[pho_boi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by si_free I checked out coemaudio and was surprised at their mark up on this gear. I guess they get hit with a lot of import taxes, but on items imported into Auatralia under AU$1000 there is no import duty for individuals. This obviously adds to the attraction of shopping from HK/China. There are now many on-line shops selling all manner of goods direct from Hong Kong. We have used several that were very efficent, fast and cheap....a big shame there is not an audio supplier offering such good service.

Not entirely true....

If the shop sends it from HK/China using FedEX, UPS or DHL than you will get charged tax even if it is under $1000AUD. I know because I've purchased a few amplifiers from HK already.

The shop declared my amp as $350USD and in the end FedEX gave me an invoice for $160AUD. This included duty tax of 5% on the $350USD, the shipping company's brokerage fee and GST of 10% on the CIF. CIF stands for Cost Insurance & Freight, this is value is the total of the declaration value plus the freight cost ($180USD) plus the duty tax. In my situation the CIF was $547.50USD, GST on that was $54.75USD. FedEX's brokerage fee is roughly $50USD!!!

$15 + $54.75 + $50 = $119.75USD or $160AUD!!!!!

All this info can be found on the Australia Customs website.

I actually paid $640USD for the amp or $850AUD, but in the end I had to pay $240AUD (20Kg amp) for shipping and $160AUD for taxes. Basic maths tells you that I paid $400AUD when the amp cost me $850, so thats just under 50% on-top of the cost price!!!!



So buyer beware!!! Plus theres the issue of sending the things back for warranty which will cost you more money, but fortunately you won't get charged anything when they send you back a new unit because warranty returns are tax free

.

Its definately cheaper to buy from HK and China, but depending on the item it may be worth purchasing from a local distrubutor for warranty and service. AND some manufacturers don't support grey importers (sellers from HK and China who sell to Australia/US/UK), this means the manufacturers won't support you with any problems or warranty. Just check out the Cayin and Shanling website, they warn people not to buy from overseas dealers.

 

[si_free]

I am in no way an expert on AU customs but have had a few dealings with them in the last couple of years. This is my experience...

If a courier is used then for some strange reason the additional charges you describe are incurred, I found out the hard way when shipping some window locks from the uk.
However if airmail is used then there is no import charge provided the value can be proven to be less than AU$1000. I have imported many items this way and only once did I have to prove the cost of the item. This could have been done by fax but I did it by going to the airport customs office and showing my reciept before I was allowed to collect my goods and leave with no extra charges! It was speaking to the customs officer where I learnt about the 1000 limit.

I fully support your statement regarding grey imports and them not having a local warranty or support. However with the huge pricing differences between domestic supply or import, I along with many others choose to take a chance. If there was a similar sensible priced company to http://www.pacificvalve.us in Australia I would probably choose to use them...Alas...

Even if I wanted to pay the extra and buy from an authorised dealer then I would still be stuck for a supplier in Perth. Is there a supplier for Eastsound in Australia?

 

[pho_boi]

I completely agree with sending by regular airmail to avoid tax under the $1000AUD

. I've had a few things sent via HK Speedpost as well, and all have been tax free!

But I still feel its sometimes better to shop from a local distrubutor when you're looking into buying audio gear that uses tubes/valves. Buying from HK/China, your amplifier or CD players will be 220V.
From my understanding power supplies for tubes are not regulated and any increase in the input AC voltage will lead to an increase in voltage for the tube. This leads to noise problems and longetivity of the tube because it is being run over its limit.
Only local distrubutors would have the right voltage of 240V for Australia, note that voltage in Australia swings from 230V to 250V depending on peak usage of the region.

If only Australia's population was large as the UK or US, then the demand for Chinese brands would increase and lead to lowered prices.

I don't think there are any distrubutors for Eastsound yet. BUT Compact (the same company as Eastsound) is run and owned by an Australian man in Sydney. And he does sell Compact's range of speakers, but under a different name to fetch higher prices

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluemeteor I have bought most of my Chinese stuff ('cause I will not pay the high cost of audio anymore) from Pacific Valve in the US: http://www.pacificvalve.us They carry almost all the Lite, Bada some Ming Da - as well as offering Mods. I just talked to them and they indicated that they were getting the DIYEDEN Great March DACs and offering a modded version. They also found a great amp KT88 amp from Xiansheng that, they claim, "knocks the heck out of the Cayin and Prima Lunas" which will be less than $800.00 I have gotten to know them and they are a group of investors with a business model determined to bring high end to reasonable prices and energize the market and emerge as a leader. They are easy to get in contact with becuase they walk around with hand held email devices and answer emails almost as quickly as you send them Sounds interesting.... that's all I know. You can call them at 630 208 7791. Anyone have any other experiences with them - good or bad?

They seem rather expensive though. They sell the Bada PH12 for $450, while cattylink had it for $333; they sell the MING DA MC66-AE for $325, while cattylink sells it for $188.

 

[jimholt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure They seem rather expensive though. They sell the Bada PH12 for $450, while cattylink had it for $333; they sell the MING DA MC66-AE for $325, while cattylink sells it for $188.

They are a distributor so that is their markup. Jim.

 

[bluemeteor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimholt They are a distributor so that is their markup. Jim.

Here is how I looked at it:

Catylink sells the MD 66AE for $188. Ah, that does not include shipping or our wonderful customs agents who open every box and start looking through it. Did I mention that they break a couple of tubes once in a while?

Shipping, which for any of these amps is going to be $175 for a reputable freight company with a tracking number and insurance. $120 if you want to take life into your own hands with the HK post office and do not have a tracking number. I am going to buy myself some piece of mind and go with the $175. So now, I am up to $363.

Now comes my customs bill of $25, which brings me to $388.

That's if my amp arrived Ok. If the box was damaged (and these amps are heavy or in the case of the BADA, very fragile) you think you can get your money back from the freight company right?

Wrong

It has to be packed *PERFECTLY* . Catylink have to go the extra mile to get you your money and proved that they packed it correctly. Assuming they take your insurance claim (and those of you who have been in this situation, please speak up) it is going to be another 6-8 weeks.

So, you maybe stuck with an amp that does not work. Seems like a lot of risk. Seeing how you can't even get a hold of Catylink to make the sale, getting a hold of them to help you with a problem - well you do the math.

Net - Net $388 for HK or $325 for an importer. Get your importer to offer you a warranty and a 30 day and let them do all the risk taking.

 

[si_free]

Well since receiving the the cattylink price list (as posted), I have had no reply to any of my other emails. Whilst there are many references on-line from satisfied customers who have used cattylink none of these are recent. There are also a good amount of unsatisfied customers out there. I can only conclude that things change and this contact is no longer to be recomended? This would also appear to be the case with http://www.timaudio.com/ and http://www.ornec.com/home/NZ/ who don't reply to any mail. http://www.china-highend-hifi.com/ surprise me with their email silence as they are still paying for pay per click advertising on ebay- whats the point if they dont sell their products?

I almost gave up on the idea of grey imports when I found out Simply HI-FI (in Perth, WA) had a 40% discount on Vincent players (does that mean they are usually 40% over priced?). Unlucky (for them)they had sold out by the time I visited, but they recommended I try the Shanling for AUD$1500. This was out of my budget. I came to the conclusion to choose my chineses supplier instead of choosing a specific product! Maybe this goes against the grain but in my opinion the differences between cd players in a certain price range is only slight.

http://stores.ebay.com.au/HOTPRODUCTSTORE appeared to me the best option as a supplier. There is plenty of recent feedback from happy customers on their ebay profile which made it easier for me to part with hard cash! They do not offer the full range of products as cattylink, nor are the prices quite as good but they respond to emails within hours. I chose the shanling t-80 which I had been concidering, before online reviews swayed me towards the esound. I paid with paypal on a "buy-it-now" auction for $450 US + postage, I had a thankyou email within minuites and my player arrived in 10 days. My only small complaint was i never recieved the tracking number for my parcel, but hey the item did arrive with the postage option I had chosen. The important thing is it did arrive, I did not pay any customs charges and I now have a great sounding player for AUD$800 inc postage.

The chinese valves were replaced immediatly with sovteks (6H3n-Ap) as my Audio Note SoroSE had a bad experience with 'golden dragon' chinese valves. These tubes were highly recommended by some uk hi-fi publications, but when one failed it resulted in a return to Audio Note for a new circuit board! I would like to say that the Audio Note UK after sales service was excellent, but they asked that I did not use chinese valves again. Lesson learnt!

The Shanling is still burning in, but is already a great product in terms of sound and construction. I would happily use hotproductstore again...maybe 5tube monoblocks amps for home cinema..........

 

[pho_boi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by si_free Well since receiving the the cattylink price list (as posted), I have had no reply to any of my other emails. Whilst there are many references on-line from satisfied customers who have used cattylink none of these are recent. There are also a good amount of unsatisfied customers out there. I can only conclude that things change and this contact is no longer to be recomended? This would also appear to be the case with http://www.timaudio.com/ and http://www.ornec.com/home/NZ/ who don't reply to any mail. http://www.china-highend-hifi.com/ surprise me with their email silence as they are still paying for pay per click advertising on ebay- whats the point if they dont sell their products? I almost gave up on the idea of grey imports when I found out Simply HI-FI (in Perth, WA) had a 40% discount on Vincent players (does that mean they are usually 40% over priced?). Unlucky (for them)they had sold out by the time I visited, but they recommended I try the Shanling for AUD$1500. This was out of my budget. I came to the conclusion to choose my chineses supplier instead of choosing a specific product! Maybe this goes against the grain but in my opinion the differences between cd players in a certain price range is only slight. http://stores.ebay.com.au/HOTPRODUCTSTORE appeared to me the best option as a supplier. There is plenty of recent feedback from happy customers on their ebay profile which made it easier for me to part with hard cash! They do not offer the full range of products as cattylink, nor are the prices quite as good but they respond to emails within hours. I chose the shanling t-80 which I had been concidering, before online reviews swayed me towards the esound. I paid with paypal on a "buy-it-now" auction for $450 US + postage, I had a thankyou email within minuites and my player arrived in 10 days. My only small complaint was i never recieved the tracking number for my parcel, but hey the item did arrive with the postage option I had chosen. The important thing is it did arrive, I did not pay any customs charges and I now have a great sounding player for AUD$800 inc postage. The chinese valves were replaced immediatly with sovteks (6H3n-Ap) as my Audio Note SoroSE had a bad experience with 'golden dragon' chinese valves. These tubes were highly recommended by some uk hi-fi publications, but when one failed it resulted in a return to Audio Note for a new circuit board! I would like to say that the Audio Note UK after sales service was excellent, but they asked that I did not use chinese valves again. Lesson learnt! The Shanling is still burning in, but is already a great product in terms of sound and construction. I would happily use hotproductstore again...maybe 5tube monoblocks amps for home cinema..........

bit too late now, but coemaudio in australia had a shanling t-80/cd-a10t for $750

 

[si_free]

http://www.coemaudio.com.au/

When I looked they only had Original players listed. A sensible price but they had zero stock! I have just checked back and they now have stock (10 of each model) but still only offer Original.

 

[pho_boi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by si_free http://www.coemaudio.com.au/ When I looked they only had Original players listed. A sensible price but they had zero stock! I have just checked back and they now have stock (10 of each model) but still only offer Original.

yeh not sure why they didn't put it on the site, but I did see it at their showroom last time I was there.

a very nice looking unit, but I didn't get to listen because it was still in the box.

 

[drxpert]

One source for Chinese gear is the seller for the Darkvoice tube amp recommended in the amp forum. His prices may not be the best, but he speaks English, and has good feedback.

 

[cs.cheung]

www.driverxx.com

 

[botching]

followed the advice to start subject of email with ORDER FOR xxxxxxx
and got an immediate reply WITH a quotation.