Sloop John B
And any old music will do…
Don't be silly, why would any dealer "openly offer" a discount?
However also don't be silly and ask - "is that the best you can do?"
You might be surprised.
.sjb
Naim December price hike
- Thread starter Mynamemynaim
- Start date
Don't be silly, why would any dealer "openly offer" a discount?
However also don't be silly and ask - "is that the best you can do?"
You might be surprised.
.sjb
James
Lord of the Erg\o/s
It's a bugbear of mine that modern preamps rarely offer a tape loop. Some of us still keep a deck or two, you know.
DFS sofas.
pocketkitchen
Registered User
I could name at least 50 I can think of who’ll do you a deal by verbally offering you discount. Will they advertise the prices online? No, they won’t. You’ll have to pick up the phone and negotiate. It’s easily done though. As with other high-priced goods, the listed prices are just that, listed. Resale price maintenance is illegal in this country and Naim and their dealers both know it, hence discounts aren’t difficult to find.
For me when I had a 87 vintage Hi Cap ....that Something was a very audible buzzing from the transformer.....I should have upgraded to a supercap or should that be supercrap for double the hum
Some Naim boxes are buzzing and some not, hardly think this has anything to do with H&F trafos.
MJS
Technical Tinkerer
It has a lot to do with H+F transformers - they knew how to make them. They were well impregnated with resin and ultra silent, both electrically and mechanically.
It also has a lot to do with Naim's choice of case design that necessitates the use of flatter aspect ratio transformers. I'm quite sure if they could be made taller and squarer that some of the hum problems would be diminished.
However a lot of hum is also caused by DC on the mains and that's generally local in origin. I must get around to designing a DC blocker.
It also has a lot to do with Naim's choice of case design that necessitates the use of flatter aspect ratio transformers. I'm quite sure if they could be made taller and squarer that some of the hum problems would be diminished.
However a lot of hum is also caused by DC on the mains and that's generally local in origin. I must get around to designing a DC blocker.
Southeastern
She called me baby, like an old romantic
They do 'sales', not 'discounts', different.
They also only generally carry their own products, therefore have no licensing agreements to be wary of.
norliss
pfm Member
You've just reminded me of a line from one of Ronnie Corbett's monologues on The Two Ronnies. He was talking about something then gave a date; a date he specifically remembered because Allied Carpets wasn't having a sale at that time.
But are the Naim price rises out of step with other equivalent UK based brands like Linn, ATC, Harbeth, Audio Note, PMC,... that have built up the high value of the brand in the eyes of a few audiophiles in a broadly similar manner? My guess would be no. The declining manufacturing and market conditions here in the UK for the type of goods offered is likely to be the primary driver of change. I doubt we are going to see a seismic change like we did in the 70s with the appearance of the "subjective" audiophile phenomenon but the expensive luxury audio goods business is changing/evolving.
On a more positive note one of the things I would like to see is the appearance of genuine bespoke home audio designed for both the visual and acoustic integration into a room. Computer based design and manufacture plus the number of people with excessive disposable income would seem to have made this viable. I would really like to believe that the ostentatious shiny bling seen at places like the Munich audio show is not addressing the whole market.
Yes, in the normal operation of a functioning market, that is what happens - retailers advertise lower prices and attract customers away from competitors.
windhoek
The Phoolosopher
I wouldn't presume to know.
Timcat
pfm Member
Fair enough, but surely the demand for tape loops must be vanishingly small. If I were interested in this feature, I think I would invest in a nice vintage pre-amp at a fraction of the cost of anything new that's any good.
I think Exposure pre amps have tape loops, so if you want new, you could do a lot worse than buy one at a fraction of the cost of anything Naim.
Discounts on top brands? So that will be Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's, Morrison's. Nobody much.
For non ultra luxury goods, this is true. But in the world of the $1M handbag you don't ever offer a discount, because if it's only $500k then obviously it's not as good, is it? Worse still, the customer who handed over full price last week is seriously pissed off because they no longer have a million dollar bag and do you think that they'll be back next year paying full ticket for the bigger, better, $2M version? Not a chance.
Southeastern
She called me baby, like an old romantic
The power of the big retailer...they wont lose their licensing agreements if they undercut. It's not rocket science to understand how it works.
I remember Auralic stripping one dealer in the States of his resale writes for offering below rrp deals.
Southeastern
She called me baby, like an old romantic
Actually, yes. The first to have a £2m item is a thing in those circles.
Do you have much experience of the handbag market?
Actually, yes.
I bought one for a girlfriend some years ago, and I held one for a friend while she went to the Ladies. How about you?
James
Lord of the Erg\o/s
Accuphase preamps have tape loops too, and they are just as reassuringly expensive. I'll just have to slum it with my collection of vintage preamps.