High Street vs. On-line

Okay, as we have a pretty wide demographic here, as well as some people inside the industry... I'm wondering about buying habits, apologies if this has been done before...

bevo commented in the set-ups thread about not being able to hear his new SVS sub before before purchase, as no-one local to him had one - and so has bought it online anyway.. It set me wondering about the age old argument "HIGH STREET vs ONLINE"

(worth noting that High street can be either independent specialist or retail park superstore chain... the two are NOT the same )

Open question:
Would you buy something without hearing it first?
Would you hear it at a dealer, then shop online?
Don't trust online, dealer only?
Dealer, schmealer, where's my bargains!?
Shopped online once, got my card cloned!!!!
Smarmy dealer sold me a Lemon!!
M'eh Either, you get what you pay for!


How does it work with you guys...?

matski

Would you buy something without hearing it first?

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Absolutely, as long as there is a reasonable return policy in the event I am not satisfied. 👍

matski

Would you hear it at a dealer, then shop online?

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No. A dealer pays for a great deal of overhead to provide their customers the opportunity to see, feel, and test out the equipment first hand, thus they deserve the sale if I am going to use them to check out equipment.

matski

Don't trust online, dealer only?

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Not at all, in fact the majority of my purchases are online, and while I am sure many dealers are very trustworthy and often run by dedicated enthusiasts, and not just for profit, unfortunately though there are also dealers who are practically thieves and charlatans out to con people out of their hard earned money.

matski

Dealer, schmealer, where's my bargains!?

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I absolutely love a great bargain, which is also why the majority of my purchases are online... and with a return policy, I am able to test out equipment in my home, and as any informed audio enthusiast will tell you, when it comes to sound more than anything else, the room it's in plays a critical role in how good it will sound, and no matter how fancy a listening room a dealer has, it is never going to perfectly replicate what it will sound like in your own home.

matski

Shopped online once, got my card cloned!!!!

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I'm guessing by cloned you mean the card info was stolen? If so, then no.

matski

Smarmy dealer sold me a Lemon!!

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It's happened... but wasn't a big deal.

matski

M'eh Either, you get what you pay for!

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My experience, especially in audio equipment more than anything else is that you most definitely do NOT always get what you paid for in terms of quality. There are speakers that costs thousands of dollars that sound no better than those costing just hundreds. However, if someone doesn't bother to check all their options before making a purchase they only have themselves to blame... as no retailer whether they are B&M or online is forcing anyone to buy their products.

matski

How does it work with you guys...?

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As I said, I purchase from dealers as well as online, both have their advantages and disadvantages.

However, the reason I mostly purchase online is that not only are the prices usually much better online, and in most cases I don't have to pay any taxes and it's delivered to my home for much less than from a dealer.

Most importantly though, by purchasing online and having it delivered to my home I can test the equipment out in my home and not in some screening/listening room that is nothing like the room I have it in, and in the event I'm not pleased, I can return more easily to an online retailer, then having to haul it myself back to the dealer.

Basically for me if its something large and expensive like a TV or a surround sound system I will most likely try in store and also buy there. Things like these really need to be experienced in person and if I end up paying slightly more im cool with that. Plus its much easier to return large stuff to a store than an online retailer.

If its something smaller like an mp3 player or mobile phone I will most likely research about the product on the net, read reviews etc then buy online. I dont need to try these things in person and if im really not satisfied I can return them with not that much hassle.

Basically I do both and dont really have any issues with either. The UK consumer rights are pretty robust so I feel protected if any issues arise.

Robin.