A pair of guys pulls you aside. They're amped up because they just have to get rid of some high end electronics. The crew says they put audio systems in expensive home cinemas, but Problem Rob Wolchek is putting them in the Hall of Shame.
They say you can't buy these brands at Best Buy and they're right. However, you might be able to buy them in the Best Buy parking lot or the parking lots at Meijer or Wendy's because that's where they sell them
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I have seen these guys in New York. Do not buy this crab The speakers are MSRP $3000 but in reality they get them for $90 (crab). Just google it ,they are over the news now.
They say you can't buy these brands at Best Buy and they're right. However, you might be able to buy them in the Best Buy parking lot or the parking lots at Meijer or Wendy's because that's where they sell them
.
I have seen these guys in New York. Do not buy this crab The speakers are MSRP $3000 but in reality they get them for $90 (crab). Just google it ,they are over the news now.
"White Van Speakers"
It's a fairly well known scam. A quick inspection would have most of the people here leaving with a chuckle.
There are a few ways to mess with the scammers. Ask them to play them for you, from the van. Waste some of their time. Play around. Tell them you're getting cash but call the cops and tell them there are scammers at XYZ instead.
It's a fairly well known scam. A quick inspection would have most of the people here leaving with a chuckle.
There are a few ways to mess with the scammers. Ask them to play them for you, from the van. Waste some of their time. Play around. Tell them you're getting cash but call the cops and tell them there are scammers at XYZ instead.
Ouch, you ain't lived until someone in a white van approaches you in a lot somewhere to try and sell you some bogus low end speakers..
I was highly entertained - although I was pretty young at the time.. This actually happened to me more than once at various malls.. Sadly I actually knew someone who fell for this scam, the speakers were mostly empty box, and sounded pretty dreadful. (IIRC they had a couple of 5" woofers and a 2" cone tweeter, pleated untreated paper suspensions and probably the smallest magnets I have ever seen.) I sold him an inexpensive used pair of speakers to replace them for about the same amount of coin he spent on those white van specials that were clearly a light year or two better..
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Well, years ago, young and hungry, I was looking for a job. It was hard times in '92 in Canada, and I couldn't find even a job washing dishes in restaurants. There was this ad in the paper looking for guys who could drive, easy money, bla bla. So I called and went for an interview, somewhere in the suburbs of Toronto, industrial area, small office next to hundreds others. The guy was a smoooth talker. Oh, he asked me this, that, then he said I'd be perfect for the job. All I have to do is drive this white van to mall parking lots and wait 'til someone comes to their car. The story was that I had a couple of speakers that "fell of the truck" during a shipment and I just want to get rid of them. The smooth talking guy was a driving a huge Cadillac and sure impressed me, but I just got a bad feeling from all this and I went home and never called back. The best part of this story isn't this though. Months later I visited this very obnoxious guy's house. He was going on and on about every little thing in his house like it was the best ever. "Look at this VCR, it's the best. That one you got it's crap!" And on, and on he'd go about how he got the best stuff ever. Then we were in the living room and he put some music on, sure enough started talking about the amaaaazing speakers he just got. And how it buries us all.. wow! I didn't say anything, but I was laughing inside myself. Those speakers were the crappy ones that those guys were selling.
It's a well established business model.
Those speakers were the crappy ones that those guys were selling.It's a well established business model.
lol, yeah it was!. the good part was I did not buy their staff, because when I saw the brand of those speakers I did not know them.I have some knowledge about most of the good brands.(that was the only reason I did not buy them lol) I do not know how they go to sleep at night knowing they scam people for living. it is good to inform our members about this kind of people, but as you said most of them already know.
Some of the names they come up with are quite clever too, resembling a legit brand. My GF's friend couldn't wait to tell me what he'd bought for 500 bucks. The box said something like $3995.00. I didn't have the heart so I just nodded and smiled.
Genesis Media Labs.
Google "White Van Speakers" - good for a chuckle.
Genesis Media Labs.
Google "White Van Speakers" - good for a chuckle.
It was way too long ago. A good deal for a camcorder, not so much for a brick.
Well known enough to have a Wikipedia page:
White van speaker scam - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
White van speaker scam - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alas, a friend of mine became aware of the expensive audio through me, but didn't have enough brand awareness to avoid the ripoff. Too late, it occurred to him that it might be too good to be true.
We've since made a nice pair of speakers for him.
Every once in a while I tell him he should give me the white-vans, just to tear 'em apart and see if I can make anything worthwhile out of the drivers. I haven't put much behind it, though. It'd be difficult to justify putting any time into them.
It'd maybe make a fun DIY thread though.
We've since made a nice pair of speakers for him.
Every once in a while I tell him he should give me the white-vans, just to tear 'em apart and see if I can make anything worthwhile out of the drivers. I haven't put much behind it, though. It'd be difficult to justify putting any time into them.
It'd maybe make a fun DIY thread though.
There is apparently another variant on the scam, this one the so called "flat screen scam" where someone advertises a super deal on flat screens on something like Craigslist. The perpetrator and victim(s) meet at a big box electronics store, the victim pays the bargain price for the flat screen tv set(s) he wants and the perpetrator then claims to be arranging to pull the units from stock to complete the sale when in fact he is exiting the store from another exit. This has happened at malls not too far from where I live..
No more brazen of course than the thief who stole one of our Easter yard decorations last night. Came right through our patio gate and into our yard. My wife was stunned this morning when I told her that all that was left of our smallest blow mold bunny was a pair of wires....
I guess dishonest people are all around us unfortunately...
No more brazen of course than the thief who stole one of our Easter yard decorations last night. Came right through our patio gate and into our yard. My wife was stunned this morning when I told her that all that was left of our smallest blow mold bunny was a pair of wires....
I guess dishonest people are all around us unfortunately...
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