PS Audio Directstream DAC Being deeply discounted !

vintage9594 · « **Reply #20 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 05:12 am »

Fantastic support.....it better be fantastic when dealers take 40% off of retail to sell them. It’s a joke....I was one of the fools that paid retail for a direct stream Dac only to find out that their dealer network gives them away at a deep discount. They are the General Motors of the Audio industry only difference is GM is 20% off of select vehicles where PSAudio can be bought for 40% off of everything. Just sell the crap factory direct if it ain’t worth what dealer retail is.

JackD · « **Reply #21 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 05:47 am »

I agree too. If you buy it right you can sell it right and everyone wins as opposed to some of the "exotic" brands that sell for inflated retail and still sell for half off used. In the end if I sell any of my PS gear I will lose less of a percentage of cost than on the "high priced spreads."

If you don't ask questions and survey the market before you buy then that's on you not the manufacturer.

Photon46 · « **Reply #22 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 12:31 pm »

Quote from: vintage9594 on 28 Nov 2018, 05:12 am

Fantastic support.....it better be fantastic when dealers take 40% off of retail to sell them. It’s a joke....I was one of the fools that paid retail for a direct stream Dac only to find out that their dealer network gives them away at a deep discount. They are the General Motors of the Audio industry only difference is GM is 20% off of select vehicles where PSAudio can be bought for 40% off of everything. Just sell the crap factory direct if it ain’t worth what dealer retail is.

Your ire towards PS Audio gear being discounted by dealers seems misplaced in light of the fact that similar deals can be had many other brands as well. I've purchased a number of excellent pieces of new gear over the years from dealers that discount 25 - 40% off retail prices. One just hast to shop around and perform due diligence.

Samoyed · « **Reply #23 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 02:12 pm »

Love your verb!

Rusty Jefferson · « **Reply #24 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 03:01 pm »

Quote from: Photon46 on 28 Nov 2018, 12:31 pm

Your ire towards PS Audio gear being discounted by dealers seems misplaced in light of the fact that similar deals can be had many other brands as well. I've purchased a number of excellent pieces of new gear over the years from dealers that discount 25 - 40% off retail prices. One just hast to shop around and perform due diligence.

Yes and no. PS doesn't make it clear that the price is flexible from dealers, but not from PS directly. When I called them as mentioned earlier in this thread about discounting, they weren't really forthcoming about the dealer network. The DS I purchased at 40% off was advertised as a demo/trade in but when it arrived it was clearly a brand new unit. This kind of gets the dealer off the hook about advertising at less than retail (not allowed) or taking it back if you don't like it as they'll fight you on the 30 day return.

I give PS good marks for their branding and marketing success but the pricing is annoying. The 35% discount the factory is offering right now says "our margin is fricking huge cause we're still making good money on these at 35% off" I would be annoyed if I'd paid them full price in September. If the retail on them was $4500 instead of $6000, people wouldn't be pushing back so hard. Nobody gets a new Honda Accord at 40%+ off retail and no sales tax.

Also, when they introduced the DS dac, pretty much unannounced, it obsoleted the PW dac instantly. I've always felt recent PW owners should have gotten an upgrade offer at cost (at least). I have a friend who purchased a PW dac/transport combo the week DS was introduced without mention, at full price. He returned both within the 30 days for a refund he was so ticked off.

The DS is a good sounding dac but not a great one, imo though it has amazing flexibility. It is really optimized for DSD not PCM playback. The connectivity is excellent with the bridge, and I give them high marks for that. I don't use streaming services or Roon. PCM playback sounds far more lifelike with a good r2r dac imo. No flames intended. Good product, good company.

rollo · « **Reply #25 on:** 28 Nov 2018, 04:03 pm »

Quote from: Rusty Jefferson on 9 Nov 2017, 12:42 pm

The OP is correct. I purchased mine (new with warranty and registered with PS Audio) for $3500 shipped. You have to negotiate with a dealer. It's like buying a new car. They probably get discount pricing if they buy "x" number of units and then work to get their investment back. Dealers aren't allowed to advertise anything but the list pricing. I spoke with someone about this at PS before purchase. They have a staff member watching internet ads for this.

Actually, their resale pricing is fine. Better than some other manufacturers that make great sounding DACs but aren't as universally known, like Lampizator and Aqua.

Since you mentioned Aqua resale value please be informed that the Aqua Acoustic line is future proof. It is an design that can be upgraded by user and or factory. So your original investment never goes to waste. Only when a true advancement comes about an upgrade is offered.
It is a rare thing to see Aqua sold used so at this point no track record of resale pricing.
As far as pricing. A demo unit can be sold for 40% off after a year or if model is changed. The manufactures do not want their product cheapened by heavy discounts. Not fair to other dealers. A complimentary discount of 10%-20% is a fair expectation unless dealer has a huge overhead.
For dealers it is never a good thing when the factory offers discounts for direct purchase. Especially if dealer has stock of such. Either sell direct or through your dealer network.

charles