they would match the price. They said they can only match the price if I had an advertisement with the sale price. There wasn't an ad since it was Sears' regular price. They wouldn't even call them or look online- needless to say, I didn't buy the TV from BB.

    I do agree with HokieVT about the variety online- that's hard to beat!

    Regardless of what you decide, make sure you enjoy what your doing. Remember, this is a hobby and we're supposed to enjoy it!

    Good luck!
    Eric

  10. #10
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    Good points, Hershon!

    I'm not trying to get something for nothing by suing them. Too many people these days just want to sue over anything. What would I have sued for, the $75 price difference, haha- that makes me laugh. As a consumer, I can opt to shop wherever I wish- even if I want to spend a little more money to receive better, more personal customer service!

    It's a catch 22 though because if you have complaints, it can sometimes be easier to express your concern to these larger companies because they have much deeper pockets.

    Bottom line for Juneaudrey- just make sure you know the online store is in good standing with the BBB and has positive feedback. Additionally, make sure you know the consequences if they aren't authorized and you are familiar with the return policy.

    Good luck!

  11. #11
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    If you want to spend more money Eric, that is your right, but most people I know prefer to save money and buy the same product at the cheapest price possible. For whatever experience you said you had at Best Buy, I would call that a super exception to the rule if it in fact it happened the way you said, as these chain stores could not stay in business with a reputation as shady dealers who don't honor their store policy on matching the lowest price. Personally, I would never rely on any technical advice or recommendations from anyone who works in Best Buy and to a somewhat lessor degree Circuit City, as these people are generally, there are exceptions to this, total morons. I would rely on information from this board, internet searches for reviews & higher end stores for recommendations on things like TV's, receivers, speakers, etc. when chosing what to buy but I'd use Best Buy, Circuit City or other chains or online placesto buy the product at the cheapest price once you know what you want to buy. Again use common sense and your gut instinct.

  12. #12
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    I think it's funny how you wrote, "...if it in fact it happened the way you said..." I can understand people on this site may bend the truth a bit and also flat out lie; I am definitely being completely honest regarding this experience. I know I am not alone with the poor customer service at BB, CC, and the like.

    I'm just glad I found a retailer that has better prices and service than these stores. However, I do buy CDs and some DVDs there- I can usually find good deals online though.

    Nice chatting!
    Eric

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    Can anybody relate a story about this?

    http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?...ge&r=&session=
    Friends help friends move,
    Good friends help friends move bodies....

  14. #14
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    Lightbulb Shopping on line?

    Quote Originally Posted by juneaudrey
    Hello All,

    Have anyone brought HT equipment from an on line store? I'm thinking about purchasing a reciever & it's almost $200.00 cheaper on line.

    Which on line store do you recommend? Any problem buying from on line stores?



    june
    Im the type that wants to see the product in the store and to listen to it with my music ! I trust the store with owner is there to assist me .He'll even price match and as demo always at lower price with full warranty! Pat.P

  15. #15
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    You can get an excellent price on receiver online Stores do not match online prices

    The post above is totally wrong if you are interpreting it to mean that stores will match online prices. Repeat after me, no Store will match an online price. The minor exception is a store perhaps matching its own online price.

    You can get an excellent receiver, new & sealed online from places like Amazon.com (their sellers not necessarily Amazon) all the prices are listed under the model number and going through Google and checking out various price comparisons as well as the stores feedback. I saved several hundred dollars even with shipping including buying my receivers. The main thing is, you'll have to know what specific brand and model to order from, I would not blindly ask an onsite site for their recommendation. Again, if a place does not have much feedback I wouldn't chance doing busines with them. Shipments have arrived believe it or not very fast.

    Ebay used to be a great way to go but not necessarily so anymore as the sellers have gotten greedy with their prices and some of the bidders have no common sense (if the sellers friends aren't bidding up the prices in the first place). Never and I repeat never order anything over $50 from someone with less than 10 feedback and 90% positive feedback. Always carefully read what as being sold as alot of people are selling refurbished stuff and listing as brand new refurbished. The good news on Ebay is there are alot of good electronics type places that sell alot of excellent recently discontinued sealed stuff at great prices that you don't have to bid on. IE, you could have a 2003 JVC receiver that has now been deleted for the 2004 model, and there will be little difference but a huge drop in price.

    Again go by your common sense and instinct.


    Quote Originally Posted by PAT.P
    Im the type that wants to see the product in the store and to listen to it with my music ! I trust the store with owner is there to assist me .He'll even price match and as demo always at lower price with full warranty! Pat.P

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by hershon
    The post above is totally wrong if you are interpreting it to mean that stores will match online prices. Repeat after me, no Store will match an online price. The minor exception is a store perhaps matching its own online price.

    You can get an excellent receiver, new & sealed online from places like Amazon.com (their sellers not necessarily Amazon) all the prices are listed under the model number and going through Google and checking out various price comparisons as well as the stores feedback. I saved several hundred dollars even with shipping including buying my receivers. The main thing is, you'll have to know what specific brand and model to order from, I would not blindly ask an onsite site for their recommendation. Again, if a place does not have much feedback I wouldn't chance doing busines with them. Shipments have arrived believe it or not very fast.

    Ebay used to be a great way to go but not necessarily so anymore as the sellers have gotten greedy with their prices and some of the bidders have no common sense (if the sellers friends aren't bidding up the prices in the first place). Never and I repeat never order anything over $50 from someone with less than 10 feedback and 90% positive feedback. Always carefully read what as being sold as alot of people are selling refurbished stuff and listing as brand new refurbished. The good news on Ebay is there are alot of good electronics type places that sell alot of excellent recently discontinued sealed stuff at great prices that you don't have to bid on. IE, you could have a 2003 JVC receiver that has now been deleted for the 2004 model, and there will be little difference but a huge drop in price.

    Again go by your common sense and instinct.
    No one is right and no one is wrong but at least give people a chance to give their thoughts without criticizing every word.
    Last edited by Geoffcin; 11-03-2004 at 03:24 PM. Reason: flame retardant

  17. #17
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    If I post something that turns out to not be true or misleading, I welcome people to correct me and I taken no offense from it & if I did the same to you, don't take it personally.

    Most normal people choose to buy at the place where they get the cheapest price for the same quality merchandise. If you chose to want to spend extra money out of your own pocket to support the small businessman because obviously you have enough money to do so, that's your right but most people don't have that luxury.

    In regards to matching prices, repeat after me, retail stores will not match online prices unless its possibly from their own web site.
    Last edited by Geoffcin; 11-03-2004 at 03:23 PM. Reason: Flame retardant

  18. #18
    Silence of the spam Site Moderator Geoffcin's Avatar
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    Step back guys, the election is over.

  19. #19
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    Lightbulb Shoping on line ?

    Quote Originally Posted by hershon
    If I post something that turns out to not be true or misleading, I welcome people to correct me and I taken no offense from it & if I did the same to you, don't take it personally.

    Most normal people choose to buy at the place where they get the cheapest price for the same quality merchandise. If you chose to want to spend extra money out of your own pocket to support the small businessman because obviously you have enough money to do so, that's your right but most people don't have that luxury.

    In regards to matching prices, repeat after me, retail stores will not match online prices unless its possibly from their own web site.
    Maybe in the State they dont but here in Ottawa Ontario Canada if I could prove it they will match the price!!! Pat.P

  20. #20
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    And I believe in the Easter Bunny Pat

    I'll tell you what. I'll be happy to start a web site for which I sell Plasma HD TV's for $100, etc., etc., and I'm sure the places in Ottawa will match those prices for you.
    Quote Originally Posted by PAT.P
    Maybe in the State they dont but here in Ottawa Ontario Canada if I could prove it they will match the price!!! Pat.P

  21. #21
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    shopping on line ?

    Quote Originally Posted by hershon
    I'll tell you what. I'll be happy to start a web site for which I sell Plasma HD TV's for $100, etc., etc., and I'm sure the places in Ottawa will match those prices for you.
    Im talking retail store that is on line in Canada ! Pat.P

  22. #22
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    Talking Shopping on line

    Quote Originally Posted by Geoffcin
    Step back guys, the election is over.
    "Who won " Pat.P

  23. #23
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    It proves the little guy deserves to get skrewed!

    Quote Originally Posted by PAT.P
    "Who won " Pat.P
    As far as I'm concerned this proves the US is the stupidist nation around. I don't blame the rich for voting for Bush- if I was loaded I would have voted for him too. But the stupid morons who don't have health insurance, can't buy perscription drugs from Canada, don't want to die in Iraq, they obviously helped reelect this guy and as far as I'm concerned they
    deserve to skrewed, they did it to themselves.

  24. #24
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    As far as I'm concerned this proves the US is the stupidist nation around.
    -------------------------

    heheheheheh.......own3d

    Face it, the hatas tried to make Bush into some kind of evil dictator and the voters didn't buy the BS. They tried and failed. It's over. Move on.
    Last edited by HokieVT; 11-04-2004 at 05:42 AM.

  25. #25
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    my last $.02- the retailer in which i buy great majority of all my electronics matches online prices as long as they are authorized dealers.

    now i'll just sit back and wait for someone to criticize this post and/or tell me i'm lying.

    it seems like some people on this site are angry at the world- people need to just chill out and enjoy life! i wish all the effort the general public puts into arguing a point about politics and similar things would be spent on volunteering and the like- Earth would be a much better place.

    Okay, now I'll really sit back and await the barrage of criticism!

    Enjoy!
    EZ

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