Members EBulb Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 I live in Sydney Australia and i have really become angry at how much more we are expected to pay for audio gear in this country.. I have been looking at a drive rack 260.. Here is what i find on ebay via USA compared to a price in an aussie store EBAY http://cgi.ebay.com/DBX-DriveRack-260-110%2F220V-Brand-New-Authorized-Dealer!_W0QQitemZ300294695476QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20090218?IMSfp=TL090218139006r37662 AUSSIE STORE http://www.turramurramusic.com.au/Pages/CatalogueItem.aspx?CIID=2211 Now im aware that there is an exchange rate that would take up a bit of the margin.. At this time $699 USD converts to about $1100 AUD.. Also taking into account id get a discount at a store here it would probably end up being around $2300 if im lucky.. yet that's still $1200 more after the crap exchange rates! I realise there would be import taxes (but then again wouldnt USA pay something similar also ?) and/or there could be at least one extra dealer/importer in the chain but either way it does not and should not equate to $1200 on an item of that price... I understand people need to run a business and make money but considering even the ebay sale would be making money, this just equates to blatant highway robbery!! So my question is, who is making this extra profit and where do they live ? i wanna have a word with the {censored}ers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members robertfoshizzle Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 If I had to guess, it's probably not the retailer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 You might check to see what the import taxes are for products made in the U.S.A. It's different for every country unfortunately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 1, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 I think the taxes are about 10%... there is no way it accounts for variation of this magnitude.. I dont think its the retailer either, id say its the australian suppliers.. i hope people in Australia start buying overseas more and more to make these greedy assholes wake up.. Does anyone know how hard it is to run step down transformers on gear ? Does it risk any damage or compromise in operation in any way ? A lot of things have switching power supplies so i can buy overseas no problem, but for DBX stuff which doesnt im thinking i could just run a transformer if its not going to perform any different ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RANUI Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 I am currently using a DR 260 110v from a small 230/110v transformer with no problems. I notice that ProAudioStar have a number of 260s advertised in their shop, most at $999 and a couple at $699. They list different voltage configurations - 110/240v. Not sure if this is a new model with voltage switching or not. When I was looking 6/8 months ago the 240v models were a couple of hundred dollars or more dearer. I went with a second hand one, 110v. I live in NZ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 1, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 if i got one of these... http://cgi.ebay.com.au/250W-Isolating-Step-Down-Transformer-240V-to-120V-New_W0QQitemZ220369355886QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_15?hash=item220369355886&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A1%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318 it says it will do 250 watts... could i run a USA power board and use a bunch of 110 volt items off this one transformer ? i just looked at the DR260 manual and it says it only uses 25 watts of power.. would that suggest i could use up to 10 devices of 25 watts power without any trouble on a transformer like this ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members popgadget Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 if i got one of these...http://cgi.ebay.com.au/250W-Isolating-Step-Down-Transformer-240V-to-120V-New_W0QQitemZ220369355886QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_15?hash=item220369355886&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A1%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318it says it will do 250 watts... could i run a USA power board and use a bunch of 110 volt items off this one transformer ? i just looked at the DR260 manual and it says it only uses 25 watts of power.. would that suggest i could use up to 10 devices of 25 watts power without any trouble on a transformer like this ? Is Aus power 50hz or 60hz? If it is 50hz, that might make a difference to some gear designed for 60hz (as it is in the US) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 1, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 i think its 50hz... but wouldnt the transformer convert the hz also ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members popgadget Posted March 1, 2009 Members Share Posted March 1, 2009 i think its 50hz... but wouldnt the transformer convert the hz also ? No it would not. I am not sure how frequency dependent modern equipment without motors is. I would look up the specs for anything that you wight want to operate and see if it lists a specific frequency or "50/60hz". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members disinformation Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 If I had to guess, it's probably not the retailer. This guy is right - You'd be REALLY surprised and shocked as to how much margin the aust distributor puts on it - he probably doubles what it cost him before he sells it to rob at turra music - most stores probably only stack about 30-40% on top of their cost (most r.r.p.'s are 33-50% on top of dealer cost, depending on the distributor) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I think you will find that 10% is on the low side. There's also the added responsibility tjhat the importer has for warranty service and maintaining inventory of repair parts and the laws covering repairs and warranty are different in each country as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 2, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I know its the distributors that are screwing everyone.. I am fully aware that a business needs to make money, but i also have a "rip off threshold" as well and when i see some items like DBX and JBL costing 3-4 times as much as USA its easy to get annoyed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 2, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 I think you would find 10-15% is about right.. Warranty is still a factor for USA sales as well, its not a cost component only valid in Australia. Same with spare parts, thats relative in the same way for the USA sale at $699. Those arent added extras. The only other factor i know they have to pay for is standards testing to ensure the items comply with local power requirements. But thats void obviously for speakers. Even after some misc extra costs it shouldn't go from $1100 to $2300.. Its a pure rip off cause customers out here have very limited options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 The distributors must pay YOUR government taxes (call them fees or whatever you want) that add to their cost of doing business. Here's a sample of fees above and beyond the taxes based on the product itself.: http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/resources/notices/ACN0621.pdf Import duties on electronics goods from the US can reach as high as 30% of the cost of the goods, plus overhead. Somebody's got to pay for these costs and it ends up being the AU consumer. These fees (taxes) are not uniform with respect to countries of orgin or product class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members moody Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 This is why I have so many ETONE speakers. Locally made they can really compete with what is available elsewhere. Same goes for jands, australian monitor etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 This is why I have so many ETONE speakers. Locally made they can really compete with what is available elsewhere. Same goes for jands, australian monitor etc. Moody, how are they "competing" while the alternative US brands are crippled with a protectionist tariff? It's called a handicap in other industries. It it takes a 30%+ tariff to compete, that's a sad state of affairs IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members moody Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 Moody, how are they "competing" while the alternative US brands are crippled with a protectionist tariff? It's called a handicap in other industries.It it takes a 30%+ tariff to compete, that's a sad state of affairs IMO. All the tariffs I believe are coming down over the next 6 years. I can not imagine the prices coming down to match. Prices didn't come down when the Aussie dollar reached ridiculous strength. They did rise when it crashed though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members EBulb Posted March 2, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 yes and when i buy something from USA i pay import taxes, i know what they total and my point is any extra taxes the government charge for being a distrubtor do not equate to the margins i have illustrated. Once again, these costings are relative in each country, its not just USA made items coming into Australia that im talking about.. USA has taxes on items made in UK or china, yet we still pay ridiculously more for them also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 2, 2009 Members Share Posted March 2, 2009 yes and when i buy something from USA i pay import taxes, i know what they total and my point is any extra taxes the government charge for being a distrubtor do not equate to the margins i have illustrated. Once again, these costings are relative in each country, its not just USA made items coming into Australia that im talking about.. USA has taxes on items made in UK or china, yet we still pay ridiculously more for them also. Taxes into the US are generally less expensive than into AU. A lot less. This is the cost you pay for living in your society. We have other costs that you don't have, in part due to the low import tariffs. Some of these costs are social costs BTW. This is a problem of a global economy, we don't all share the same views of what is an acceptable standard of living or acceptable services provided by the govenment. The differences (in costs) can be substantial. I don't doubt that there are some added distributor costs added in, but there are additional product testing and certifications that p[roducts for the AU market requires... including different high line specifications (in some cases they require a country specific power supply) and AU required C-tick testing. Some of these are paid by the distributor and spread over a relatively small number of units. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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