K & H O300 Retailers

[Ermz]

Sorry to bother you all with another thread about these monitors.

I'm looking for a retailer, US, Europe, whatever, which does a good price, can request a 240V model, and does shipping to Australia (preferably with insurance).

I've tried to contact the local distributor here in Australia, but they won't even get back to me! From what I've heard, these speakers sound fantastic for my purposes, and I just want to get a pair without absolutely sending myself bankrupt (they retail for $5.5k PER SPEAKER here).

Any help you can offer would be very greatly appreciated!
Thank you.

[AlexRoudos]

I have them and they sound absolutely fantastic, i can confirm that.

But 11k is schizophrenic, i tried a conversion for this price and it is 6.749 euros, more than double for what i paid for them!!!!

I live in Amsterdam and i bought them from a shop that i'm a very dedicated client because they very competitive prices.

I don't know if they ship abroad but why not try and contact them and see what happens.

Here's the email : info@midi-amsterdam.nl

Direct your email for the attention of Tim and mention my name as well if you like. It might help.

[Ermz]

Thank you very much! I'll get in touch with them ASAP.

If anybody else has more suggestions I'm more than happy to take them. Cheers!

[John Willett]

In the UK talk to HHB.

The UK price is £1,380 +VAT. I think the high price in Australia has to do with import duty, shipping costs and the like. So you *will* need to factor in your local taxes and duty if you buy abroad.

I am surprised the Australian distributor has not called you back, though, I have heard they are normally very good.

[Ermz]

Thanks John.

The UK price seems to be per speaker, and ends up being quite hefty for a stereo pair. I can source these speakers for about $4,100 USD for a stereo pair in the US so far, but was hoping for something even better, as I'm factoring in import duty, taxes etc. which would bring the price up closer to the $5,500 mark.

[John Willett]

Originally Posted by Ermz

The UK price seems to be per speaker, and ends up being quite hefty for a stereo pair. I can source these speakers for about $4,100 USD for a stereo pair in the US so far, but was hoping for something even better, as I'm factoring in import duty, taxes etc. which would bring the price up closer to the $5,500 mark.

The UK price I quoted was the RRP - not the street price, which would very likely be less.

[Johnny T]

The price of these monitors in AU has recently dropped dramatically. I have myself ordered a pair of the O300D's.

I have PM'd you more details.

[s-cube]

I got mine from the states from these guys:

www.recordingservicesandsupply.com

Highly recommended!

[Ermz]

Thanks for all the suggestions so far, guys.

s-cube, that's the very same site I got my best quote from! He was even nice enough to order a 240V version direct from K&H, include shipping insurance and everything.

Also, one other option I didn't lay out. I have some family friends in Germany. Would it potentially be a good idea to get them to purchase the pair from a retailer there, then ship it over? I assume there's some way of declaring the item as a gift, so that the import duty and tax doesn't apply?

[jaykay]

Hi Ermin,

From Australia, now living in Berlin. Using 0300's myself, a new pair goes for around 3600-3800euro in Germany so keep that in mind. Yes, you could probably get them shipped over as a gift (not sure about the insurance procedure though). Don't forget also, even though they're small, they're still pretty heavy and shipping stuff from Germany doesn't come cheap.

Could be worth it though, you'd really have to do the math.

[Ermz]

Hi Jay,

That's actually quite a similar price to what we're getting in Australia, if you convert it over to AUD. Apparently my RRP of $11,000 up above was misinformed, and we actually get them going closer to about $6,000

Is it RRP or going price that you're quoting? It's just bizarre that they seem cheapest in the US.

Thank you!

[jaykay]

Unfortunately that's the going rate for a new pair and you'll be hard pushed finding them cheaper elsewhere.

Yep, always the same, especially at the moment for me when you do the conversion from euros to US dollars. Things are just cheaper over that side of the pond, more powerful market I guess (larger). I buy a bunch of my stuff there and bring it back when I'm travelling.

It may not work out any better for you in that case, keep in mind that having a warranty is quite handy (although they are reliable). Also good to know that I was sent four pairs in total and it was only the fourth pair that I held onto (number of reasons, not acoustically matched, different coloured anthracite-I ended up giving up on the first dealer).

Anyways, good luck, they are nice monitors.

[Ermz]

Oh I see. No problems then, thanks a lot for taking the time out to tell me about the prices down there. Looks like my best options so far are either ordering from the US or just buying locally.

The local distributor just got back to me, promising to sort out a dealer to have a demo at. Can't wait!

[s-cube]

Ermz,

If you're worried about paying import taxes you can ask Aaron to mark down the value of the monitors so you don't have to pay too much.

They're 16kg each, so you can go to the USPS website to figure out how much shipping them to oz will cost.

[John Willett]

Originally Posted by s-cube

If you're worried about paying import taxes you can ask Aaron to mark down the value of the monitors so you don't have to pay too much.

This is dangerous.

Customs will know what they are worth as they will be going through Customs to the legitimate Australian distributor - so they will know the value.

If they think you are trying to defraud Customs by having a false value, then they are likely to be impounded and you won't see them at all (or your money) - it's not worth the risk.

To be honest - given the hassle, the shipping, the Duty and the lack of a Guarantee that would be honoured locally - I would purchase them locally in Oz.

I would say that savings have to be considerable to make buying abvroad worth it with studio equipment.

[s-cube]

Yeah it's a risk but in all honesty customs don't really have that much time to check the authenticity of the value of each & every package that enters the country. The shop that he buys from can also declare the item as a gift & mark down the value to save him from taxes.

Anyway it depends on how desperate you are to save some $$. I agree that in most cases it is best to buy locally. I've pulled this customs trick on almost all the gear i've imported but then again, i'm from a third world country!

[Kim Bjäle]

Thomann Cyberstore