AV123-- another bogus discount?

[PopDisplay]

Just as I predicted in prior posts, AV123's price on their rocket system has been discounted another $200. What a laugh that company has become. In order to receive the "discount", the buyer must send av123 a pair of speakers that retail for $199. The most riduclous and telling aspect of the "deal" is that av123 will accept all speakers "regardless of age and condition".

This is just like the old used car commercials... Bring in any trade, regardless of condition, and we'll knock off $1000. Drive it in, tow it in, push it in, we don't care.....

Rocket system:
Originally 3495
Then $2500
Then $2000
Then $1695
Now $1499 if give them a pair of worthless, non functioning speakers that sell new for $199

From the current AV123 website, written by the company's owner:

I will therefore again put our best collective feet forward and make the $1695 "santa schifter deal" the price you pay if you pay in advance...

LOL

 

[Matt34]

IMO, the safe bet for everyone looking to purchase is to wait and see what is annonced in regards to the status of AV123 when the forum is reopened.

 

[MinusTheBear]

It certainly devalues anyone trying to sell their rockets. From $3495 to $1499 + $199 trade in does seem like an awful big price drop and I find that a bit strange especially with all the issues that company currently has. I'm not a fan of the "AV123 experience" myself.

 

[mike c]

pay in advance ... again?

 

[griffinconst]

I haven't heard the story. Are they collecting up front payments and not delivering the product?

 

[bandphan]

That this thread was locked search the ops post history for info.

 

[MatthewB.]

I own a pair of AV123 Strata Minis that I bought for about half off because I attended MazerStevens FL GTG. They are some of the best speakers I have ever heard. Granted I have heard their Rocket speakers and I was less than thrilled with those.

 

[tom67]

and....half the Rockets are out of stock....doubt if they are flying out the door in this economy....a bad sign....maybe they are headed for exit like NHT

 

[alphaiii]

I own a pair of AV123 Strata Minis that I bought for about half off because I attended MazerStevens FL GTG. They are some of the best speakers I have ever heard. Granted I have heard their Rocket speakers and I was less than thrilled with those.

Just curious, what didn't you like about the Rockets?

So many people love their Rockets, I always wanted to listen, but they are out of my price range.

Then again, they do seem to just keep getting cheaper.....

 

[corysmith01]

Yeah, I must admit that the current deals, plus the asking for full payment up front, plus the inordinate amount of complaints, plus the forum being down for 3 weeks now...it's got me wondering what's going on over there. And this is coming from a Ref 1 owner. If I were a new buyer, or new to the audio market, i'd be very hesitant to buy from them. Maybe i'm wrong, and I'd be happy if I was.

Sad. It certainly wasn't that way 2-3 years ago.

 

[Rob Babcock]

Just curious, what didn't you like about the Rockets?

So many people love their Rockets, I always wanted to listen, but they are out of my price range.

Then again, they do seem to just keep getting cheaper.....

I can't speak for the OP but I owned a pair of Ref 1's and didn't care for them at all. The cabs were gorgeous and beautifully finished but they were tipped up and shrill to my ears. I felt they had some virtues- a very clean and clear midrange, and very good low level detail. Granted bookshelf models can sound bright due to a lack of bass but A/B comparisons to other small speakers demonstrated that wasn't the problem.

I guess the upside was that I'd purchased them with the SP3 when they did the combo deal and I got every penny back out of them. And the SP3 was a fantastic amp, no doubt about that. If the economy has crushed AV123 then it's a shame. They really were innovative and had some great values.

 

[rnatalli]

If the economy has crushed AV123 then it's a shame. They really were innovative and had some great values.

I too hope that isn't the case. I'm fond of the ELT monitors. Wonderful speakers and incredible value for $299/pair.

 

[jamie2112]

It really sounds like they are not doing well. I would not buy from them at this point in time at all.What a stupid deal they are trying to pass off....

 

[ivseenbetter]

I'm a big fan of AV123 and I particularly enjoy their rockets...but I would advise caution to whomever would consider buying from them. It isn't like they aren't aware of the bad press they are getting. If they really wanted to look like things weren't as bad as we "suspect" they are, then they need to do something about it...like get some stock, open their forum, and stop devaluing their product line.

 

[MinusTheBear]

What I don't understand is why they would want to devalue such a successfull product. They could easily sell the 5.0 rocket package for $3000. They can only make so much selling the entire package for $1499. Maybe they will inflate the shipping charges to the customer to bring up the profit margin.

 

[chas_w]

An update from AV123:

http://av123forum.com/showthread.php?t=40938

 

[jvgillow]

The Rocket package deal is a steal, if av123 delivers the goods as promised. Unfortunately prepaid systems don't always arrive on time, and with all the uncertainty currently surrounding av123 who knows if they would arrive period.

All the products I've purchased from them in the last 2 years have worked great, but the buy-and-wait process can be frustrating. They took on too many new projects in 2008, tried to expand too quickly and had bad support from vendors.

 

[nolie]

AV123 Rockets

I'm a new AV enthusiast and got in on the $1699 deal at the end of last year. Received my Rockets in Feb. I added an MFW-15 sub because it was cheaper to bundle shipping. I was upset that they gave me one of the China-made MFW-15's from the batch that they had been having issues with but so far so good. I can't say I'm 100% happy yet because I'm still tweaking my setup but so far I've been really happy. Only thing is my front 850 sigs are having a buzz when I play some mp3's in the second cone from the bottom, but I don't think this is the speaker because I don't get this from other sources like bluray.

So far so good. I've had a solid experience thus far and the price was what pushed me to finally purchase. They delivered on their word and the speakers are beauties. I'll post more as I've had my speakers a little longer.

 

[lsiberian]

I'm a new AV enthusiast and got in on the $1699 deal at the end of last year. Received my Rockets in Feb. I added an MFW-15 sub because it was cheaper to bundle shipping. I was upset that they gave me one of the China-made MFW-15's from the batch that they had been having issues with but so far so good. I can't say I'm 100% happy yet because I'm still tweaking my setup but so far I've been really happy. Only thing is my front 850 sigs are having a buzz when I play some mp3's in the second cone from the bottom, but I don't think this is the speaker because I don't get this from other sources like bluray.

So far so good. I've had a solid experience thus far and the price was what pushed me to finally purchase. They delivered on their word and the speakers are beauties. I'll post more as I've had my speakers a little longer.

You may be an exception to the norm though.

 

[TjMV3]

Ah, another AV123 Pay Upfront So We Can Rip You Off Deal?

Wow.

So who wants to give their money away, in return for nothing? Raise your hands?