J. Dan Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 There was a recent thread about international shipping and customs that was helpful, but also adds a wrinkle to my next purchase. I plan on buying an MFB Dominion 1 from Thomann. It's low enough at around $1300-1400 range (price estimated due to currency exchange) that I think I'll probably avoid major tariffs but probably still have to pay the shipper something in receipt. The question is this: they have a B-Stock ready for immediate shipment for $100 less. A new one claims 1 week until shipment which I'm sure is estimated and depends on the manufacturer. I've heard of these having long lead times. So considering this will likely take a while to get to me anyway, is $100 enough to justify getting it started immediately, though with some wear? I know it's ultimately my decision but want to consider all of the experience of those here in the forum. Thanks in advance. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardware Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 BStock is my preferred method of buying gear @ NAMM, even though they say it doesnt happen, some folks prefer to not carry as much back home. Last BStock item I bought from Germany was 1,000 USD Cheaper, and I jumped on it immediately, had it on stage in less then 2 weeks. Magnus C350 + FMR RNP + Realistic Unisphere Mic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 10, 2018 Author Share Posted December 10, 2018 Coincidentally this is coming from Germany, but am I to understand you're in Asia? My understanding is it may take a while to get through customs in the US. And we're only talking $100 in this case. Anybody know how reliable "estimated" lead times are coming from MFB and "estimated" USD conversion, and what to expect from a B-Stock? Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CountFosco Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 Delivery estimates from Thomann are on the money in my experience (excluding customs stuff which is out of their control). If anything I found they tend to err on the pessimistic side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoken6 Posted December 10, 2018 Share Posted December 10, 2018 7% saving doesn't seem enough to justify b-stock, unless it's important to you to get it a week earlier. At about 20% (say $250 off on the Dominion) it starts getting interesting. Cheers, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hardware Posted December 11, 2018 Share Posted December 11, 2018 Coincidentally this is coming from Germany, but am I to understand you're in Asia? My understanding is it may take a while to get through customs in the US. And we're only talking $100 in this case. Anybody know how reliable "estimated" lead times are coming from MFB and "estimated" USD conversion, and what to expect from a B-Stock? Actually I went from Vegas to Nashville to Macau and back to Nevada again. Actually from old St.Lou originally. Ive brought gear back from Japan 6 months before it was in the USA, buy gear at MESSE or NAMM (B Stock) and have bought directly from manufacturers in Germany and Italy, BStock too. Never a problem except in 2011 when Congress quietly passed some bull shit taxing scheme that cost me an extra 150 bucks, but those regulations were reversed in 2014 and everything since then is s piece of cake. Its sending anything to Europe that sucks, even if its a gift Im asked to say its value is pennies in the dollar, etc. They beat their citizens up over there pretty good. Especially France. Sent a QuNexus and MIDI Box to a friend for free and it still cost him 80 bucks. You shouldnt see any delays or hassles or regulation crap. Magnus C350 + FMR RNP + Realistic Unisphere Mic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeyMoe Posted December 11, 2018 Share Posted December 11, 2018 I have also bought a few B Stock boards locally here in the US but substantially discounted in the range of 35-45% less than street price. Never a problem with the gear and it has always been in perfect condition. Montage 7, Mojo 61, PC-3, XK-3c Pro, Kronos 88, Hammond SK-1, Motif XF- 7, Hammond SK-2, Roland FR-1, FR-18, Hammond B3 - Blond, Hammond BV -Cherry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 12, 2018 Author Share Posted December 12, 2018 Placed the order (went with a new one). The actual sale price at checkout ended up being a couple hundred bucks less than the "estimated" price, plus another $33 shipping and a 2-5 day lead time for them to get it once the order is confirmed. That doesn't count what I may owe customs when it arrives. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 13, 2018 Author Share Posted December 13, 2018 Aaaaaaand delay because of my stupid bank. Charge declined, order cancelled. Had to call my bank (after not being able to find a phone number anywhere online and having to go dig out my last statement that came in the mail to get a phone number) and tell them that I intended to place the order, then after getting confirmation from them that they would let it go through the NEXT time I place an order, go BACK online and order it AGAIN. Thanks Bank of America. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted January 4, 2019 Author Share Posted January 4, 2019 It's HERE!!!!!! No customs charges. The $33 shipping landed it at my front door with no additional charges. Shipped with European power cable and didn't list anywhere the power requirements, but a quick google search revealed that it contains a universal power supply, so I'm good. It has an IEC connector, so I have plenty of those cords laying around. I'll start a new thread with a review once I get to it. Unfortunately too busy with work today to knock off an fire it up. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doerfler Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 It's HERE!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GRollins Posted January 4, 2019 Share Posted January 4, 2019 Aaaaaaand delay because of my stupid bank. Charge declined, order cancelled. Had to call my bank (after not being able to find a phone number anywhere online and having to go dig out my last statement that came in the mail to get a phone number) and tell them that I intended to place the order, then after getting confirmation from them that they would let it go through the NEXT time I place an order, go BACK online and order it AGAIN. Thanks Bank of America. I ran into the same thing back when I was in the throes of building that Fatar-based keyboard and needed a MIDI board. The place I ended up getting the board from, midiboutique, is in Bulgaria and when I tried to charge the board, my credit card company went ballistic. I eventually got it settled, but it was unnecessarily difficult; don't think I'll buy anything from Bulgaria again. And, the same way you're describing, my credit card company made it really hard to get in touch with the right people to get permission to let the charge go through. You'd think they'd make it easier to do business, given that it's how they make money. Grey I'm not interested in someone's ability to program. I'm interested in their ability to compose and play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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