All Advertisers
| All Advertisers |
| |||||||
Similar Threads | ||||
| Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
| Gear Shipping (again) | juniorhifikit | High end | 20 | 16th March 2005 08:04 AM |
| Shipping a desk US to Europe | Mantra | High end | 18 | 11th July 2004 04:38 PM |
| Shipping heavy gear | robmix | So much gear, so little time! | 4 | 11th May 2004 02:26 AM |
 |
| | Thread Tools | Search this Thread | Rate Thread | Display Modes |
7th January 2004, 03:42 PM
| #1 |
| Gear interested Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 8
| Shipping gear from the US to Europe There are much products (especially when they're made in the US) which are much cheaper than in Europe. I really want to have a matched pair of Earthworks TC30K's. In Europe I can't find them for any cheaper than about 2000 euros (incl VAT) which is about 2500 US dollars! In the US I saw them for about 1100 US dollars (incl VAT)! Does anyone in Europe have any experience with buying gear in the US and let them ship to Europe. |
|  |
|
7th January 2004, 04:09 PM
| #2 |
| Gear maniac  Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Posts: 190
| Yes, I've bought tons of gear both from eBay and from music stores. I've had no problems. Just remember your tax authorities may want sales tax, and there may be a custom's fee as well. And of course - if you buy something that needs power, you will have to get a suitable transformer as they run 110V in the US. But there will be no trouble regarding microphones. Cheers /Henrik |
|
| |
|
7th January 2004, 04:49 PM
| #3 |
| Gear maniac  Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Belgium
Posts: 199
| I have also done this many times. It's rarelya problem as shipping stuff is the normal way in the US. As mentioned above, you have to watch out for the import tax and VAT which can be quite expensive. Of course there are some tricks which might help to soften the blow (e.g. let the shop declare the package for less value which is obviously a bit of a risk when it gets lost, find a friend who is a diplomat as they can receive stuff tax free,...) |
|
| |
|
7th January 2004, 05:48 PM
| #4 | |
| Lives for gear  Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Austria
Posts: 766
|  Re: Shipping gear from the US to Europe Quote:
| |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 12:18 AM
| #5 |
| Lives for gear  Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Lillehammer, Norway
Posts: 500
| Iīve bought lots of gear from the US for many years now, both from manufactors themselves (like LittleLabs) and from resellers like Mercenary Audio. Never had any problems. The reason Iīve preferred shopping in the US was not so much for price, but the gear I want were not readily available here in Scandinavia. This has changed a lot lately, with companies like Golden Age Music in Sweden. Another thing is the level of service. Most companies in Norway have (or at least had - things are getting better) something to learn when it comes to service. US companies seems to appreciate you as a customer, while most Norwegian companies seems to think the customer should be happy just to be allowed to shop in their Behringer-infecteded stores. I donīt know if this goes for the rest of Europe. I hope it doesnīt. Sorry for the rant....I got carried away.... Stein Tore |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 06:56 AM
| #6 | |
| Gear maniac Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Posts: 190
| Quote:
| |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 07:35 AM
| #7 | |
| Lives for gear  Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: forest and hills
Posts: 1,125
| Quote:
it's a shame when you get there,and you know more about the product than the retailer! | |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 08:58 AM
| #8 |
| Gear addict  Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Lowlands
Posts: 498
| If you ship something from the states you have to pay customs over the the product+shipping costs and then you have to pay VAT on top of that. In the Netherlands the amount of customs depends on the product type, but with the current dollar rate you still might be cheaper ordering stuff from the states. Plus certain stuff is pretty hard to find over here.... |
| |
|
8th January 2004, 11:10 AM
| #9 |
| Gear nut  Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Milano-Italy
Posts: 103
 | I usually buy gear from US. Tipically @ mercenary audio or other facilities... it's fast (with ups expedited.. maximum 3/4 days), it's secure and much cheaper then EURO prices! Michele |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 01:27 PM
| #10 | |
| Gear addict  Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Sweden
Posts: 302
| Quote:
    Music shops in Sweden are a joke if you want Pro Audio Equipment (Golden Age Music is one of the few exceptions)! Magnus | |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 01:44 PM
| #11 |
| Lives for gear  Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Berlin / Germany
Posts: 5,052
| When it is about salesclerk quotes ... "There is no difference between balanced and unbalanced connections." In that `self-confidentīmanner they often seem in the habit of in gear stores.  Ruphus
__________________ "Am I the only one that tires of this "everything is subjective" watered-down-pop-culture-pseudo-philosophy bullshit?" Bravin Neff Wolgang Burr, former office leader of the German Chancellor before committee of inquiry: "You would not believe what unusual happens daily." "Patience, young Skywalker - let the object of your desires come to you." JTR "All thinking men are atheists." Ernest Hemingway |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 03:37 PM
| #12 | |
| Gear maniac Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Posts: 190
| Quote:
Cool to meet a fellow Swedish slut. Where in Sweden do you live? Cheers /Henrik | |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 07:53 PM
| #13 |
| Gear maniac  Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Stockholm
Posts: 153
| Here's another Swedish slut. Buying stuff from the States is a no brainer. With the current dollar rate it's a joke how cheap it is. At least for US made gear. For German gear Musicians-gear.com is da Bomb. The customs is only like 3% and the VAT is refundable if you're running a business. Which I do, so yeah, it's really cool. Golden Age is great also. They carry alot of good stuff. Their prices sometimes match US streetprice which is incredible!  |
|
| |
|
8th January 2004, 08:24 PM
| #14 |
| Gear nut  Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Milford NH
Posts: 80
| Golden Age & Earthworks We love Bo Medin here at Earthworks...much respect & regards. I wish we could find a way to improve the situation of our European gear slut friends..  we are working on the Europe question....Enjoy your TC30K's however you get them! Be well, Jeff Damon
__________________ Covenant Life Expert Audio Recording is CLEAR! Location recording for New England since 1995 |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 06:06 AM
| #15 |
| Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Belgium
Posts: 89
| How about buying second hand stuff like on ebay for instance. Do the same custom tax laws apply when you ship it to Europe? |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 07:19 AM
| #16 | |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Berlin / Germany
Posts: 5,052
| Quote:
Ruphus
__________________ "Am I the only one that tires of this "everything is subjective" watered-down-pop-culture-pseudo-philosophy bullshit?" Bravin Neff Wolgang Burr, former office leader of the German Chancellor before committee of inquiry: "You would not believe what unusual happens daily." "Patience, young Skywalker - let the object of your desires come to you." JTR "All thinking men are atheists." Ernest Hemingway | |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 07:26 AM
| #17 |
| Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Belgium
Posts: 89
| Thank you Ruphus. To Pieter: Can I borrow your diplomat  |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 12:27 PM
| #18 |
| Gear addict  Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: I'm Behind You! Oh, okay, I'm in England.
Posts: 357
| I think that we should take a moment to thank people like Alan Hyatt and Larry Vilella for making sure their products cost the same here as they do in the U.S.A. (Forex: compare ADK prices at Turnkey in Britain and 8th Street or Atlas Pro Audio and you'll see what I mean). At least in the U.K.
__________________ "I can hear you. Coming to find you. Coming to find you" |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 05:51 PM
| #19 |
| Lives for gear Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Berlin / Germany
Posts: 5,052
| You are wellcome, Mantra. :O) Mark, Yes, I also noticed about such on another product lately ( forgot what it was at the moment ) and felt gratefulness as well. Gives a fair feeling somehow.  Ruphus
__________________ "Am I the only one that tires of this "everything is subjective" watered-down-pop-culture-pseudo-philosophy bullshit?" Bravin Neff Wolgang Burr, former office leader of the German Chancellor before committee of inquiry: "You would not believe what unusual happens daily." "Patience, young Skywalker - let the object of your desires come to you." JTR "All thinking men are atheists." Ernest Hemingway |
|
| |
|
11th January 2004, 06:34 PM
| #20 |
| Lives for gear  Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Europe
Posts: 1,185
| I've run into this difficulty many times. Once, after recovering from my initial outrage at learning the European price of some Kurzweil gear, I calculated that it was cheaper for me to FLY to New York, walk into a store, buy the goods and then return to Europe and I'd still be up on the deal! World gone mad! However, things look a bit better than they did a few years ago, especially after the Euro, and sometimes European prices can almost match US prices now. But this doesn't apply to 2nd-hand stuff where the USA is still way cheaper, and or course if the manufacturer is US-based. Another plus is that more and more gear has dual-voltage power built-in nowadays. Still, if I was buying anything small that could fit into a suitcase like microphones, software, PCI cards etc I'd probably try to find a friend to bring it over. Cultivating diplomatic contacts, however vague, is also very worthwhile! Import tax is a major downer and can really take the satisfaction out of knowing you just got a great deal on something. Not that I'm encouraging anyone to break the law in a public forum... 
__________________ James Lehmann Voice-Over Artist - Project Studio Jockey www.jameslehmann.net Stop the superlatives madness! Abolish gear threads with the word 'best' in the title. |
|
| |
|
12th January 2004, 10:56 PM
| #21 |
| Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Milford NH
Posts: 80
| slight clarification Hi! I'm sure Alan and Larry try their flat out best to find the right distributors for their products in Europe; however they exert no actual "control" over the prices people charge. That would be illegal. Both companies mentioned make great cost a high priority; so it should come as no suprise that prices are competitively low all over the world. again; I'm positive they do not try to tell people what to sell for. Jeff from Earthworks 
__________________ Covenant Life Expert Audio Recording is CLEAR! Location recording for New England since 1995 |
|
| |
|
13th January 2004, 04:35 PM
| #22 |
| Gear interested  Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 29
| Another swede here... Think I've heard that if you are in states, buy gear and use it there, you don't have to pay tax... Anyway that is what I've done, just opened the boxes, then carried them as handluggade. Never any probs... |
|
| |
|
13th January 2004, 05:43 PM
| #23 |
| Gear Head  Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Fine-land, Scandinavia
Posts: 53
| Hi everybody! Although I've been addicted to this forum for almost a year, I'm still quite a fresh GEARSLUT  . As I'm always in desparate need of some high class gear and buy alot of stuff in a year I can get some increadibly low prices here in Europe. We are talking most of the time better than the street prices in USA. If I can help you fellas gearslutz I'll be glad to do so. It works the best if you are VAT registered. I'm not a gear pimp but a gear abuser myself and I can save you some cash... All the stuff is either ex-demo or new with full guarante... Send me a PM...
__________________ Every once in a while, U have to set-up a meeting with yourself... and try not...  ... to come to late!
|
|
| |
|
13th January 2004, 09:20 PM
| #24 | |
| Gear maniac Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Posts: 190
| Quote:
I think you are supposed to tell the the custom officers that you have bought the gear abroad and are now bringing it into the country - so you can pay the taxes. Don't let your conscience kill you. Cheers /Henrik PS All Swedish sluts - are you aware of the Swedish VST Forum ? It's not as good as Gearslutz, but it's still pretty nice to hang out with some fellow countrymen. | |
|
| |
|
3rd December 2005, 06:21 PM
| #25 | |
| Gear interested Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 10
|  Quote:
If you think that Mackie is proAudio Equipment and it sounds like SSL, and you don't know API, how can you speak about proAudio Equipment?!  | |
|
| |
|
4th December 2005, 02:56 PM
| #26 |
| member no 666  Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Foxboro, MA USA
Posts: 5,778
| I would like to take this opportunity to mention that we will only send hardware to Europe that does not have proper European distribution... when there is a good reseller in a country that carries the same product we do we will NOT sell that product into that country... for instance, we will NOT send any Manley equipment into France as the product is very well handled by JB Lierre and Jukebox LTD... however, there is no dealer for Great River in France so we'll be happy to accept an order from France. When you have good distribution in your country [a knowledgable reseller who can/will provide service and support... like Bo at Golden Age for example] it is in your best interest to support that reseller!!! Yes they may be more expensive than many of the US resellers... however, if/when you need any service or support... you're screwed. You'll have to ship the product back to the US and deal with a bunch of customs forms etc. [or be double taxed on the stuff]. Realize that European dealers of US product have to deal with a ton of extra costs US retailers don't have to deal with... like the advertising costs surrounding the product... repair facilities, etc. Much like there are a whole bunch of extra costs selling European product in the US, the same is true in the other direction. I would urge people to shop locally when ever it is possible. Peace.
__________________ Fletcher "I'm not really an asshole... I just play one on the internet" [author unknown] R/E/P the Recording Engineer and Producer forums Mercenary Audio the small drinking company with a large audio problem mwagener wrote on Sat, 11 September 2004 14:33 We are selling emotions, there are no emotions in a grid Roscoe Ambel once said: Pro-Tools is to audio what fluorescent is to light |
|
| |
|
| Bookmarks |
| Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
| Display Modes | Rate This Thread |
| |
Linear Mode
