Rotel B Stock Questions

[bullitt731]

I stopped by a authorized B & W / Rotel dealer yesterday who has a number of Rotel B stock units. The prices were at least 30% off of the MSRP. The salesman told me these units had cosmetic defects only and included full factory warranties. Anyone have any experience with these kinds of products? Might be better to buy one of these units with a warranty than a used unit at about the same price.

Thanks, Ed

[Kevin D]

I'll bet you that 90% of them don't even have cosmetic defects. A lot of them are DOA stuff that were only installed for a day. Some will be still be factory sealed, as any item the receive back from a dealer cannot be sold as new.

Kevin D.

[bullitt731]

So you don't think they are units with problems which were returned and refurbished, I don't want to buy a lemon.

[Kevin D]

No, most probably are. It's just that pretty much anything that breaks after a few months or so gets repaired. It's the ones that fail within the first day or month that get direct replacements instead of repair.

So yes these will most likely be repaired, but they have been fully tested and still come with the same warranty. No one can predict the future, but I would say you have the same, if not a little less percent chance of having a problem than buying new.

Let us know what you decide!

Kevin D.

[Adz]

When I was into Rotel, I was able to easily get 20% off from my dealer. Not sure what units you are looking at, but the extra 10% may not be a lot of money in absolute terms and you may sleep better at night knowing you have a fresh new unit. So, you may want to go to another dealer first and see if you can negotiate 20% (maybe even 25%) playing off the other dealer's 30% off. Even at 30% off the B stock, they are still making a very healthy profit.

[Kevin D]

Even at 30% off the B stock, they are still making a very healthy profit.

Not really. By the time you calculate what goes into keeping a dealership running, 30% off B-stock or even 20% off retail is not a healthy profit by any means. Unless they got a special on discountinued B-stock, the additional dealer discount is not substantial.

But you are correct, if he can find the same product new for only 10% more that might be worth the piece of mind. It will probably take some time and purchases to get more than 15% off though.

Kevin D.

[bullitt731]

I agree that a 20% discount would be an attractive price and the extra 10% would be worth it to have an A stock item. I just don't really want to pit each of my 3 dealers against each other to get it. I was hoping one of them would step up and offer to give me full credit for the speakers if I upgraded in a year, but none of them are interested. That and a 10 or 15% discount would be the way to go for me. I would prefer to have a predetermined long range plan with one dealer.

[pjripple]

I stopped by a authorized B & W / Rotel dealer yesterday who has a number of Rotel B stock units. The prices were at least 30% off of the MSRP. The salesman told me these units had cosmetic defects only and included full factory warranties. Anyone have any experience with these kinds of products? Might be better to buy one of these units with a warranty than a used unit at about the same price.

Thanks, Ed

I just bought a 1068/1095 combo and the 1095 was a B stock that they had on the showroom floor as a demo. I got 25% off and it comes with the full factory warranty (5 years?). I'm really not concerned about why it was a B stock. My dealer was using it as a demo and I'm sure he wouldn't have sold it if there were problems...because I'd be bringing it back and he'd have to replace/exchange/repair it. I also think my dealer is a stand up guy and am sure if I do have any problems they will be resolved. They also had a demo 1098 for sale, but even discounted it was still $900 more than I paid for the 1068.

[Adz]

Not really. By the time you calculate what goes into keeping a dealership running, 30% off B-stock or even 20% off retail is not a healthy profit by any means. Unless they got a special on discountinued B-stock, the additional dealer discount is not substantial.

But you are correct, if he can find the same product new for only 10% more that might be worth the piece of mind. It will probably take some time and purchases to get more than 15% off though.

Kevin D.

I am almost certain thatmy dealer's profit margin was 50%. So, I believe he was making a $1,000 on a 1095. But he gave me 20% right off the bat and I was pretty happy with it at the time, so I did not play one dealer off the other. I guess he figured $600 was a "healthy" profit for him anyway.

If anyone lives in the NY Metro area and is interested in knowing the dealer's name, drop me an email. BUT, as I've documented, in my opinion, I did not like the way the dealer handled all my problems I had with the amps so his post-sale follow-up/services sucked (just a word of caution -- maybe you get what you pay for).

[bullitt731]

The dealer which had the B stock units told me they sell a lot of them. I believe they had 1056s, 1067s, 1068s, 1075s they probably have some 2 channel units as well but I didn't ask. Everything was 30% off with full factorty warranty. If anyone is interested in this type of product send me a pm and I will email you the link to their website.

Ed

[Kevin D]

I am almost certain thatmy dealer's profit margin was 50%. So, I believe he was making a $1,000 on a 1095. But he gave me 20% right off the bat and I was pretty happy with it at the time, so I did not play one dealer off the other. I guess he figured $600 was a "healthy" profit for him anyway.

:E I wish margin was 50%.. Cost is fixed for every dealer, but volume does play a small part. If he can buy a substantial amount at one time, he can get free freight which REALLY helps considering how heavy some these items are. Plus being able to sell 10x as many items allow him to discount a lot heavier then other dealers.

And as you found out, that extra 10% at another dealer might pay for extra customer service.

Kevin D.

[GosonFletchy]

B stock items have gone through full QC and test by Rotel technicians, which goes along with the "refurbishing" process. If you have ever seen the Rotel B stock then you know that most of it looks brand new. I personally would rather have a B stock unit because it comes with the full warranty, at worst will have a small cosmetic defect, has been fully checked out by a technician, and is a little cheaper than a brand new unit.

G

:assimilate:

[Booster]

I purchased b-stock 1066/1075 about 6 months ago and have had no problems. They were refurbished by Rotel and have the full factory warranty. No cosmetic defects -they look brand new. I think the savings was well worth the (perceived) risk.

[SnowdonAudio]

Is there a way to tell that a item is B Stock if you are buying something on the used market?

[Kevin D]

Get the serial number and call Rotel or hope he has the original box. The boxes have labels but I'm pretty sure the units do not.

Kevin D.

[DrJRapp]

Is there a way to tell that a item is B Stock if you are buying something on the used market?

Does it matter once it's used?