White Van Speaker Scams (1 Viewer)

[Seth=L]

Thank you, I hadn't thought of that, I will being changing it promptly.

 

[Alex/d]

Seth, I have Fritos. And bean dip. Yummy.

 

[Jimi C]

Prove that they are sold out of the back of vans or prove that they are a ripoff?

 

[JeremyErwin]

If I remember correctly, the defining feature of most of these scams is a hugely inflated MSRP, often in the thousand of dollars. The scammer calculates that his mark will not be in the least bit familiar with how far thousands of dollars actually goes, and perhaps not even aware of how far a couple of hundred dollars can go, if spent wisely.
A somewhat charitable review of Theater Research speakers

 

[Jimi C]

Ebay is the new "back of a van".

 

[Mike Frezon]

Brig:
eBay is not "the" scam. The point of this thread is to identify a shady marketing of certain speaker lines that all fall into the same modus operandi: Very high MSRPs and low overhead.
Historically, these speakers have been pitched out of the back of a white van in the parking lot of a mall near an electronics store or high-end audio outlet. I think Jimi was making the point that some of these speakers are now being marketed as such on eBay.
I believe that many people are happy with these speakers after they have purchased them...and some aren't--as is often the case with most things in life. The point is...the deal is not really as good as is being made out by the guys making the pitch. And...some of the speakers are really junk.

 

[JeremyErwin]

Psst!
You wanna buy a speaker?

Color: Pure Piano Black lacquer Finsih Digital Series 5.1 CHANNEL SPECIFICATIONS 6 Piece System 1000 Watts Total System Power Sub Woofer : 250 Watts Program Amplifier Satellites & Center : 750 Watts Program Power (5x150w) 10" Long Throw Active Driver Digital Audio Video Input, Digital Output Built in Digital AM/FM Receiver Digital LCD Display Bass, Treble, Full Function Remote Control Finish: Pure Piano Black lacquer Gross weight 122 lbs THIS IS A TOP OF THE LINE SPEAKER SYSTEM. FEATURED IN MAGAZINES SUCH AS THE ROBB REPORT, DVD ETC, MUSICIANS HOTLINE, AND HOME THEATER BUILDER. ENGINEERED TO PROVIDE THE VERY BEST IN SOUND AND QUALITY.*** TR-THEATER RESEARCH'S COMMITMENT TO YOU! People, who know sound, know TR-THEATER RESEARCH it is a name that commands respect because TR-THEATER RESEARCH speakers are ranked among the finest in the world. TR-THEATER RESEARCH has pioneered many internationally acclaimed innovations. No other manufacturer has done more to advance the art of digital loudspeaker engineering. Cutting edge professionals are launching digital loudspeakers and the element is TR-THEATER RESEARCH Professional technology and only the highest quality speaker components are used. Making great speakers is an art, same as a live concert performance. TR-THEATER RESEARCH's standard policy is to never get satisfied. The customer is No.1! We attract more and more satisfied customers by providing them with prompt service, quality products, reasonable prices, and excellent customer service. We are always striving to improve our products and service. BRING THE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE HOME! !! THIS HOME THEATER SYSTEM WOULD GO AWESOME WITH YOUR NEW PLAYSTATION 3,X-BOX 360 OR Wii SYSTEMS !!
Starting bid:US $99.99
Shipping costs:US $148.00

Of course, without the "fell off the back of a truck" or "we accidentally ordered too many and the boss won't pay for storage fees", it lacks some of the charm of the original.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Brig: No need to roll your eyes at me. Read my post carefully. I said some people really like their speakers brought in this fashion. But, I also noted that some of the speakers sold in this manner are junk.
I never once implied that your speakers are junk. I would have no idea.
I was just simply trying to explain Jimi's comment to you about "eBay" and it's connection to the "white van" method of marketing.

 

[John Garcia]

There are plenty of People who think Bose's little cube systems sound great as well.....
What really hurts is that moment when you realize that you've been suckered, because even with the out of the back of the van deal, they are STILL not worth what you paid. They use the inflated prices to make them seem valid, but I can build a nice looking box, stick some components in it and claim they are worth thousands but you're getting them for a couple of hundred so they are a great deal too. I could do it all day long because there are a lot of people out there who simply don't know any better and the point of this thread is to LET PEOPLE KNOW about these scams.

 

[ThomasC]

If I remember correctly, the defining feature of most of these scams is a hugely inflated MSRP, often in the thousand of dollars. The scammer calculates that his mark will not be in the least bit familiar with how far thousands of dollars actually goes, and perhaps not even aware of how far a couple of hundred dollars can go, if spent wisely.
A somewhat charitable review of Theater Research speakers

The link to Canyon Audio's website in the review goes to a generic site. Looks like they're not in business anymore. Just another fly-by-night operation, it seems.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Anyone got any idea what happened to Caveman's (Brig's) posts?
It was his post I was responding to in my last post as he was claiming how much he was enjoying his "Theater Research" speakers. He had taken offense at my last post and seemed to think I was calling his own set of speakers "junk".

 

[mylan]

Mike, his posts are being systematically removed, either by him (not likely) or by the mods here (most likely). He does still have posts on another speaker forum but i'll bet they will be gone by today. This "white van scam" cancer is spreading, I just answered a thread here:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...d.php?t=250132

 

[Seth=L]

Mike, his posts are being systematically removed, either by him (not likely) or by the mods here (most likely). He does still have posts on another speaker forum but i'll bet they will be gone by today. This "white van scam" cancer is spreading, I just answered a thread here:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...d.php?t=250132

He was banned, he made some posts over the course of a couple of days or something. He made some ignorant comments regarding the XBOX 360 and it is still on the forum. Admin decided to use the post as an example of what not to do on these forums.
Wasn't Brig Tamlin the name of the slow weather man in "Anchorman"? How convenient to have such a fitting screen name and name to fit the profile of a moron troller.
"is"

 

[Mike Frezon]

I see. Must be admins removing the posts because if he was doing it himself the post itself would remain...but the space would be blank. I didn't realize if someone got banned all their posts were removed.
==================
Makes all the sense in the world that eBay (the internet) would be a perfect venue for this kind of speaker marketing. While I understand buying speakers "sight unseen" or "sound unheard" from reputable companies or retailers online, I'm surprised people would make that kind of purchase without even a listen. But, I'm easily surprised.

 

[Seth=L]

I see. Must be admins removing the posts because if he was doing it himself the post itself would remain...but the space would be blank. I didn't realize if someone got banned all their posts were removed.
==================
Makes all the sense in the world that eBay (the internet) would be a perfect venue for this kind of speaker marketing. While I understand buying speakers "sight unseen" or "sound unheard" from reputable companies or retailers online, I'm surprised people would make that kind of purchase without even a listen. But, I'm easily surprised.

I am not sure that they make common practice of removing posts. I think they would only do that if the individual is just here to cause problems. Like spammers, their threads get removed.
"is"

 

[barneygumble]

I bought some "Audiophile" brand speakers out of a van one time, I know it was a scam at the time. I talked them down to $100 a pair, then sold them to an idiot I worked with for $200. Don't worry, that guy was a total jackass. A few weeks later I asked how the speakers were working out, he said they sounded good. Another happy customer.

 

[Raymond lee Leggs]

What's wrong with a side speaker? I wish I has a pair If i could get a set for 40 dollars at a pawn shop I wish I could get all the speakers in the Va!n
Theres nothing like 100 speakers all pumping the same song around your body! my mom would think Im NUTS and so would the neighbors!
I dont care where a speaker is sold as long as it sounds good as long as it isnt stolen or worse come from big beefy men who are holding AK-47's be cause at that moment speakers are the least of your worries!
On a side note 2 pair would be good enough!

 

[mtwhickory]

I recently purchased a pair of the Blue Ridge Sound Eng. HR-1 speakers and I can assure you these are not "white van" speakers. I have a lot of experience with scam speakers having sold AV for 7 years (4 at Hi-Fi Buys in Atlanta and 3 at Pyramid Audio in Anchorage). Occasionally, I would have customers come in and tell me about their "great" speakers and, like many of you, when I heard the names I new where they bought them. But what really killed me was all the times I heard "Isn't Bose the best speaker?" As a matter of fact, as I was looking for a good pair of monitors recently for a second stereo-only system I stopped by the closest Tweeter (Winston Salem, NC) and asked what their best monitors were. After explaining to him that I was looking for speakers not flat-screens the salesman promptly said that their best small speaker was Bose. I immediately headed for the door. In the past, I have sold and been impressed by Monitor Audio, Celestion, Sonus Faber, Definitive Technology (Definitely Technology is a great name for a scam speaker!!), Mirage/Energy, Snell, Paradigm, and I owned a set of Magnepans for a year. I watched and bid on several older Celestions (SL600, SL700), Monitor Audio(Studio 10) but these, and of course the Sonus Fabers, were out of my budget range. As far as new speakers, I was looking at ONIX X-LS, EPOS ELS-3, or the PSB Alpha B-1. Basically, I wanted champagne on a beer budget. The most important thing for me was depth and soundstaging- I wanted the speakers to disappear. Since this was a second system with a Nakamichi receiver I didn't want to spend much money. After reading reviews and bidding on speakers out of my range (the Celestion SL700si went for around $1200) I came across the BRSE speaker. The first pair I bid on went to a higher bidder for around $650. The second set I won for $499. I was a little worried after reading this string but I hadn't heard anything negative from anyone that actually owned a pair. After I received them and opened the double boxes I placed them on my trusty 30" Monitor Audio stands (which are about 6" too high for these speakers). The speakers are very solidly built and passed the tried and true knuckle rap test. I haven't taken any drivers out to look inside yet but they appear to be made of standard 3/4 to 1 inch MDF with real wood veneer overlay. They are bi-wirable (which I use). How many "white van" speakers do you know of that use 5-way biwire posts? The drivers are recessed in the cabinet so they are flush with the baffle (again more expensive than scam speakers would use). Since they are not fully broken in yet and I haven't filled the stands with lead I don't want to go into a formal review yet (later on Audiogon and AudioReview) but I did do a few comparisons with my HT system speakers (Monitor Audio S8) on my B&K AVR307. At first, I thought the bass sounded weak. The S8 speakers go as low as 33hz so that was part of it. After a couple of days of burn-in I got my trusty Radio Shack analyzer out and used the on-board B&K tone generator and sure enough, the HR-1 goes at least as low as 42hz! The claimed freq response does seem unbelievably flat, but I can't verify that because all I have is normal living rooms. After several tracks of AB comparison (Steely Dan, MFSL AJA; Eric Clapton, MTV Live; and Peter Gabriel, SO & US) I noticed that the BRSE speakers are more open sounding with a bigger soundstage than the Monitor Audios. The highs are very good with excellent vocals. And on music I couldn't tell much difference in low freq loss. Overall, I am impressed. I haven't hooked up my Nak 2-channel system yet since we are renovating the only available room is being renovated and I haven't bought a wall mount for my turntable yet. I haven't taken any pics yet but will post some when I do.

 

[Philip Hamm]

Dude. Paragraphs.

 

[Rich Allen]

Interesting website. They make a lot of claims, that's for sure.

Now we have someone just come on and register and start out singing their praises in their first post. A big debate over them in the AVS forum.

Well, the proof is in the pudding and one must really listen to them to judge them. Any dealers where one can listen to them?

BTW, isn't Hickory somewhere in the Blue Ridge Mountains?