Audio Affair

[Oldboy]

Audio Affair,

Let me just clarify that i never intended to cause any offense to your company and was only posting on this thread to get some reassurance from forum members about your company as i had never ordered from you before and had no luck in contacting customer services through the channels on your website.

Thankyou for providing those phone numbers on this thread but i didn't need them in the end as i got a call a couple of hours after posting this thread before i had the chance to take down the numbers and call. The person i spoke to was very helpful and calmed my fears, as i said earlier it turns out that Royal Mail was to blame so i'm sorry if i caused any offence.

Also thankyou for your kind offer of a good deal on another item and i may well take you up on the offer once i've got to the bottom of the postal issues to my address....it turns out post has been going missing for some time and Royal Mail are now monitoring my address to find out why.

BTW the Chord Crimson Plus interconnect sounds excellent and i'm extremely happy with it, i was very surprised to find it was the latest version of the cable...but i'm certainly not complaining!

 

[Anonymous]

don't you love a happy ending.. glad everything been sorted

 

[johnjay]

Audioaffair are one if not the only one hifi/audio supplier who offer delivery to ROI as standard,never bought from them but any emails and price enq. were answered as quick as any other online audio/video Co.

 

[KiwiMoto]

I have tried to seek purchase advice from them a couple of times with their online 'chat' function,but the chap really wasn't any help at all.
I ended up purchasing off of another company who gave me all the answers i needed!

 

[SunnyCyprus]

Wish I'd seen this thread earlier having just spent circa 1200 GBP on a headphone system with them Living in Cyprus I don't have much option but on-line shopping and I must admit my gut reaction based on their responses (or lack of) to my e-mails and messages was to look elsewhere but hey ho fingers crossed in the next few days I'll get my goodies.

I used to post on here (under another username) quite frequently but gave up on the forum as it seemed to have descended into ill informed squabble mostly centred on interconnects, speaker and mains cables.

Don't mean to be overly critical of Audio Affair or to pre-judge them but seeing that topic heading over my breakfast coffee definately didn't get my day off to a great start. Anyhow I'll let you know if I get my order anytime soon

 

[bigboss]

Wish I'd seen this thread earlier having just spent circa 1200 GBP on a headphone system with them Living in Cyprus I don't have much option but on-line shopping and I must admit my gut reaction based on their responses (or lack of) to my e-mails and messages was to look elsewhere but hey ho fingers crossed in the next few days I'll get my goodies.

I used to post on here (under another username) quite frequently but gave up on the forum as it seemed to have descended into ill informed squabble mostly centred on interconnects, speaker and mains cables.

Don't mean to be overly critical of Audio Affair or to pre-judge them but seeing that topic heading over my breakfast coffee definately didn't get my day off to a great start. Anyhow I'll let you know if I get my order anytime soon

I don't think you've read this thread properly. Read it in full & then make your judgment.

 

[SunnyCyprus]

"I don't think you've read this thread properly. Read it in full & then make your judgment."

Didn't I just say "I didn't want to pre-judge them" and yes I have read the thread and happily for the OP there was a positive outcome. But having just spent over £1200 even a hint of a problem is obviously (to a slight degree) cause for concern, particularly given my own experience of slow (if any) responses to my various questions.

All that being said I went ahead and shopped with them anyway, principally as they had the items I wanted at an attractive price "caveat emptor" and all that.

Although I'm sure in this case I've absolutely no reason to assume I won't get my goods.

Doesn't change the fact that as reported by other posters they can be a little less than stellar in responding to customer queries, which let's face it in a world where shopping is done increasingly "on line" is probably something they could well do with addressing.

 

[chebby]

But having just spent over £1200 even a hint of a problem is obviously (to a slight degree) cause for concern, particularly given my own experience of slow (if any) responses to my various questions.

All that being said I went ahead and shopped with them anyway, principally as they had the items I wanted at an attractive price "caveat emptor" and all that.

So, you already had concerns but went ahead, regardless, because they were cheap.

Now you are panicking and flip-flopping all over the place (including a bit of a dig at the forum to boot*) with all this 'I don't want to pre-judge' and 'I don't want to be critical' etc.

*

I used to post on here (under another username) quite frequently but gave up on the forum as it seemed to have descended into ill informed squabble...

Not exactly designed to get us sympathising with your 'predicament'.

 

[SunnyCyprus]

Panicking ? Oh I think not, very mild concern possibly, I wouldn't put it stronger than that. Then mostly because I really really really want to play with my new headphone "rig" but SOON! (MF DAC MF HPA and Sennheiser HD650's plus various (run of the mill) interconnects) and I'm most certainly am not looking for (or likely to need) any sympathy.

Worst case scenario in the unlikely event of me not getting my goods (and I'm totally convinced it won't come to that) having bought with a credit card I get a refund. Hardly a cause for panic.

As for the forum well...... yes I suppose I was having a bit of a dig because sadly and here I'm expressing only my personal opinion it really is no longer the very useful resource it was 18 months to a year ago.

But thanks for reminding me (in part) why I gave up on it in the first place.

Byeeeeeee

 

[Anonymous]

I came across this thread after searching for user opinions on Audioaffair.

Recently I dealt with them for an international order.

1) They refused to answer any emails I sent them, both prior to sale and post-sale.

2) I'd be surprised if they stocked 1/100th of what their website claims they sell. I had to get a refund for items not being in stock. After seeing pictures of the size of their store online, it doesn't surprise me.

3) When I ordered, they inform you of a "10% Off" coupon on their Twitter (no other details). So you create a fake Facebook account and you have to LIKE them to claim your 10% OFF coupon code (before you've even made an order). In the fine print there is the fact you have to spend 250 pounds or more on the order (this wasn't mentioned on Twitter). So they build a nice list of followers on Facebook to build up their shonky cred.

Anyway, after waiting days for a response from my first email to them, I got impatient and made an order anyway, as I was eager to get what they claimed to have in stock and I had heard some others recommend them on another forum.

What a mistake. It took them 4 days (including the weekend, to be fair) to inform me that one item in my order was not available due to long lead time. Yet they continue to list it on their site. The refund (PayPal) also took longer than expected.

To top it all off, no repsonses to any & all emails sent (including the one about the late refund).

This is my first and last contact with them.

So, the score so far:

Customer service: 0

Refund speed: 0

Stock: 0

I certainly hope others have a better experience than I did.

As I say, this is my first and last contact with these clowns. They seem more intent with harvesting social faux social credibility than actually doing their jobs.

 

[Messiah]

I recently bought some Aktimate Minis from Audio Affair and to be fair I was not going to post about the experience but as this thread has resurfaced...

Ordered the Minis in Red. Website showed as being In Stock. Got an email from Dave the next morning to advise me that they were not in stock. I had the option of a pair in White or Black, wait for a Red pair which would be 3-4 weeks or take a pair of ex-dem red ones. Fair enough. Daves reply was prompt. Shame the site still showed the Red as being In Stock.

As I am impatient I went for the ex-dem and after asking how much they would be I got a £25 discount. Speakers ordered and I duly got them a couple of days later. Problem was I only got the speakers. No other accessories were supplied. If it was a normal pair of speakers this would not be a massive issue but powered speakers rely on a power lead as a bare minimum and some speaker cable to connect them together. Fortunately I have boxes full of my old leads but I have to treat this as any other customer that has not received the relevant accessories. (Looking at the packaging the box was ticked White so I guess they were packed in the wrong box and this could explain the lack of accessories). Decided to put this down to human error. Emailed Dave and again he replied promptly. He was very apologetic and advised the accessories would be sent straight out.

Next day I got some accessories. Remote, banana plugs and ipod adapters. No manuals/warranty info and more importantly still no power leads or speaker cable! The first error I can put down to basic human error but this issue is really quite shocking. If I had received a complaint of this nature then I would have triple checked that the right items were sent out.

So I emailed Dave again and this time I got no reply. Left it a couple of days and still no reply. Therefore I called them direct and got through to Penny. She was also very apologetic and advised that they had had issues with their emails. Fortunately she was well aware of my emails and assured me she had all the stuff packed up and ready to be sent.

Items turned up a couple of days later. This time the package had to be signed for. Still have not made my mind up whether this is insulting or not. The only reason to get it signed for was for proof that I had received it. Does that mean that they think I was lying? I am not sure.

Got the remaining accessories and some instructions for the Maxis not Minis. So close but I am not going to bother them again as I don't really need the instructions anyway.

So overall not the best experience and some lessons to be learnt. Doubt I will go back.

 

[MajorFubar]

It seems this company are advertising many things they have in stock when they obviously don't. They take your money and make you just wait until they order it in and then send it on, with no contact to the customer to keep you informed.

Not that it makes it better or right, but loads of companies seem to do that these days. It's damn annoying. Currys was the most recent to do it with me, purchasing a Windows laptop for the missis. I purchased an Acer something or other online which was apparently in stock, waited a fortnight, phoned them and a rather disinterested sales -person told me that not only was it not in stock, it hadn't been for "a long time" and they "probably wouldn't" be getting any more. So when I asked how long were they planning to keep my money for a product they didn't have and couldn't sell to me, he apologised and said it was "an unfortunate oversight". What lobbox!! I demanded a refund which fair shout I got within 48 hours. But do I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't phoned.

As for Audio Affair...luckily I have had only good dealings with them. I bought my current speakers from them, and a few years ago a Pro-Ject Debut TT which I've sold. One of the speakers was non-functioning when it arrived and they arranged a swift and effective collect-and-replace.

Pretty sure someone with an account-name of AudioAffair was a member here?

EDIT: Re-read the whole thread: I see they have posted.

 

[Lee H]

I came across this thread after searching for user opinions on Audioaffair.

Recently I dealt with them for an international order.

1) They refused to answer any emails I sent them, both prior to sale and post-sale.

2) I'd be surprised if they stocked 1/100th of what their website claims they sell. I had to get a refund for items not being in stock. After seeing pictures of the size of their store online, it doesn't surprise me.

3) When I ordered, they inform you of a "10% Off" coupon on their Twitter (no other details). So you create a fake Facebook account and you have to LIKE them to claim your 10% OFF coupon code (before you've even made an order). In the fine print there is the fact you have to spend 250 pounds or more on the order (this wasn't mentioned on Twitter). So they build a nice list of followers on Facebook to build up their shonky cred.

Anyway, after waiting days for a response from my first email to them, I got impatient and made an order anyway, as I was eager to get what they claimed to have in stock and I had heard some others recommend them on another forum.

What a mistake. It took them 4 days (including the weekend, to be fair) to inform me that one item in my order was not available due to long lead time. Yet they continue to list it on their site. The refund (PayPal) also took longer than expected.

To top it all off, no repsonses to any & all emails sent (including the one about the late refund).

This is my first and last contact with them.

So, the score so far:

Customer service: 0

Refund speed: 0

Stock: 0

I certainly hope others have a better experience than I did.

As I say, this is my first and last contact with these clowns. They seem more intent with harvesting social faux social credibility than actually doing their jobs.

I'm not doubting you've had a poor experience but I can't let a couple of things go.

1) the size of the physical store doesn't affect what an online store can stock. It's a nonsense to suggest that because the premises are of a certain size then that must reflect what can be offered online.

2) if it took 4 days to tell you something was out of stock, then that says to me you DID get at least one response to your emails. Not the none you state.

3) at any point, did you try and ring them?

 

[Anonymous]

I'm not doubting you've had a poor experience but I can't let a couple of things go. 1) the size of the physical store doesn't affect what an online store can stock. It's a nonsense to suggest that because the premises are of a certain size then that must reflect what can be offered online. 2) if it took 4 days to tell you something was out of stock, then that says to me you DID get at least one response to your emails. Not the none you state. 3) at any point, did you try and ring them?

1) You're nitpicking about peripheral incidentals of my testimonial, but the size of the store has a lot to do with how many items THEY physically have in stock, unless they have a warehouse somewhere else which they make use of, it does entirely. The point being their website is giving customers a deceptive picture of what is ACTUALLY physically in stock, which in my case caused me to waste my time and keep my funds tied up for about 6 days, time which I could have spent dealing with a real dealer.

2) Their response indicating the product was not in stock is not an answer to my emails at all. Had nothing to do with my emails. It was an automated cancellation email with a small comment by a store rep about stock. My emails were entirely ignored. These guys are an internet business?

3) I am going to call them from Australia, why? They should be ashamed of themselves if they call themselves an internet business and expect me to actually give them a phone call indicating their utter incompetence.

 

[MaxLegroom]

I cannot tell you just how incredibly cross I am with Audio Affair and their inability to respond to emails and my queries placed with them via email.

I placed an order with them back in March and paid for a pair of Heavi II's ; granted they have let me know that they are STILL ( yes, incredibly..STILL! ) involved with manufacturing problems since taking over the Partington mantle, yet they still haven’t responded to my chasing the 1) Offer to me of a 'good nature' refund I'm due for keeping the order with them since March that is unfulfilled and 2) likely manufacturing date for the Heavi II's.....

Come on Audio Affair; this ain't good enough; Sort out your Customer Services and pay attention to the importance of good customer care...and yes, I’d love a reply to the emails I’ve been sending you please.! Even an email saying ' we're busy and we'll get back to you next week' is still useful in my book...

 

[Anonymous]

I should point out, usually on forums like this, people with complaints will post those messages more than people with good experiences.

I just placed an order and of course I'm a bit nervous about the delivery, but I think we should establish a few things first:

1) I doubt they have much in stock other than what's in the actual store.

2) They most likely forward the order to their suppliers who ship it to you directly

3) The stock status is probably based on what their suppliers have, and they probably don't update that stock status every day. At best once a week I would guess. I do believe it is misleading to quote stock that is not your own. At least make a statement that most stock is not in house, but located with suppliers, and that stock information is updated at an inerval of "X" days.

4) I noticed many events where "staff was ill" resulting in delayed responses and order processing. Teh magic name is Penny from the reviews I read.

5) Now I did make inquirries to stock myself before I ordered, and I got a really quick response explaining me that the products would be delivered within the by me identified time slot. So they were very quick to respond and wer every confident about the stock they had. Of course if they use outdated data from their suppliers, that still doesn't help.

6) Not picking up telephone calls when you have 8 telephones in your company is a no-no in my opinion. I can understand saturdays being too busy to answer phones, but I also worked in shops as a student and the rule for sales personel was always "if it rings three times, the phone call is meant for you!"

All in all, teh company is genuine, and the vast majority is positive. They seem to have a high profile on the web, and respond quickly to negative feedback online. Also make sure you don't let your issues wait too long. If you expect something within a certain time frame, follow up immediately, and escalate yoru means of contacting them. E.g. by telephone, call them day one. No response, call them half a day later, and increase that frequency. As for emails, they are not always reliable. For all you know yoru email contains certain words that make spam filters kick in (eg swearing may actually get yoru email trashed). Also, if they receive a high volume of emails, some emails may float to the background. Hence its better to phone.

Aslo if you believe they are active on twitter and this forum and on facebook, I suggest you contact them there as well.

 

[SteveR750]

The email response time hasn't improved, I mailed three days ago asking to set up a demo of the NAD, no reply yet!

 

[grdunn123]

I had a very bad experience with the aforementioned company some 2-3 years ago, much of which I posted on this site and has since 'disappeared'. Sounds like they're still struggling to provide a quality standard.

 

[Anonymous]

hey there i jw if anyone has been told they will call u back but never do ?. I was asking about a cable they said il get someone to call u back shortly im still waiting 5 days on.

 

[Anonymous]

okay id just like to point out that i have had some bad bits useing this company however they always made up for their mistakes by makeing sure i was 100% happy with what id got. all in all its unfair to just say bad points about this company they have some great staff who are into hifi like we are !

 

[Deleted member 2457]

hey there i jw if anyone has been told they will call u back but never do ?. I was asking about a cable they said il get someone to call u back shortly im still waiting 5 days on.

I'm just surprised they answered the phone in the first place.

 

[Anonymous]

lol well if im a pain untill they pick up and tbh they can be alil bit thick bout their cables :/

 

[Anonymous]

Audio Affair Complaint

I'm one of the growing numbers of people that have had a problem with Audio Affair, I bought some Audio engine A5+ speakers from their website which were listed in stock, turns out they wern't, so i waiting for them to arrive, once i found out i cancelled the order and ordered a pair listed as in stock on ebay via 'hifi hereo's" which turns out is an outlet for audio affair and they were also not in stock despite being listed as such! I should have gone with Bartlets Hifi like I did with my A2's. Also had a problem getting the stands from audio affair, they forgot to post them with the speakers, then again when i called they didnt post them as promised. I would advice caution when using audio affair.

 

[L00k_C]

Dear ALL

I was VERY ALARMED finding this post earlier today as AUDIO AFFAIR is one of the sites I am monitoring in order to buy audio products.

Unfortunately, as I live in Cyprus, I do not have a lot of options when it comes to audio products, let alone auditioning them. That is why I find such forums quite helpful.... I know that 99.9% of you would say to hear everything before buing unfortunately this is not often the case...

As I am planning in buing a new HIFI system (speakers, amp, pre, stramer etc) I would like to know from all of youfrom your experience which ONLINE sites we can trust and which (if you know) post internationnaly.....

If you do not want to post here please PM to provide you with my email.....

Any suggestions will be welcomed... :cheers:

 

[The_Lhc]

If you do not want to post here please PM to provide you with my email.....

There is no private messaging on this forum.