The Sweetwater Wishbook

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stetto

stetto

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Fercryinoutloud, I get 2 or 3 small magazine sized "brochures" every month from lots of different gear outlets, but this Sweetwater "Gear Encyclopedia" is ridiculous...Almost 420 pages---And they actually list the prices of ALL the Neumann mics!!! Damn thing is thicker than the Sears Christmas Catalog, which gets thinner every year...

...I didn't notice any major breaks in prices...I suppose they have to offset printing and catalog mailing costs... :mad:

...And of course their timing sucks, because Christmas isn't all about ME anymore... :(

Eric
 
I'm laughing, Eric. I receive twice as many catalogues as you, and Sweetwater's is my favorite. Unfortunately, I've been unsuccessful in actually giving the folks there any business in recent years. The lack of free shipping is one reason, as is (ironically) their insistence on personal contact with the buyer. I've emailed twice for a quick price quote and received a telephone call in reponse--very nice in a way, but not what I wanted. I usually know my equipment needs by the time I begin to shop, and I don't want to spend time chatting about things. A quick email quote is usually my goal when I contact sellers online although I respect Sweet's desire to elevate the online experience to something more like dropping by my local retailers. I guess I just don't fit their typical customer profile.

But I'll enjoy their catalogues until they finally cut me off...

J.
 
stetto said:
...And of course their timing sucks, because Christmas isn't all about ME anymore... :( Eric
I have 3 kids ages 19, 10, and 9 and Santa always gets me something for my studio ;) . I think it will be a Hosa "little bro" 6-channel snake and some mopads this year.
jeffree said:
The lack of free shipping is one reason....
I was just on their website and they do offer free shipping!

I do love their catalog!
However, I did have one of their reps really go off on me via e-mail about not buying equipment from him (he wouldnt match everyone elses $999 price on an AW16G from their $1099 because his expertise was worth the extra $100 but the fact of my being unemployed at the time didnt matter).
Needless to say, that ended the Sweetwater relationship.
I forwarded his incredibly nasty and egotistical e-mail (I know what's best for you cause I'm the professional and you dont know anything yada yada) to owner Chuck Surack.
I did get an apology.
Afterwards, I bought a Studio Projects C3 from SW from "new" rep and not to my surprise, it was a bad mic (that PMI exchanged without question AND with a smile).
So much for Customer Service.
More like retribution and payback.
 
You'll get a different (and usually lower) price if you call them. That's just the way they work.

Not my favorite place, but I do buy from Sweetwater once in a blue moon. Never had a problem, and if you need something quick they are very good.
 
SonicAlbert said:
You'll get a different (and usually lower) price if you call them.
In my case, I was on the phone with the rep.
I even asked if he would meet me some where in the middle and he kept on with the, "My expertise is worth $100 and I'm not selling it for less".
I may try them again some time.
Who knows?
 
homestudioguy said:
In my case, I was on the phone with the rep.
I even asked if he would meet me some where in the middle and he kept on with the, "My expertise is worth $100 and I'm not selling it for less".
I may try them again some time.
Who knows?

If it was me I wouldn't!

(But thats just me Anyway)
 
They aren't the cheapest, but I love getting that catalog. It's better than porn.
 
i dunno if it's better than porn......but i do like their catalogs. they've got a *far* better selection of recording gear than anyone other than Full Compass--except that the SW catalog actually has usable pictures (and prices).

haven't bought anything from them, but i might sometime. i wouldn't rule it out.

it's definitely bathroom worthy ("sir, this book has been flagged"). :p


cheers,
wade
 
This last Sweetwater cat is definitely comprehensive; three or four pages of outboard mic pre's alone...Not to mention all those mics (and prices to go with 'em!!)...I'm still looking for a deal on a Cascade Fathead ribbon mic, didn't see that in the catalog...

And I agree, better than porn... :eek:

Eric
 
jeffree said:
I'm laughing, Eric. I receive twice as many catalogues as you, and Sweetwater's is my favorite. Unfortunately, I've been unsuccessful in actually giving the folks there any business in recent years. The lack of free shipping is one reason, as is (ironically) their insistence on personal contact with the buyer...

I believe they do free shipping w/ no minimum order. I've ordered on separate occasions, one set of strings from them and one Hosa cable and had them shipped for free. Plus my sales rep always puts candy in my orders :)
I ordered an ART MPA Gold from them about a year ago and it was clearly a previously used & returned unit (the part of the right side rack ear where you would put the screw into was bent and there was some "rack rash") so I called and expressed my discontent. My sales rep had it picked up the next day by FedEx and I got an immediate refund before the unit even arrived back there! After struggling with the customer service at Musicians Friend, I found that to be a great experience.
That said, I almost always find better deals on gear on ebay, Message Boards, craigslist and through other retailers.
 
I've been happy with Sweetwater. There prices aren't the absolute best, but I've has an occasion or two where I had special orders, and my rep gave me a lower price on the item so that with shipping cost, the item was the same special order price. I've had great experiences with special ordering from them, and got the stuff much quicker than I expected. Seems as most of the in stock stuff I order is always free shipping, and living in Michigan I get the stuff in about a day usually - that works for me.

Just got some nice gear recently too, and threw it on my new Sweetwater card - no payments/interest for 12 months. Pay it off in a few months and satisfy my latest bout with GAS.

I've had maybe one good experience with MF. More often than not, what I'm looking for magically is out of stock. I don't look at their silly reviews on the site either - most of the people that post reviews are clueless twits. It would be nice if they would check returned/blem gear too. I orded a monitor one time (blem) and when I got it, the horn was blown on it. I know it's a huge business and maybe next to impossible to check any gear they get back to resell, but I expected more and got less. I do know people who have had success shopping with them, I'm just not one of them.
 
kojdogg said:
I believe they do free shipping w/ no minimum order.

I stand corrected. I hadn't noticed the free shipping blurb near the front of the catalogue since I usually skip the fine print and go right to the good stuff.

J.
 
Ahh, sweetwater... the only time I order from them is when I need to get something pretty quick and I can't find it anywhere else... I've never made any major purchases from them, and the whole personal-care service does annoy me a bit... I bought a link cable for syncing DAT tape recorders from them (15 bucks I think?), and the guy called me three times. I just feel that unless I am buying a couple grand worth of gear, they probably shouldn't care (or pretend to - this guy *obviously* wasn't concerned with my DAT syncing needs :) about what you are doing.

As for musiciansfriend.com, I have always had good luck buying from them, and have had to cancel a few orders which they promptly did. The reviews can be helpful I guess, but I find that they are often skewed... either way too high or way too low, depending on the gear. And yea, the stock issue has really annoyed me before... I've sat there for a week or two watching the "In stock on ___ " day keep increasing each day it had passed, never to actually come in stock. As for blems, wouldn't trust em from anyone really, esp. not from mf.com. All in all, if you do your research elsewhere, you can buy from them and expect (usually) decent shipping times, and the free shipping over a hundred bucks is nice.
 
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