Business Ethics in the Audio Industry

I appreciate the varied responses, including those slamming me for posting about the incident. Perhaps it was not worth posting about. Having said that, I believe most customers feel "entitled" to receive advertised items for which they have paid, without being strung along with false promises of mere "shipping" delays. I continue to believe that a seller ought to be straight with a purchaser about circumstances at the time of purchase and up to the point of delivery. Having purchased a good deal of equipment online, I have never had a situation like this one, and I find that the vast majority of sellers - especially dealers that manufacture and sell their own equipment - go above and beyond what is required to provide customer satisfaction. This is the last word I will say on the topic. But Schiit supporters should feel free to continue taking shots at me.

Dear Dan, please don’t take the responses as a personal afront from the Audiogon community. I believe everyone is in the "more the merrier" camp and I hope you remain engaged and post more when you have something you believe needs saying, whether it is the consensus view or not. Agreeing to disagree is not the end of the world and more in our community should renew those vows from time to time.

We can all agree that the absolute best outcome for you would have been for you to receive the new model at the old price. With whom did you speak at Schiit? A personal conversation likely would have yielded fruit...everything I’ve ever read about Schiit leadership leads me to believe they likely would have (and may still if given the opportunity) seen it through your eyes. You then might have posted about how cool Schiit was and everyone would have been applauding all involved.

Upon reflection though, would you really have been happy with the old model at the old price or was it that you wanted the new model at the old price and didn’t ask a decision maker to consider your plight?

I hope you rethink your position and order the Freya + (but you should call them to see if they would review your situation) and get what you wanted for the next phase in your sound system. One thing you will learn is the Audiogon community can be alot like the grandparent you wished your parents wouldn’t leave you alone with. Sure, they let you drink beer at 10 years old and allowed you to watch roller derby but they also were a little too eager with a swat to the backside. Don’t let it get to you and your opinion is just as valid as anyone’s! Your first post is just as important as someone else's 1,000th. All the best.

Wow, this thread.

Schitt does it exactly right.

Morally, ethically business wise they did exactly the right thing.

I’d guess they let a product supply run out..and... as that happens... delay orders for it.

then, when all sales of the older item..are notably in the past, in a set amount of time, introduce the new, with the new price.

If it was otherwise, things would get ugly.

Recently, I bought a $7k bit of manufacturing hardware.

It fails to work as advertised and I have to d a whole whack of work on it at my own expense and it will MAYBE do as advertised.

I waited almost a month for it to arrive.

Just after it arrived, the company announces the availability of a new version that is totally different, and works the way the old one was supposed to. I got junk, new buyers will get a working item. I got burned to the tune of $7k.

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Now, what Schiit did, in comparison, is exactly the right thing, and...as stated, done with as perfect a ethical position as humanly possible.

IMO and IME, in any sense of common decent reason...they cannot be faulted for their behaviour.