Buying from mercenaryaudio.com

[questman]

Hi i was wondering if anyone ever both gear form www.mercenaryaudio.com. I want to order from there but i want to make sure of the store i'm buying from.

Thanks for any reply

Questman

[AdamJay]

they're legit
i bought my first RNLA from them, and one of the main guys there posts here quite frequently.

[Dangerous Dave]

Do It.

Those guys are 110%

[questman]

Thanks cauz im about to spend about 4000$ over there so i juste wanted to make sure every thing was fine

Thanks again

Questman

[leadfootdriver]

Make sure you buy the right gear, or Fetcher will impale you with a mic stand...dfegad

[mikelevitt]

I've bought a lot of stuff from Mercenary, and it's always been great.

You can't buy any junk there, though, as Fletcher refuses to carry anything he doesn't like, regardless of how much money he could make on it.

A very interesting guy is Fletcher.

Anyway, they are great to deal with, with unparalled service and support. Plus, they double the warranty on everything they sell.

Highly, highly recommended..

Mike

[SoundEng1]

To me Mercenary is the best dealer in the industry, Plus their customer service is top notch, I Recomend them Highly.

[superburtm]

I have bought and just bought more yesterday from Mercenary.
I give them big

[compasspnt]

Mercenary is the best. Best gear. Best service. Best people. Best website.

You will not go wrong.

They will take care of you.

Terry

[hi-res]

VERY overpriced but nice guys at Mercenary. Try Calistro Music instead. Everyone I know shops there and their prices are the BEST.

http://www.calistromusic.com

[drew]

i've laways had good experiences with Merc.

be aware they are NOT the cheapest guy in town but the service, advice is top notch.

[snaysup]

My first major gear purchase was with mercenary back in 99 i think. i got a pair of earthworks tc30ks. the arrived straight from earthworks, plugged them in to test them out.... hey what the hell is that ringing sound? one of the mics was acting like a speaker and producing a tone from the capsule. i contacted earthworks who wanted me to send only the broken mic and for me to wait while the found a match for my defective one, which might take a week or two. long story short mercenary stepped in and i had another new pair in two days that worked plus a t-shirt plus a micpre cd and they sent me a ups label to send in the broke pair. 2 weeks later mercenary called to make sure i liked the mics and to see if i wanted something else instead. very cool. do i buy from mercenary everytime? no, but if the difference between a distressor on ebay and one from mercenary is 100 bucks i think i'd take the double warranty over some ebay gamble.

[Jim vanBergen]

NO FEAR.



BUY GEAR.


Leave some for us, eh?

[ulysses]

I'm thinking of buying a guitar. Has anybody here ever heard of "Fender"?

[Jon Kraft]

I don't think it's fair to say they are overpriced across the board. Many things they sell are as cheap as anywhere else. It just depends on what you are buying. Their service is definately incredible. In this corporate-oligarchy, we vote with our dollars. I prefer to support business that cares about the products they sell and who they sell them to.


Jon

[Infernal Device]

Just ask the man himself. It's easy, just start a thread with "Neve 1073 vs....."

or

"Which Neve clone?"

or

"Are mic preamps important?"

I can assure you he will read it. In fact that would be funny.

Since all the praise is being passed around, I can beat all y'all...

Fletcher rescued my family from a buring building and then fixed a flat tire for me in the rain and got my cat out of a tree.

Just kidding. He is a great guy and I have learned over the years that dealing with someone who cares about you and what you buy is WAY better in the end than a few dollars saved. Go to him and max out your credit card.

Good people at Mercenary.

[GilWave]

Originally Posted by hi-res

VERY overpriced but nice guys at Mercenary. Try Calistro Music instead. Everyone I know shops there and their prices are the BEST.

Fletcher is not 'WAY' over-priced - I would say he is reasonably priced.

I oughta know, I am the one that gets complaints from other dealers when a dealer sells for less than they do.

With Mercenary, it's "good worth price charged". They only carry what they believe in, they don't do 'flavor of the month', and they stand behind whatever they sell.

Hi-Res, I find it odd that you live in Detroit and shop in Connecticut, when you've got a great dealer in your backyard.

-g

[superburtm]

Originally Posted by GilWave

Fletcher is not 'WAY' over-priced - I would say he is reasonably priced.

I oughta know, I am the one that gets complaints from other dealers when a dealer sells for less than they do.

With Mercenary, it's "good worth price charged". They only carry what they believe in, they don't do 'flavor of the month', and they stand behind whatever they sell.

Hi-Res, I find it odd that you live in Detroit and shop in Connecticut, when you've got a great dealer in your backyard.

-g

I live in LA and buy from Mercenary...

[drew]

Originally Posted by GilWave

Hi-Res, I find it odd that you live in Detroit and shop in Connecticut, when you've got a great dealer in your backyard.

-g

it's 2006, CT is MI's backyard!!

and yes Calistro is great. competition is good.

[Matt Grondin]

Originally Posted by GilWave

Fletcher is not 'WAY' over-priced - I would say he is reasonably priced.

I oughta know, I am the one that gets complaints from other dealers when a dealer sells for less than they do.

With Mercenary, it's "good worth price charged". They only carry what they believe in, they don't do 'flavor of the month', and they stand behind whatever they sell.

Hi-Res, I find it odd that you live in Detroit and shop in Connecticut, when you've got a great dealer in your backyard.

-g

Atlas is only a few hours from me, but I was under the impression that I had to pay Florida state sales tax in addition to the expensive gear so I buy out of state. Am I mistaken?

[pingu]

I am i the market for a mini me and Mercenary is 150 bucks more expensive than the best price i can get.

[superburtm]

Originally Posted by pingu

I am i the market for a mini me and Mercenary is 150 bucks more expensive than the best price i can get.

Yeah but when that mini me takes a crap you'll be glad you paid the extra 150. at Merc. They will make sure you aren't S.O.L.

[GilWave]

Originally Posted by dobby12

Atlas is only a few hours from me, but I was under the impression that I had to pay Florida state sales tax in addition to the expensive gear so I buy out of state. Am I mistaken?

Well, this is the old Catch-22.

First - as a resident of Florida, assumedly you benefit from the services prodided by the State. State Government costs money to run. Some of that money comes from Sales Tax. Now remember - Florida dealers don't charge you sales tax. They collect it on behalf of the Governor of The State of Florida.

Now say you run a studio business. And you buy some gear from your studio. You decide, for whatever reason, to buy it out of state - say, from your good friends at Mercenary Audio in Massachussetts or Vintage King in Michigan. Just because they don't collect sales tax on behalf of The State of Florida doesn't mean you are not obligated to pay sales tax to The State of Florida - you are. In practice though, almost nobody does.

Here's the rub - if you, as a studio business owner, buy a Pro Tools system (or console and processing, or some mics and 1073's) for $35,000 and then deduct it on your taxes as a business expense and don't show the sales tax paid to yoru state, in an audit they will hit you up for the tax you should have paid (regardless of where you bought it) TREBLED, plus damages and fines.

And if you think you're too small a business to get audited, think again. In any event, if you don;t pay the sales tax for pricey gear bought out of state, don't claim it as a deduction on your taxes.

And be certain that, eventually the US will levy and assess a Nationwide sales tax to satisfy all the States that are pissing and moaning about loss of revenue.

Southern California enacted a 2 or 3% "producers sales tax" rate to ease the situation on LA area audio dealers who were tired of watching their business go to Arizona and Nevada over 8 or 9 per cent sales tax. Half (or a third) of a loaf is better than no loaf at all.

[GilWave]

Originally Posted by drew

it's 2006 - competition is good.

Yep. Remember that when eSession price-dropping producer/engineer slutz eat away at your local business. As broadband access becomes the norm, moving multi-track files around the internet is no big deal.

Hell, the way things are going I can see Guitar Center having Mix kiosks like Wal Mart has photo drop-off kiosks. Just fill out the envelope, pop in your master tracks, specify preferred format (Neve, API, SSL from Pro Tools, Nuendo or Cakewalk, processed with [expensive flavor-of-the-month processing here]. Please check mix preference - ITB, OTB - drop it into the kiosk and - viola! A nice 2 track (or, for an extra 50%, 5.1 Surround) in your choice of prints - 24/96, 16/44.1, or double prints if you prefer MP3!

[pingu]

Originally Posted by superburtm

Yeah but when that mini me takes a crap you'll be glad you paid the extra 150. at Merc. They will make sure you aren't S.O.L.

Cant i just use apogees warranty?

[drew]

gil,
do you have a problem with how Craig does business?

[GilWave]

Originally Posted by drew

do you have a problem with how Craig does business?

Nope, not at all.

I have a philosohical problem with people going outside their market areas in order to save sales tax or to "get the best deal", as if that is the only thing that is important.

Just as I mourn the loss of local butchers, shoe stores, delis, bakeries, pharmacies, et al - those local business owners who had generations of family members behind the counter, supported local Little League and Boy/Girl Scouts and other community organizations, had kids in the public schools, were invested in the community because they lived and schooled and worked and grew up there - I miss Martin Audio and Audio Techniques and Alex Music and Bronen's Music and many of the independant music stores and pro audio shops I have worked with over 24 years in the business.

As a salesman, I dislike the "call us last, we'll beat any price" method of doiing business - it's like poaching IMHO. When I want to buy something serious - old Neumanns, LA2a, LN1176 - or something new and serious, like a Brauner mic or a high-end channel strip - I want to talk to an expert and I want great service. I have received advise from Fletcher and referred some clients to Mercenary for SoundDeluxe and some rare vintage stuff. I have spoken with Craig on some pieces too that he specializes in. I also am fortunate to know Brad Lunde for many years and of course I try and get a good deal, but I am not a grinder or nickle-and-dimer. If Fletcher quotes me a price, I don't shop around and then call him back and say "can't you do better?" I know him well enough that his price is his price, and if I want the Mercenary advice, service and support I have come to expect from him then that is what it is going to cost me.

I know that by charging the price he quotes me, he has enough margin to pay his bills and cover his overhead. The best customer service Fletcher can give me is to be in business next year, and the year after that, and the year after that - when I need him.

Short-sighted dealers (and I am not naming names, I am talking in generalities) who seek to poach and steal customers from another dealer who has invested the time and the energy into evangelizing a customer on behalf of a product are acting unethically IMHO. Using the out-of-state sales tax advantage as a trump card is not much better.

Now I know some of you disagree with me, and feel that you should have the right to pit dealers against each other and work the system until you get the best bang for the buck - and you do. But just because you can do a thing doesn't mean you ought to do a thing. And some of the worst grinders I know are the first ones to complain when some other studio or producer cuts their rate and steals a client.

Most of us got into this business because we are passionate about it and love being in the thick of it. I do business with small intimate shops like my good friend Al Priest's StudioTech in Texas, and I work with big companies like Sweetwater and Guitar Center as well. Everyone has their place in the market (even, dare I say, Behringer and Mackie - we all have to start somewhere.)

The guys at the top of Guitar Center are still muso's who grew up in the business, and they are passionate but also, as a publicly traded company, fiercely competitive and analyze every square foot for profitability. But they are still profitable - they realize that without profits, there are no salaries, rents, bennies, etc (the MARS fiasco is a good example). Chuck at Sweetwater is a musician and has built an amazing company out of virtually nothing in the middle of Fort Wayne Indiana. Love them or hate them, they are doing something right or they wouldn't have experienced the growth they have seen over the past 20 years.

As the line between pro audio and music gear continues to blur, I fear we will see less and less expert-level, experiencial knowledge-based dealers. WalMart, Best Buy and other consumer electronic chains are starting to sell Gibson and Fender guitars. I hope those are not our major choices for gear in 10 years.

You asked, that's my 2 cents, YMMV.

-gil

[superburtm]

Originally Posted by pingu

Cant i just use apogees warranty?

From myexp Mercenary treats it's customers better than the manufacture's do. First hand they saved me when API didn't give a crap.

[pingu]

Hey

I really would like to buy from Fletcher but i got a price on the mini me

which is 890 including shipping to AUS.

Mercenary is Total: 1280.25

Now who of you would pay that difference.

I know that apogee changed there prices about a week ago and maybe Fletcher's price is not up to date.

[GilWave]

Originally Posted by pingu

which is 890 including shipping to AUS.

Mercenary is Total: 1280.25

Now who of you would pay that difference.

I wouldn't expect to buy an Apogee product from Mercenary if I lived in Australia. On the other hand, perhaps you are right about a price drop, and Mercenary not updating their site yet.

Here is what Sweetwater's site says:

Originally Posted by http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MiniMeUSB/

Apogee Mini-Me USB
2-Channel 24-bit/96kHz Mic Pre and A/D Converter with USB

$270.00 PRICE DROP! Was $1,345.97, Now Just $1,075.97!