Calling all Canadians!

A

ambi

New member
Where do all you Canadian buy your gear?
I'm on the westcoast, on Vancouver Island so my only options are a Long and Mcquade and a few other small local stores. Small market so limited stock. I find the gear i really want i can't get access to. Most online sites don't shit to Canada, and i've heard you'd pay through the nose in duties if you find one that can.

I know there is a Tom lee music and a long and mcquade in Vancouver, and probably a bunch of other smaller stores.

Where do you guys get your stuff from?
 
Hello Fellow Canadian! I'm in Montreal going to school (originally from toronto) I hear you, where's the online canadian music suppliers? I've had a couple places from the states ship here. I thought I got a good deal and all of the sudden, bam, letter came saying I owed my left arm for duties unpaid. www.mtlc.net www.americanmusicalsupply.com There was a thread around here that was similar and that came up with a couple online music stores from canada but they were terrible. Let me know if you find any good ones. Ciao
 
Hey guys, Im from St. Catharines, Ontario, I put up a thread the other day looking for the same thing. People were helpful and posted 3 but they all SUUUCKED. 1 looked pretty decent and I emailed them about something as simple as a shockmount and mic stand and they havent gotten back to me in 4 days. The 1 thing I dont like about being in Canada. Good Luck finding one. bJ
 
It seems our best bet is to find a local place that has good connections.
There is one locally that seems to think they can get their hands on just about anything, but i'd be surprised if they could get anything from Studio Projects or FMR. Even those Marshal mxl603s might be impossible to get.
 
ambi said:
Where do all you Canadian buy your gear?
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Local shops (Long&McQuade, Mother's Music and Avenue Guitars) for most stuff. Online specialty shops (like Mercenary) for some higher end stuff. And online big box retailers for few things (when they have really good deals on things I want).

Most online sites don't shit to Canada...
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Not true at all. The only one I've ever found that doesn't "shit" to Canada is Musician's Friend.

...you'd pay through the nose in duties if you find one that can.
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Again, not true at all. I've never paid duty on anything I've purchased from the U.S. Just be careful about using UPS, because they charge all sorts of bogus "brokerage fees".
 
Basically I've got a choice of three here in Ottawa, Long & Dongs, Steve's and Songbird.

If you think audio gear is tough, try buying accoustic foam lol...
 
Sorry that should have read ship, not shit.

I think..

So you didn't get charged duty? Several people say they got charged a ton. So just don't use UPS?

And mercenary audio shipped to Canada?
I wouldn't mind buying an RNC and RNP from MERC.
 
http://www.ontariostaging.com

ambi,

They have the rnc for basicaly the same price as the US stores. With tax and shipping it is just a little over $300 (if you are out of the province of Ontario). If you got one for 175 in the US add exchange, 15% duty and your over $300 (plus you will likely be hit with a brokerage fee that is rediculas).

I live close to the boarder so I often get stuff shipped to the US side and drive and pick it up. The duty doesn't bother me so much as the brokerage charge for bringing accross the boarder. I once purchased a $75 item and got charged $60 for duty and brokerage fee (thats $48 for brokerage). I have never done this again.

Usually things that are not made in the US (focusrite, HHB, etc) you can get cheaper in Canada or atleast the equivalent price.

I like buying from Canadian stores if for no other reason than having a valid waranty.
 
I agree but it's so hard to find Canadian stores that stock all the products i need.

Thanks for the link. I'm in B.C so it should work out.

Now if only they had the RNP...

And marshal MXL603s...
 
Maybe that was my problem. I got absolutely destroyed on "duty" when I got my Taylor shipped over (still a deal though) I did use UPS and do seem to remember the word brokerage fees being used. Those bastards.

As for savedbytechnology.com ...this is the place I emailed and they cant seem to get back to me about a shockmount and a mic stand that I didnt see on the page that I asked about 5 days ago now. Not too sure how great they are. BJ
 
Antz_Marchin,

I tried to email them (three times and never got a response).

I finally called them up, and they were great. I had my order done in a matter of minutes and my voicmaster pro arived a few days later. I would give them a call.
 
Well you might not have to pay duty but if you don't you're lucky! By trade laws we have to pay duty unless of course the product is made in America which it never is. So as long as a 6 year old kid laced on amphetemines is makin' your product it's all good! (Human Rights aside). But whoever said the ones i posted were shit, come on dude! Check out the Academic prices on software!!!! I sent Mtlc proof I was in university and they gave me 50% off what they were selling it for (matched Musicians Friend on their regular price) But for hardware it isn't anything special you're right. Too bad we didn't have money to put an online project together. With 13 reply's in that short period, it's obvious there's a market. Keep in touch.

Caleb
 
I think there is a place in Vancouver that can get FMR gear, and i'm hoping at least one can get Marshal MXL603s.

Yea us Canadians have it hard with that sort of thing.
God damn Americans always excluding us!
 
ambi said:
So you didn't get charged duty? Several people say they got charged a ton.
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Nope. Pretty much all of the stuff I've bought has been manufactured in the U.S., and under NAFTA there is no duty on most every class of recording equipment. It might be different for guitars. I've also bought camera gear from the U.S. that was manufactured in Japan and paid no duty on that. Even for countries where the is duty, under GATT, the duties are pretty minimal. You don't pay much, if anything, on mic's ordered from Germany for instance.

And mercenary audio shipped to Canada?
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Absolutely, with the lowest shipping fees and fastest service of any U.S. seller I've ever used.
 
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