Buying Gear Online

[pigubaoza]

hi everyone!
just want to ask about recommendations when buying recording gear online. anyone had any bad experiences, or anyone who dont see any difference with buying from brick and mortar shops compared to online, etc.
i know guitarists dont like to buy guitars online because they cant check out the build quality. is it the same for microphones, interfaces, mixers, and other recording equipment?

personally i want to buy a SM57 online cause i think it might be cheaper for me.

advice please? thanks!

 

[carboxymoron]

For mass produced items there's no problem at all. You can get very good deals on Musiciansfriend.com or Proguitarshop.com, especially during sales and using coupon codes. For PGS you can get free shipping, for MF I order through Ebenex's concierge service http://ebenex.com/concierge-service

But for a common mic like SM57 why not just buy secondhand?

As for guitars, of course you can't test first, but for some high end / custom stuff that's the only choice (unless you got $$$ to fly out and meet the builder, then different story..)

 

[pigubaoza]

thanks! may i know where i can get second hand mics like sm57 here in singapore? or even online?

 

[cheesedaele]

I've had a crappy experience with www.themadape.com. Kept telling me a pedal I ordered was out-of-stock for close to a year but a new batch was arriving 'soon', eventually opted to change the order. Then managed to order the original pedal directly from the main distributor, which still arrived sooner than the original order.

The entire time, MadApe's site was showing that the original pedal was in stock, and 'ships within 2-3 days'.



Hang around the classifieds here, SM57s/58s pop up fairly often. I'm not too keen on second-hand market for mics tho, because of hygiene.

City Music year-end sale's coming up, they carry Wharfedale mics I think if you don't mind alternatives.