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Is this a BAD idea (order Pre/Pro from Hong Kong)?

post #1 of 9
2/13/12 at 9:54am
Thread Starter 
I badly need a new Pre/Pro and was waiting for the new Outlaw 978, but gave up after 18 months of delays. I turned my sights to the Onkyo PR-SC5508, only to find the horrifying "Onkyo XX08 failure" thread , so I decided to wait for the new version, the PR-SC5509. It was released in Europe in October so it should've been here around the same time. Wrong! February now and still not in sight on this continent; Onkyo H.O. says we MAY see it in Q2/Q3 . Can't wait that long!

I DID find a Hong Kong dealer that would ship a 5509 to me in Canada. Total cost landed at my door is less than the best price I found here for the older 5508 . But the unit is 220-240V, so would require a step-up transformer. I have no experience with such a device and ask if anyone has any experience or advice on running A/V equipment in this manner. Any risks/downside I should be aware of ?

I'm sure that my warranty would not be valid here, and any warranty service would need to be done via a return to the dealer in Hong Kong. But since my savings would be substantial (~$800 I am guessing vs what the 5509 will cost upon release in Canada), in the event that I DO need any service, I would still break even considering shipping charges of $220 each direction.

Any thoughts? Am I crazy to do this? Any other Audyssey MultEQ XT32 capable Pre/Pro's available here, now, in the $2000-3000 range that I should consider??
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post #2 of 9
2/13/12 at 10:03am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DrRx View Post

I badly need a new Pre/Pro and was waiting for the new Outlaw 978, but gave up after 18 months of delays. I turned my sights to the Onkyo PR-SC5508, only to find the horrifying "Onkyo XX08 failure" thread , so I decided to wait for the new version, the PR-SC5509. It was released in Europe in October so it should've been here around the same time. Wrong! February now and still not in sight on this continent; Onkyo H.O. says we MAY see it in Q2/Q3 . Can't wait that long!

I DID find a Hong Kong dealer that would ship a 5509 to me in Canada. Total cost landed at my door is less than the best price I found here for the older 5508 . But the unit is 220-240V, so would require a step-up transformer. I have no experience with such a device and ask if anyone has any experience or advice on running A/V equipment in this manner. Any risks/downside I should be aware of ?

I'm sure that my warranty would not be valid here, and any warranty service would need to be done via a return to the dealer in Hong Kong. But since my savings would be substantial (~$800 I am guessing vs what the 5509 will cost upon release in Canada), in the event that I DO need any service, I would still break even considering shipping charges of $220 each direction.

Any thoughts? Am I crazy to do this? Any other Audyssey MultEQ XT32 capable Pre/Pro's available here, now, in the $2000-3000 range that I should consider??

Buy a Denon AVR4311 for $2k and use it in preamp mode.

Aside from converting the voltage to 120v and no warranty also be aware that the radio tuner probably won't work in your country and you'll need a different IEC power cord than what comes in the box.

Buying that thing from Hong Kong is a bad idea.
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post #3 of 9
2/13/12 at 10:36am
Bad idea..
Suggest you pass.
Most likely no warranty, besides local NA standards compatibility for voltage, tuner & video stuff...

Just my $0.02...
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post #4 of 9
2/13/12 at 10:39am
http://www.hulu.com/watch/10310/satu...bad-idea-jeans
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post #5 of 9
2/26/12 at 7:21am
If you want something from China just wait for the 978... that's where it will be built I'm sure.
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post #6 of 9
2/26/12 at 8:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve. View Post

If you want something from China just wait for the 978... that's where it will be built I'm sure.

Why would he have to wait to find something from China? There's plenty already available.
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post #7 of 9
7/1/12 at 6:21pm
Have you considered the Anthem MRX line? They're room correction and sound performance is outstanding!
Last year I changed my fairly new Denon with Audyssey that I use in a dedicated 7.1 room to an Anthem MRX and have been thrilled with the results.
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post #8 of 9
7/2/12 at 9:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DrRx View Post

I badly need a new Pre/Pro and was waiting for the new Outlaw 978, but gave up after 18 months of delays. I turned my sights to the Onkyo PR-SC5508, only to find the horrifying "Onkyo XX08 failure" thread
, so I decided to wait for the new version, the PR-SC5509. It was released in Europe in October so it should've been here around the same time. Wrong! February now and still not in sight on this continent; Onkyo H.O. says we MAY see it in Q2/Q3
. Can't wait that long!


I DID find a Hong Kong dealer that would ship a 5509 to me in Canada. Total cost landed at my door is less than the best price I found here for the older 5508
. But the unit is 220-240V, so would require a step-up transformer. I have no experience with such a device and ask if anyone has any experience or advice on running A/V equipment in this manner. Any risks/downside I should be aware of
?


I'm sure that my warranty would not be valid here, and any warranty service would need to be done via a return to the dealer in Hong Kong. But since my savings would be substantial (~$800 I am guessing vs what the 5509 will cost upon release in Canada), in the event that I DO need any service, I would still break even considering shipping charges of $220 each direction.


Any thoughts? Am I crazy to do this? Any other Audyssey MultEQ XT32 capable Pre/Pro's available here, now, in the $2000-3000 range that I should consider??

As long as it's a legit unit, I don't see any problem with that. I've bought TONS of electronic stuff from all over. I bought my Denon 3311 from a dealer in Hong Kong on it's release day for $440 plus $100 shipping to Winnipeg. Still going strong, I even emailed Denon to make sure the serial was legit before I bought it. No problems. As for step up units, they are pretty simple and won't hurt your performance and under $100 for a decent one.
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post #9 of 9
7/2/12 at 2:27pm
The cheap man always pays more.
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