ABES????????? Any feed back? (1 Viewer)

[Earl Simpson]

I may make a purchase at ABES. Any last words.

 

[JohnRice]

Do you mean Abes of Maine, though they are actually in somewhere like Brooklyn?

They have been around for years, but I would still be aware. A lot of grey market stuff and other tricks with them. What are you considering buying?

 

[Earl Simpson]

http://www.abesofmaine.com/item.cfm?sku=SNDVPCX870
What do you think???

 

[JohnRice]

Well,
Crutchfield has it for $600. Etronics, usually my low price standard for a reasonably reputable dealer, has it for $428.88 and Abe's has it for $260. Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot cattle prod. But that's just my opinion.

 

[DonaldB]

Abe's is very shady. They've tried to bait-and-switch me before and their actual selling price is often much higher than what they advertise in magazines, though I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that the prices on their website are accurate.

I would personally avoid them.

 

[JohnRice]

and their actual selling price is often much higher than what they advertise in magazines

That's one of the oldest and sleaziest scams going, which has faded with all the online ordering going on. You would call to order something and be told there was a price increase, but since the ad has to be in three months in advance, it isn't reflected in the ad price. There is always a disclaimer to allow them to do this. In fact, there is always that disclaimer with honest retailers. The kicker is, six months later, they are still advertising the "old" price.

The bottom line is, dealer cost on that unit is about $360-$400. So how do they manage to sell it for $260? Not by ethical methods I assure you.

 

[DonaldB]

I once called them to order a Pioneer DVD player that they had been advertising at a very attractive price for many months in a row. The salesman quoted me a price that was more than $100 than was advertised; when I pointed out to him what the ad's price was, he had the nerve to tell me, "I think you're mistaken." I called back the next day and got a different salesperson -- this one told me, "I think you're seeing what you want to see." They wouldn't even acknowledge what their own ad stated!

Naturally, they continued to advertise it at the same low price for months after that.