Expensive PMCs in Ireland!

[newaudio]

hello all....

just wondering what price people have shelled out for PMC DB1s in the UK. I priced a pair here today in Ireland with a HIFI importer and was quoted 1350 Euro!!! even with the RRP of 770 stg on what hifi that exchanges to 894 Euro with todays rate. its no wonder decent hifi in ireland aint around at those prices! easier to buy online me thinks!

eamonn

 

[ear]

not much difference here in Portugal.and even harder to find items.

 

[newaudio]

I think ear we should pack up and move to the UK! ;-)

 

[ear]

I dont really like the UK.never been there.had the chance, but i prefer the sites of portugal

 

[Frank Harvey]

The DB1i's officially retail for £985 now, which equates to E1,145.

 

[MattSPL]

I used to have a pair of DB1i's.
I paid £770 for them about 2 years ago. I think the retail is over £900 now in the UK.

Im in Ireland myself, give me a shout at matthoyle20@gmail.com and ill point you in the right direction.

Cheers
Matt

 

[roger06]

FrankHarveyHiFi:
The DB1i's officially retail for £985 now, which equates to E1,145.

Why such a massive increase? Are they UK made or has the exchange rate caused this?

 

[Frank Harvey]

Some manufacturers managed to absorb most of the huge price rises during the first quarter of 2009, although most didn't. Those that have gone up recently may be those that did absorb the hit back then. Having said that, Bryston has gone up because of a price rise in Canada.

PMC is UK made. Dynaudio also had steep price increases this year. I think it differs between manufacturers depending on how they work.

 

[AEJim]

roger06:FrankHarveyHiFi:
The DB1i's officially retail for £985 now, which equates to E1,145.

Why such a massive increase? Are they UK made or has the exchange rate caused this?

Numerous reasons - not least of which the oil price rises of recent years have meant raw material prices have shot up (oil price affects every aspect of the product cycle due to its usage in transport and manufacturing processes).

Manufacturers hate putting up prices of existing lines as it is inevitably taken as greed. I know from experience that our raw material costs have risen 40% in the last 3-4 years alone! Most respectable manufacturers aim to minimise the costs to the end-user but it's impossible to soak up long-term increases without raising retail prices to match at the end of the day. When new ranges are introduced it's less of a problem as it's factored in from the start but you will notice most long-lived ranges from any manufacturer will have had sizeable price rises over recent years.

Exchange rates also are a factor even in UK manufacture as there are generally still some parts that need to be bought in from abroad - unfortunately it has become harder and harder to source product using just locally manufactured components in the modern economic world. On a range we are launching soon we aimed to make as many parts in the UK as possible - in the end we had to compromise on some as the result would have meant doubling (yes, doubling) the retail price! I think this would be rather unacceptable to most consumers.

 

[Big Chris]

ear:I dont really like the UK. never been there.l

Which begs the question. How do you know you don't really like the U.K?

No intention to derail the thread, but thought the above statement needed further investigation.

 

[Frank Harvey]

I never thought to pass that over to you James, seeing as you're in a better position to explain it than me

See? We're not used to having people like you here!

 

[AEJim]

FrankHarveyHiFi:
I never thought to pass that over to you James, seeing as you're in a better position to explain it than me

See? We're not used to having people like you here!

No probs ;-)

It's very easy for consumers to look at their prices go up and wonder what's going on, but it makes a lot more sense when it's broken down!

I'll try and keep active in the forum when I can, back to the office next week but it's a nice break from working on the website!

 

[Andrew Everard]

Buying Guide person on the case; will contact PMC and update online prices on the site accordingly...

 

[The_Lhc]

Big Chris:ear:I dont really like the UK. never been there.l
Which begs the question. How do you know you don't really like the U.K?

I just noticed that, it's genius isn't it?

 

[Big Chris]

the_lhc:Big Chris:ear:I dont really like the UK. never been there.l

Which begs the question. How do you know you don't really like the U.K?

I just noticed that, it's genius isn't it?

He's probably right anyway, but I still feel you have to experience the disappointment to be able to comment on it.

 

[ear]

I have tv. Nothing I see from the UK makes me want to go there.taxes are great though.nicer than here in protugal

 

[Andrew Everard]

And of course in protugal you have all those amazing ebay bargain speakers and scanners...

 

[csq2]

In Canada, hifi is around 25-30% more expensive than it is in UK.

 

[AEJim]

csq2:In Canada, hifi is around 25-30% more expensive than it is in UK.

Even Totems?

I always have distributors complaining that our product is cheaper in the UK and wanting the same price, despite having to have extra margin and shipping costs... They basically want us to inflate the UK prices. I tell them I see their point but do their homegrown products cost less where they are? Can I buy a nice German car for the same price over here? Can their customers buy our product here and ship it to where they are for less than it costs to buy it there? Again there are two sides to every story - most people just see their own!

 

[AEJim]

AEJim:
csq2:In Canada, hifi is around 25-30% more expensive than it is in UK.

Even Totems?

Just checked - Totem Rainmaker in the UK £895 - equivalent price in Canada - £730 ($1100 Canadian Dollars) - that's getting on for the 25% more you say hi-fi costs in Canada... If you want cheaper Hi-Fi buy Canadian!

 

[newaudio]

ah come on ear.... how could watching Eastenders not want you to come to the UK? everybody so happy and cheery on it! LOL anyway.... why does it all boil down to oil!!!! seriously....production is at a high at the moment with stock piles of excess oil being prduced and prices are now at an all time high? if the price of oil came down in the morning would we see an instant reflection in prices of secondary and tertiary products? I dont think so... anyway the euro is s**t at the mo....oh hum!

eamonn

 

[csq2]

AEJim:AEJim:
csq2:In Canada, hifi is around 25-30% more expensive than it is in UK.

Even Totems?

Just checked - Totem Rainmaker in the UK £895 - equivalent price in Canada - £730 ($1100 Canadian Dollars) - that's getting on for the 25% more you say hi-fi costs in Canada... If you want cheaper Hi-Fi buy Canadian!

I actually bought a pair of Totem Rainmakers brand new in the box for $800cdn the other day. I to struggle with the store manager to bring the price down from $1100. I paired it up with a Rega Brio 3, which costs $625cdn brand new in Canada. I could get a Brio 3 in the UK for $500cdn or cheaper. The more expensive the equipment, the more you save in the UK.

 

[AEJim]

csq2:AEJim:AEJim:
csq2:In Canada, hifi is around 25-30% more expensive than it is in UK.

Even Totems?

Just checked - Totem Rainmaker in the UK £895 - equivalent price in Canada - £730 ($1100 Canadian Dollars) - that's getting on for the 25% more you say hi-fi costs in Canada... If you want cheaper Hi-Fi buy Canadian!

I actually bought a pair of Totem Rainmakers brand new in the box for $800cdn the other day. I to struggle with the store manager to bring the price down from $1100. I paired it up with a Rega Brio 3, which costs $625cdn brand new in Canada. I could get a Brio 3 in the UK for $500cdn or cheaper. The more expensive the equipment, the more you save in the UK.

Nah, it's just your perception - if we up the scale to the Totem "Wind" speaker, the Canadian dollar official price is $6600 (£4430) - in the UK it's £8700, very nearly double the Canadian price. It's just fact that you pay more for imported product for a variety of reasons, it just so happens that there are a lot of big Hi-Fi brands that come out of the UK in particular so customers in other countries feel like they're a little hard done by.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, with little bit patience it is possible to hit some bargains in the net. I bought my absolutely mint ex-demo Ob1i's for 1990Eur..

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250620067345

 

[Anonymous]

if you think uk made speakers are expensive in ireland you should check out some of there prices here in australia,pmc are very expensive here,however atc are good value for money,its all down to the highwaymans - sorry importers profit margin before moving onto the retailers.