smatchun@encore.encore.com (Scott Matchunis) (06/29/90)
Although I no longer use mail order for audio/video (here in South Florida, our retailers sell at near mail-order prices), but I have had good experiences in the past, provided you do a little research. And yes, the firms you mention (WDS, J & R) are fine. Crutchfield is good too. Questions to ask: 1) does the product come with a U.S. warranty? Some mail order firms sell "grey" market products, that only come with a Japanese or Korean warranty card. If it breaks, U.S. warranty centers won't fix it--you have to send it to Japan or Korea. 2) are they advertising "last year's model" at substantial savings. Do some research on model numbers and prices locally first. Just because you can buy a Denon CD player for $300 might not make it a good deal if it's last year's model. You may find your local dealer willing to part with an old model at nearly the same price, plus you get local support. 3) Are the savings worth losing local support? Depends on how much you'll save and what type of product you're buying. A "non-mechanical" product such as an amplifier shouldn't need service, so if you can save some $$$, it may OK to buy mail order. A product with moving parts, such as a VCR, turntable or cassette deck is much more likely to need service during its' lifetime. For those, I would never consider mail order, because then you're stuck with warranty centers for repair, which means they keep your unit for a long time and may not even fix it. Scott Matchunis Financial Planning Encore Computer Corporation Ft. Lauderdale, Fla Internet: smatchun@encore.com UUCP: uunet!gould!smatchun