Huge price differences for SEAS drivers

[BorisH]

Hi,

I've searched vendors that sell the speakers for John Krutke's Seas L15RLYP / 27TFFC system. He writes the complete set of drivers can be purchased for about $160 total, so I was surprised to see the prices in Europe: the L15RLYP woofer costs
- 89 EUR at clofis.nl
- 77 EUR at intertechnik.de
- 59 EUR at audioxcel.com
- 51$=38 EUR at madisound.com
As it seems, prices are higher the closer you move to Norway, where Seas is located. In the Netherlands, you pay more than twice as much in the US - this is weird. I don't think it's because of VAT only. I'm gonna ask customs if I better import them from madisound.

Cheers,

Boris (Germany)

[Stixx]

In the Netherlands, you pay more than twice as much in the US - this is weird. I don't think it's because of VAT only.

The US seems to be a special case, same reason that german cars are less expensive in the US than in the country they were made...
But the Dutch have very stiff VAT rates...on cars it's something like 30%, could be the same on everything that's imported....like drivers from Norway for instance.

rgds
Oliver

[Vigier]

Hi,

the 30% is only for cars. The normal VAT (we call that "BTW", and that doesn't mean By The Way) is 19%.

I will not post the reason for the high price here in this site; I'll PM BorisH, since some people in Holland don't like me for telling that.

Grtz, Joris

[Paradise_Ice]

I think its bad to sell at different prices no matter what country the product is in, this makes each customer feel cheated.

I think in the US market the buying power is hugh so they manufacturers sell there products off at large discounted prices and have less countrol over the RRP because of compitition maybe?

[Timn8ter]

The sad fact of the matter is that the ability to buy and sell in volume makes a huge difference in the price you are able to sell for, along with the market influences of supply and demand. There is huge competition among manufacturers in the US. Just about everyone trys to sell their product here making the competition fierce.

[Nuuk]

Is the US market that bigger than theEuopean market? Can't somebody in Europe buy in large enough quantities to offer prices similar to those in the US?

I know taxes do contruibute but here in Britain certainly there is an attitude that you charge what you can get away with and the customer be damned!

[Paradise_Ice]

Originally posted by Nuuk
I know taxes do contruibute but here in Britain certainly there is an attitude that you charge what you can get away with and the customer be damned!

You know your right Nuuk; they call the UK "Treasure Island"

I was at a car expo in the UK just 2 weeks ago and the big brands to the little brands almost all said the same thing, charge what ever you can get away with!!! What kind of morality is that? Is a sign of the times.

I went along just to see if there was anything special but it was almost all junk and worse than the products of some 10 years ago.

It’s disgusting the way the consumer gets treated in the UK and these companies are box shifters and don’t care about the art of sound, which is what DIY audio is all about.

This is best forum on the internet for honest decent advice from all over the world

[Timn8ter]

Is the US market that bigger than theEuopean market?

Perhaps the question should be; "Is the DIY market in the US larger than that in Europe?".
EU manufacturers may be able to negotiate a good price but can the individual?

[Nuuk]

Perhaps the question should be; "Is the DIY market in the US larger than that in Europe?"
EU manufacturers may be able to negotiate a good price but can the individual?

I'm not quite sure how those two statements are connected.

Surely you are not saying that buying in the USA is open to bartering!

[Timn8ter]

No, I'm suggesting there may be more DIYers in North America along with more choices of drivers for DIYers. Most every guy has a workshop around here. Obviously, this is just speculation. If it's true that may explain why sellers feel they can charge individuals more in Europe, however, manufacturers of complete systems would still be able to negotiate prices.