Frustrating maybe.
But in the end it’s all business, if said dealer is willing to give up more off his profit in the sale, then as long as the owner is happy with the aftercare once purchased then great.
What is not to like?
If you paid full price for something like this only a few weeks ago, then sorry it called tuff.
Maybe you should have asked for a discount as they all have rather large margins on kit, and if you dont ask you don’t get.
Most are willing to do a deal, i have found out.
1 Like
Let’s hope all the people prepared to penny pinch will remember that when support is not there or the shop.
It’s one thing doing deals but not when there are overheads and behind the scenes services that have to be paid for in the name of customer convenience.
I’ve had this in buisness too people buy cheap then when it matters the service is crap or non existent.
Everything costs one way or another.
What one dealer does at a very good rate gets forgotten until repair bill and service prices get silly when the bargain hunters look round and realise the bargain wasn’t quite so then it’s too late. 
6 Likes
Indeed, I ordered a NPX-300 yesterday and it was discounted.
I don’t think Audio-T sell English Acoustic hence the manufacturer being able to discount.
be clear. I have no issue with this whatsoever. My frustration was solely that my poor health prevented me getting a home demo 10 days ago and getting to the show. Had either of those happened I may have had a new amp by now… or not. C’est la vie. The product in question is sold via 2 southern dealers I can’t access or direct from manufacturer. Their specific show discounts relate to prpducts they have with them. Slightly different in that EE products are highly customisable in terms of colours etc. so the discounted model you buy at a show will be as is and perhaps not the exact spec. you might otherwise have gone for.
Slightly different to someone knocking £1k off an Atom HE which is exactly what a dealer might otherwise have sold.
1 Like
That goes for any business, and getting discounts or not doesn’t effect this.
It’s the way said business goes about its business that’s counts.
It’s like when i was looking at a S1, the difference in price new from different dealers was shocking. I mean huge difference.
1 Like
The discounts at the show are handled by Audio T who are the show organiser, if they want to resell items at cost or even below cost that has nothing to do with who made those items.
There is an Audio T sales desk/room and purchases are handled there. You can buy direct and even pay cash on occasion but that’s at the discretion of the company selling, I had a conversation along those lines with GIK Accoustics who offered me 25% off any item on display at the show and that I was willing to take away with me at the end of it as an example.
@Mr.M … hi … this is the same system I heard when I demo the klimax from my AD… the mono blocks are a beast
100% my impression too. Little musical engagement and tad thin I thought. Speakers perhaps too big for room and weren’t driven to potential (?). Paul Simon track was really anaemic and lacking scale.
OTOH in the opposite room the Star Aria Evo X combo for £7k was a very nice balanced agreeable sound for the money. Lana del Rey sounded as I recall. Like the Vestias but with upgraded driver materials and matched to New Classic series tone/character I am told. Fed by Core at extra cost - prob not needed in home environment. 
2 Likes
I had a slightly different impression of the PE/Sopra system. For me it was dominated by brightness, which has been my consistent experience with Sopra in small rooms (too close to the tweeter?). Which meant it was hard to make a call on how the PE was performing, certainly at mid and low frequencies I thought it was doing a pretty good job, but the brightness meant I wasn’t enjoying the music. Different speakers/bigger room would have been interesting.
I agree about the Star/Aria room, I enjoyed the music there, and it was excellent for the money.
I thought Mark did a good job on the timed demos, well presented, the systems all sounded good and the differences were obvious. Best I’ve heard Utopias sound I think. A non-Naim-using friend of mine commented to Mark R it was the first time he’d enjoyed a Naim demo.
7 Likes
First time?? What kind of friends do you have?
3 Likes
They do play music that i find difficult to relate to what i am used to…….i like many genres.
1 Like
He has a Gyrodec, Audio Research and Kef Blade system. I think he’s struggled with the utopias in recent years.
2 Likes
I sat in an ATC demo (some Special Edition active 50’s) with some chap who had a bag full of his own vinyl, that was quite fun and kept us there a little longer than usual.
1 Like
Lovely that he took them along, and they played them👍
A great selection thankfully and immaculate condition.
1 Like
In the big demo I attended, the Naim guys played pieces by Ellington, Elvis, Talking Heads, and finished with Susan’s House by the Eels. Hopefully plenty there for people to relate to this year Gazza.
6 Likes
Assume it was the same across the sessions, I heard those tracks end of the day on Friday.
I did wonder how effective the demos actually are given the rapid swopping in and out of cables, was nice to be able to have a dedicated slot anyway and some time to speak to key employees, all of which were very helpful and keen to engage.
To my ears the NAC332 + NAP500 sounded a bit off, once the NAC S1 was swopped in it sounded a lot happier. The other steps gave a sense of what power supplies add, but even the “bare bones” starting point would be a nice place to find yourself.
1 Like
Music to my ears👍
1 Like
Eeugh ! That bad, eh !
