Need help ASAP! What is a reasonable discount for speakers?? (1 Viewer)

[Dan Hitchman]

A friend of mine and I are going down to Denver on Friday to seriously look for speakers, however the brands (Totem, B&W, Alon, etc.) we're looking for specifically are not available via the internet (sadly).

Personally, I haven't really shopped hard for new speakers in about 17 years and was wondering what range of discounts I should realistically be asking for at a dealer (probably not a chain store).

10% or 15%? Is 20% off retail not in the cards? I know if you say nothing, they probably will gladly sell to you at full retail, but that's something I'm not really prepared to do, especially since the dealer markup can be almost obscene depending on the speaker.

I could sure use some advice on how to best go about negotiating with these types of dealers.

Thanks a bunch!

Dan

 

[kevin_hart]

15-20% is the maximum you should expect unless you are really good at bargaining. The brands that you are lookig at are higher-end and these dealers are somewhat less prone to discounting. As well if you are looking at the Totems you might want to nake really friendly with someone in Canada as they are Canadian made, this means that the US retail price is VERY close to the Canadian retail price, factor in the exchange though and you just saved 30-35$ without even getting a discount. I have a friend that works for a retailer that sells Totem so if you decide to go that way drop me a line and I will see what I can do for you.

 

[Shane Martin]

10% to 15% max if that.. I don't know many B&W dealers or Totem dealers who like to come down and need to in order to make a sale.

If you can get more than 15%, don't hesistate and mess around. If those are the speakers you want, buy them especially at that price. IF you are forced to pay retail, do it anyway because frankly if those are the speakers you want and will pass on them to find a better deal, those are not the speakers you want IMHO. You'll pay the price and be happy regardless of the discount.

 

[BradJudy]

I've done a bit of shopping in the area. Which dealers are you hitting? B&W suggests ListenUp (Boulder or Denver), Totem suggests Recycled Audio (Boulder), but I don't know who sells Alon (Cherry Creek?). I'd be happy to relate any of my shopping experiences.

ListenUp is really hit or miss on the salesperson - I've seen some decent ones and some nearly incompetent ones. Recycled generally has good guys, especially the manager.

Are you buying two speakers, a 5.1 setup, any electronics? The more you buy the better discount you are likely to get. Don't expect anything more than 10% on a single pair of speakers.

Shane's advice is good - don't pass on what you want to get something that's a better 'deal'.

BTW: If you're interested in stopping by to listen to Ascends drop me a note (although it looks like you're shooting higher) or you can listen to Onix Rockets or Refs if you drop a note to Sean Parque at AV123.

 

[Dan Hitchman]

Thanks for the input guys!

I'm going to pick up on this more tomorrow. Some good words of wisdom here. Definitely don't think I'd get internet pricing, but something's better than nothing I guess. For B&W that does indeed mean ListenUp (the monopoly play on some brands is astounding).

I don't know if I'd do business with a semi-chain if they couldn't at least do 10% off (or a little more if I decided on getting a whole set). I mean even the couple "mom 'n' pop" stores in my area do 10% off without even haggling (too bad they don't sell some of the brands I'm looking at).

Thanks again!

Dan

 

[Alex Prosak]

Dan,

I strongly recommend dropping Steve Ozmai or Sean Parque at av123.com a line to arrange an audition. Their Rockets and Ref lines are truly fantastic speakers. I recently purchased a full Rocket system and I'm ecstatic. I think their 750s comare well with the B&W Nautilus 804s and 803s for a fair bit less money. They're a very different sound than the B&Ws, detailed but more laid back. They are also very well balanced with very tight bass. Are they better? That's up to the listener but they are more to my liking. Their said to sound more similar to Sonus Faber Grand Pianos or Vienna Acoustics Beethovens.

I haven't heard any of the other speakers you mentioned you want to audition.

Alex

 

[Lewis Besze]

Dan,
Tweeter sells Vienna Acoustics[sorry, I disagree that the Rocket 750 would "measure up" to the Beethoven],and the salesman indicated to me that,between you walk and making a sale,he would come down on price to "get a deal".
They're awesome speakers.
Good luck!

 

[Alex Prosak]

The review I read indicated that the Rockets may not be quite at the Beethoven or Grand Piano level but they were pretty close. For a cost difference of $2600 (Beethovens vs 750s), you're certainly at the point of diminishing returns on your investment.

Have fun with your auditions and good luck finding the speaker you're looking for.

 

[Shane Martin]

I don't know if I'd do business with a semi-chain if they couldn't at least do 10% off (or a little more if I decided on getting a whole set). I mean even the couple "mom 'n' pop" stores in my area do 10% off without even haggling (too bad they don't sell some of the brands I'm looking at).

I would think you could get atleast 10% off at the very minimum but even that might seem like pulling teeth depending on how much of a reputation you have with said dealer. As long as you build a repoir(sp?) then you should be able to finagle(sp?) 10% out of them.

 

[Lewis Besze]

The review I read indicated that the Rockets may not be quite at the Beethoven or Grand Piano level but they were pretty close. For a cost difference of $2600 (Beethovens vs 750s), you're certainly at the point of diminishing returns on your investment.

I actually auditoned both,not read about it,naturaly not at the same place.
If you worry about the price difference the "Bach"[$1499/pair]will easily match the 750 IMO,for sheer quality,but for power handling and looks the 750 is tough to beat.

 

[Dan Hitchman]

I think I've decided to go with a pair of B&W DM604's in the near future, and another pair for the rear later. My friend thought they were also great for the price and will more than likely get a pair before I can.

The salesman we talked with was willing to work with us on the pricing more than I expected he would.

The size and weight distribution is also a plus. You sit down and the tweeters are at exactly the right ear-level height, and the speakers are not wobbly or top heavy at all without having to buy extra stands for them (as with the Rocket 750's). They're heavy SOB's too!

The Polk LSi line also uses the exact same Vifa tweeter as the Rocket's. I've also read reviews of other speakers that use the same Vifa ring tweeter and they come to the same conclusions I did when listening two extensive times to the Polk's. On certain frequencies on certain musical and vocal passages the sound takes on an unnatural quality. Hard to describe, but there nonetheless, and somewhat distracting.

The B&W's DM604's, to me, had a better balance between high's, mid's, and low's than from some speakers I listened to, even the JM-Focal Labs models around the same price range, or even slightly higher (around $2,000 a pair). The imaging was IMHO superb for $1,400 speakers (luckily, I can get them for less). There are always certain build and sonic compromises to be made at specific price points, and I believe they favored the B&W's for now.

That's not to say that there aren't better speakers out there than the DM604's (and I've heard them-- although they were another $800 or more per pair), but I know at least B&W will be around for a while and I can also pick up some matching speakers down the road a spell (I still remember the internet broohaha over the Swan Diva's, but then that line got dumped). Some peace of mind anyhow.

Again, thanks for the help!

Dan