what's up with sonic electronix?

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I wish I would have gone into the military. The navy wanted me to me a nuclear engineer.

Lol same here. But with me, they got what they wanted. Been a Nuke ET ever since...

 

[d77543020 10+ year member]

these companies dont care and thats the sad thing they need to protect there dealers there are a few that do a ok job like jl and rockford, no matter were you go there amps are still rather expensive so you might pay a little extra and buy from a dealer but re and hifonics for example there product is so whored out on ebay and online stores they are almost half of retail cost

 

[NuckinFutz 10+ year member]

I've heard good things about the people of the company but the crazy low prices are harming the industry. I was talking about this with a rep yesterday and the comment was made that prices can't possibly go any lower without quality becoming even further compromised. New products come out for sale online with barely any profit margin in the markup. Go with what the consumers demand, right?

Quality should never be compromised, if the manufacturer goes cheaper, shops like sonicelectronix will go cheaper.

 

[denim 5,000+ posts]

Online retailers have ruined the retail of car audio. I just cant seem to gauge why they would offer such low prices in the first place. I mean if they would have offered a number 20-50 dollars less then what the retail shops charge could you dream of what they would netting at the end of the year compared to what they are now? Just wont make sense to me anyway anyone explains it to me.

Blanket statement that is not uniformly true. There are plenty of authorized online dealers that are selling/advertising at MAP pricing, which the brick and mortar dealers are supposed to be selling at also. Those ethical on line dealers, are not hurting the value of the product and are still able to give great customer service. Look at Crutchfield.

 

It is the wholesalers selling way below, and the shady/slimy/uneducated brick and mortar dealers pushing way too high that are causing the damage.

 

[denim 5,000+ posts]

Cheaper isnt the problem. Its the blackmarket price they are offering.

Actually, the American demand for cheaper is the problem. The mass majority of Americans only see initial price, and that is it. So with the increased buying power coming at a younger and younger age, where experience and education is far less, that is a massive factor in driving cheaper and cheaper products where quality control, durability and sonic performance get nearly thrown out the window.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Actually, the American demand for cheaper is the problem. The mass majority of Americans only see initial price, and that is it. So with the increased buying power coming at a younger and younger age, where experience and education is far less, that is a massive factor in driving cheaper and cheaper products where quality control, durability and sonic performance get nearly thrown out the window.

I've been saying this for a while. We want more for the same cost or less, but something's gotta give.

 

[pro-rabbit 5,000+ posts]

Aaron is correct here. The industry has been pushed to these online shops selling old stock at blow out style pricing.

The issue as Aaron pointed out is that the American public no longer cares about the product they purchase. They just want that low price, quality at this point is not even considered. This is a part of all industries and not limited to mobile electronics.

That was the lingering story around CES. While some claim other wise, they are only fooling their own perception and no else's.(Going back to mobile electronics) Why do you think 99% of all companies have the same product? I mean the exact same regardless of what they or others attempt to claim. It makes me wonder how this country could survive if we actually made anything of value here in the states(not by automated robots).

 

[denim 5,000+ posts]

I've been saying this for a while. We want more for the same cost or less, but something's gotta give.

Haha, you mean you want 2500 watt amp for 1/16th price per watt. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[murph 10+ year member]

Shops will sell to repeat customers for a deal. I'm not saying amazing prices but, you save 15-20%.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Haha, you mean you want 2500 watt amp for 1/16th price per watt. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

What's wrong with 5 cents a watt, really? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

Seriously, though, I think that's what drives the market these days. You still see a few cases where people can put out a bang-up piece of equipment on the cheap, but it's in isolated cases (i.e. PPI Phantom). People just don't want to or can't spend like they used to but want the same stuff. Kinda why I feel like the second and third-hand markets are booming right now. People will get something thinking it's the be-all and end-all, but come up disappointed when it doesn't live up to the OS expectations. You don't see cheater amps any more because there's no need. It's sad, really.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Aaron is correct here. The industry has been pushed to these online shops selling old stock at blow out style pricing.
The issue as Aaron pointed out is that the American public no longer cares about the product they purchase. They just want that low price, quality at this point is not even considered. This is a part of all industries and not limited to mobile electronics.

That was the lingering story around CES. While some claim other wise, they are only fooling their own perception and no else's.(Going back to mobile electronics) Why do you think 99% of all companies have the same product? I mean the exact same regardless of what they or others attempt to claim. It makes me wonder how this country could survive if we actually made anything of value here in the states(not by automated robots).

But why hire a factory full of competent workers when you can build an assembly line of machines for the same amount and never have to worry about workman's comp, retirement, pensions, and all that stuff? I thought we liked complaining about high unemployment in this country; if we properly take care of that issue, what will we have left to complain about?

 

[mclerico83 5,000+ posts]

kind of crazy when it think about it, when i first started with car audio the dollar a watt idea was in full effect. I remember being happy that i could buy a 1200 watt cadence a7hc for 899 lol. What a deal. Plus it was easier to police online stores because they are not as ramped as they are now. But my wallet likes it //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

kind of crazy when it think about it, when i first started with car audio the dollar a watt idea was in full effect. I remember being happy that i could buy a 1200 watt cadence a7hc for 899 lol. What a deal. Plus it was easier to police online stores because they are not as ramped as they are now. But my wallet likes it //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif.

As does mine, but it's a valid point. Btw, your Eclipse makes me all smiles ATM. Waiting on some RCA splitters to bridge the comps. How's the iPod treating you?

 

[denim 5,000+ posts]

What's wrong with 5 cents a watt, really? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif
Seriously, though, I think that's what drives the market these days. You still see a few cases where people can put out a bang-up piece of equipment on the cheap, but it's in isolated cases (i.e. PPI Phantom). People just don't want to or can't spend like they used to but want the same stuff. Kinda why I feel like the second and third-hand markets are booming right now. People will get something thinking it's the be-all and end-all, but come up disappointed when it doesn't live up to the OS expectations. You don't see cheater amps any more because there's no need. It's sad, really.

Think about the life span and turn over rate, of some classic amplifiers for example that were $0.50+ a watt. There are HiFonics amplifiers doing magic smoke tricks with in months, and ZED amplifiers from the early 90's still marching along flawlessly. Yes, much of that has to do with the average users of said example amplifiers, but it's the same thinking as many auto manufacturers, in that the car has to be reliable enough to make it off the lot. After that it's all gravy.

 

[DARKHART 10+ year member]

Think about the life span and turn over rate, of some classic amplifiers for example that were $0.50+ a watt. There are HiFonics amplifiers doing magic smoke tricks with in months, and ZED amplifiers from the early 90's still marching along flawlessly. Yes, much of that has to do with the average users of said example amplifiers, but it's the same thinking as many auto manufacturers, in that the car has to be reliable enough to make it off the lot. After that it's all gravy.

Denim hit it dead on the head with this, how many of these cheap amps that are out there now will still be running 15 or more years from now?