[gintamafans]

No, this has nothing to do with Bluebird or the US, nor does it have anything to do with how friendly and nice someone is.

I am talking about the fact that the DAVE is over $12K in the UK with VAT and ~$10K without VAT...so how is it under $7K in China? Surely if they were authorized dealers, this would not be allowed. If anyone has an answer, let me know. (And this applies to all Chord products. I just used the DAVE as an example.)

I sure want to know why too. especially in china not only they are selling it so cheap but also, they are listing it that cheap on the chinese online platform. Listed low, and if you ask the customer service they are more willingly to give even lower prices. And if you go to the shop directly with cash, they are even more happy to give you greater prices lol.

 

[seeteeyou]

https://hiendpanda.taobao.com/category-937296854.htm

List is more like $8.5K (i.e. 53,800 RMB) and we just need to ask them how much they're actually asking for

They're indeed the sole authorized dealer in China

 

[miketlse]

You're right, it's not simple. And I certainly sympathize with the additional costs for European consumers importing products from outside the E.U. And if there are E.U. import distributors who charge well above and beyond VAT and import duties for American products, I hope that consumers there would also voice their displeasure. I like Chord's products and I want to see them continue to succeed and expand, if they so desire.

Of course, I'm a little biased because I want to buy a Qutest, but there's the possibility it now may be priced outside of my means. It could be a killer choice in the mid-thousand price range. I'm pretty sure dealers are pushing back too, though. Moon Audio is listing $1,995 for the Qutest, but then says the U.S. price is not finalized and then listed the U.K. with-VAT price. (https://www.moon-audio.com/chord-qutest-dac.html) So I'm guessing dealers are also trying to negotiate for a better price. But I can accept the directly with-vat exchange rate price being the U.S. retail ~$1600. I think that's a fair compromise for everyone involved. Would I like to see it for less? Of course, but I'm realistic. I know, outside of the Mojo, Chord isn't really a big volume-production type of company, and that's perfectly OK.

Your photo does look too young to remember what things were like 20 years ago for those of us from the UK. The US price for things was usually half the UK price. So when we visited the US, we travelled with near empty suitcases, and the clothes we stood up in. Then we bought all our holiday clothes (and goodies) in the US, because they were so much cheaper.
The pendulum has now swung a bit the other way - please don't complain how hard done by you are, compared to Chord lovers living in the UK/europe.

 

[emrelights1973]

Dealer sells it without the margin maybe

 

[JWahl]

Your photo does look too young to remember what things were like 20 years ago for those of us from the UK. The US price for things was usually half the UK price. So when we visited the US, we travelled with near empty suitcases, and the clothes we stood up in. Then we bought all our holiday clothes (and goodies) in the US, because they were so much cheaper.
The pendulum has now swung a bit the other way - please don't complain how hard done by you are, compared to Chord lovers living in the UK/europe.

I'm 31, so probably not. However, as I keep trying to say, I'm not complaining about exchange rates and taxes, that's out of anyone's control. I'm simply talking about the actions of the distributors that are independent of exchange rates and taxes. I don't understand why my post is being misrepresented as complaining about exchange rates and taxes. I've tried to clarify this as much as possible.

 

[miketlse]

I'm 31, so probably not. However, as I keep trying to say, I'm not complaining about exchange rates and taxes, that's out of anyone's control. I'm simply talking about the actions of the distributors that are independent of exchange rates and taxes. I don't understand why my post is being misrepresented as complaining about exchange rates and taxes. I've tried to clarify this as much as possible.

Did I mention exchange rates or taxes?
In the UK, we had twenty or thirty years of always having to pay more for goods, than we would have had to pay in the US.
We just had to grin and bear it.
Now we must have had nearly two years of some US head-fiers complaining that the US price for Chord products is dearer than the UK price.
It has become like listening to a scratched record.
Just grin and bear it, or emigrate to the UK.

 

[JWahl]

Did I mention exchange rates or taxes?
In the UK, we had twenty or thirty years of always having to pay more for goods, than we would have had to pay in the US.
We just had to grin and bear it.
Just grin and bear it, or emigrate to the UK.

Just to be clear, I don't intend to come off as hostile or antagonistic to anyone, so thank you for not reacting too defensively. The point is that the main reason why people from different countries would have significantly different prices for the same goods that vary over time is exchange rates and taxes, and to a lesser extent, greater shipping costs. I do realize that some people will complain about Chord prices regardless. I'm not complaining about the pre-existing prices, so much as the significant additional price increases the distributor is enacting on February 1st that don't really correlate to any significant cost increase or significant value the distributor is adding to the consumer end. That is all.

 

[miketlse]

Just to be clear, I don't intend to come off as hostile or antagonistic to anyone, so thank you for not reacting too defensively. The point is that the main reason why people from different countries would have significantly different prices for the same goods that vary over time is exchange rates and taxes, and to a lesser extent, greater shipping costs. I do realize that some people will complain about Chord prices regardless. I'm not complaining about the pre-existing prices, so much as the significant additional price increases the distributor is enacting on February 1st that don't really correlate to any significant cost increase or significant value the distributor is adding to the consumer end. That is all.

I'm not trying to be hostile to you either.
I have my own doubts about some distributors justify their markups, but the only drivers for change can be Chord requests to the distributor, or consumer pressure.

 

[maxh22]

Another option would be to use one of those shipment forwarding services and buy it in the UK and through the service for an extra fee ship it to the US. It might still be cheaper this way rather than getting it through Bluebird.

 

[Music Alchemist]

List is more like $8.5K (i.e. 53,800 RMB) and we just need to ask them how much they're actually asking for

They're indeed the sole authorized dealer in China

In other words, all those other "dealers" in China (and those who purchase from them) are dealing in the black/grey market. (Or so it seems.)

However, as I keep trying to say, I'm not complaining about exchange rates and taxes, that's out of anyone's control. I'm simply talking about the actions of the distributors that are independent of exchange rates and taxes. I don't understand why my post is being misrepresented as complaining about exchange rates and taxes. I've tried to clarify this as much as possible.

I'm not complaining about the pre-existing prices, so much as the significant additional price increases the distributor is enacting on February 1st that don't really correlate to any significant cost increase or significant value the distributor is adding to the consumer end. That is all.

Come to think of it, though, it would appear that this is simply due to the currency exchange rates. (And perhaps import taxes as well.) Looks like we were wrong. See below.

Another option would be to use one of those shipment forwarding services and buy it in the UK and through the service for an extra fee ship it to the US. It might still be cheaper this way rather than getting it through Bluebird.

I wouldn't be so sure. Here are the UK (VAT included) prices for some Chord products, then approximately converted to USD and compared to the US prices before and after February 1st.

Mojo: £399 / $565 / $529 / $579
2Qute: £995 / $1,410 / $1,349 / $1,495
Qutest: £1,195 / $1,693 / ? (US price not finalized)
Hugo 2: £1,800 / $2,550 / $2,379 / $2,695
Hugo TT: £3,199 / $4,533 / $3,995 / $4,795
DAVE: £8,499 / $12,043 / $11,288 (at least from this dealer) / ? (not sure what the US price would be after February 1st)

Basically, the current US prices are actually lower (sometimes by quite a bit) than the UK prices, so the US prices will be increased soon to reflect the stronger value of the pound.

Even though I'm assuming the American distributor does not pay VAT, there are bound to be other expenses and factors involved when importing Chord products to America.

So all this is understandable, and some of us shouldn't have jumped to conclusions about Bluebird Music.

(For those who don't know, they are the Chord Electronics distributor for the US and Canada. A complete list of distributors can be found here.)

 

[Triode User]

Basically, the current US prices are actually lower (sometimes by quite a bit) than the UK prices, so the US prices will be increased soon to reflect the stronger value of the pound.

That might just be all there is to it. Sometimes things are simpler that they at first seem.

 

[JWahl]

Even though I'm assuming the American distributor does not pay VAT, there are bound to be other expenses and factors involved when importing Chord products to America.

So all this is understandable, and some of us shouldn't have jumped to conclusions about Bluebird Music.

(For those who don't know, they are the Chord Electronics distributor for the US and Canada. A complete list of distributors can be found here.)

I was aware of all this, and perhaps I communicated it poorly before. I suspect they are increasing prices more than the rate in anticipation of continued increases in the value of the pound. In the end, regardless of any of our personal preferences, the markets will decide if it was a wise business decision on the part of the distributor. It is, of course, a complex business decision that has a lot of variables at play.

 

[seeteeyou]

In other words, all those other "dealers" in China (and those who purchase from them) are dealing in the black/grey market. (Or so it seems.)

It depends. Chord actually listed 15 dealers in China on their official site as shown below:

https://chordelectronics.co.uk/dealer-locator/?country=CN

Here's the catch, they're only providing 12 months of warranty for ALL *mobile* products (i.e. battery-powered ones) from Chord Electronics

https://www.facebook.com/zesenaudio/posts/1471630716253732

Register online and extend the period from 12 months to 24 months

http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1927580

Paying more in UK and we're getting 60 months of warranty

https://chordelectronics.co.uk/product/dave/
http://www.nintronics.co.uk/Headpho...dphone-amplifiers/chord-electronics-dave.html

Paying (much) less in China and that's why the warranty will only last for 24 months by default

http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1943007
http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1972239

And then there's yet another caveat emptor

 

[gintamafans]

It depends. Chord actually listed 15 dealers in China on their official site as shown below:

https://chordelectronics.co.uk/dealer-locator/?country=CN

Here's the catch, they're only providing 12 months of warranty for ALL *mobile* products (i.e. battery-powered ones) from Chord Electronics

https://www.facebook.com/zesenaudio/posts/1471630716253732

Register online and extend the period from 12 months to 24 months

http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1927580

Paying more in UK and we're getting 60 months of warranty

https://chordelectronics.co.uk/product/dave/
http://www.nintronics.co.uk/Headpho...dphone-amplifiers/chord-electronics-dave.html

Paying (much) less in China and that's why the warranty will only last for 24 months by default

http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1943007
http://erji.net/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1972239

And then there's yet another caveat emptor

ok now i kinda understand why we pay so much more in NA, so can we get 2 years warranty instead?

 

[Music Alchemist]

ok now i kinda understand why we pay so much more in NA, so can we get 2 years warranty instead?

Qutest normally has a 3 year warranty. Their entry-level products (like Mojo and Poly) are 1 year and the higher-end products (like DAVE) are 5 years.