Chinese Audio Shopping

>>I think I'll stick to western companies that manufacture products there. Hotgonzo111<<

You're a true audio patriot.

Back from China. The Beijing Duck was excellent but the audio situation wasn't. I went to visit one of the "premier" high end audio manufacturers. Their products are good and nicely designed, with some interesting engineering ideas, but they aren't equipped to deal with the export market. They have 110V products and so on but they aren't really geared-up to deal with any service issues, so if I had a problem with my purchase I would probably have to send the whole thing back. I may have caught them on a bad day. My impression is that they manufacture high quality products but don't run a very good business. They will do very well in the local market, since imports tend to be quite expensive (cell phones are much more expensive than in the US), but their products aren't competitively priced for international markets, which is shocking given the high mark-ups in this space.
I think I'll stick to western companies that manufacture products there. I have the Krell S300i which I love and think is a great value.

I have 2 Chinese components in my system and am very happy with them. And considering adding a third shortly as I am looking at the Jasmine LP2.0SE Phono Stage.

I had a quote from a US dealer of above mentioned item and they wanted $200 US more than if I directly imported from Chinese dealer.

IMO chinese products have had an unwanted stigma about them, but I think this is slowly changing as their products improve.

"It's difficult to believe that with all of the potential problems, i.e. customs, shipping, voltage conversions, warranty, etc. there is a significant amount of savings involved to make this exercise worthwhile."

I agree with you, yet ironically, audio dealers manage to navigate all of these pesky hurdles and still turn a tidy profit.... I'm just saying.

Nothing wrong with cutting out the middleman IMO, but at the same time 'you pay your money, and you take your chances'
have fun!

Make sure you try the Peking duck!

I'm leaving Sunday. i will post you all on my return.

Me thinks Audiofeil has a good point.

It's difficult to believe that with all of the potential problems, i.e. customs, shipping, voltage conversions, warranty, etc. there is a significant amount of savings involved to make this exercise worthwhile.

IMO

Hotgonzo111, sorry my poor attempt at humour missed the mark. I thought the language might be difficult, and the Chinese are known for their beautiful caligraphy. Though turntables are delicate mechanical devices that might find the trip back challenging.

hey Jaybo and Unsound Are you in the audio business? How often do turntables break and get repaired during their initial warranty period?

Make sure to read the fine print.

do they come with u.s. warranties? and if so, who will service?.

thanks for pointing that out. But they produce export models for our market so maybe I can find one w 110V motor.

They will not work in the US. They use 220v over there and a different plug. Not sure if you can still do this, but you can ask the dealer to get you a 110v/120v version of the product directly from the manufacturer. It worked a few years back when my friend bought me a Consonance headphone amp. If the dealer is willing to do that for you, it may take a little extra time, and you will not be able to bargain too much from the sticker price.

Check out eBay. There are some serious looking turntables coming out of China these days. Not sure how they sound, but they sure look pretty impressive.

FrankC