I need a trustworthy member in AUSTRALIA for Rode Blimp group buy.

To phd and Europe specifically; here's your free tip of the day... go to www.synthplanet.com

Select your country... in the search box enter "rode blimp" in whatever language you require... there you go... my free gift of information to you. If you ever need a 416 you may want to get it there also.

That's why I started this thread... we are being totally singled out here in the USA... these blimps are pretty cheap EVERYWHERE else in the world. STREET PRICES I mean.

And there's my beef... why the hell is Rode breaking their previous value stance specifically for the USA market? Freakin' GUITAR CENTER should be carrying these for around $200 street (while of course claiming 90% off... or whatever... as they usually do).

But phd... YOU can get one for about $200... and get low shipping to boot... because you're in Europe. So... I'm pleased to say, that you don't need this!

Currently $205. USD

Before anybody asks why we aren't just buying individually from there... they have it locked... with INSANE shipping charges to the USA... approx. $83... $83?! For a small box UNDER 3 lbs? Uh... yeah... that's just stupid.
 
Last edited:
phd said:
Thanks for the information Matt and i order it from www.synthplanet.com
Click to expand...
How much did you pay all in all in Euros?
I went there and it was about 230Euros incl. shipping, that´s around 308 USD, still cheaper than the official US retail price, but 100$ more than Mattins deal...
That´s 50$ cheaper than the Rycote S300, with non removable fur...
 
Last edited:
It's looking BAD. Shipping from AU is a total killer... the best quote I've got so far is about $454 from FedEX... and that's not accounting any potential problems with customs... which I don't anticipate of course, but I'm just saying... $454? WTF?

I've been working on some other, much larger "situations" that will eventually be revealed to you... but anyway, in these other situations I'm able to get WAY WAY more product... shipped for HALF of this price? I'm talking about getting enough product to fill a VAN shipped for half the price of this freakin' 30x22x20 box!

At $1238 + $454 + $50 (Noel) + $85 (Paypal charges close to 3% plus the regular fee for currency conversion) divided by 8... we're at about $229 per blimp... + $15-20 shipping? That's getting to the point of diminishing returns IMO.

We're talking about approx. $250 per blimp here... is this all worth it at $250 per blimp?

6 months from now the price SHOULD come down on these... and for $100 off the best USA deal I was really excited... but for $50-60 off?

Thoughts? Everyone?

Is this worth it to you?

$250 per unit to your door?

I'm trying a plan b right now... I'll let you know how that works out... but plan A is sucking.

I'm not doing this to save everybody $50 or so... even if MY OWN is cheaper (no shipping from me to me)... this whole deal isn't worth the BS for about $50... not to me anyway. I'm hoping to get a cool community situation going... but not to save a couple bucks, it's got to be significant.

If I figure out something else I'll let you know... I'm not giving up on this yet, but if the total price to your door isn't at or under $220 then I'm losing interest.

I'll get to work on something else... but I don't trust every reader of this thread, so I'm not going to announce it until I have an answer.

Just to CLARIFY... we aren't dead yet... I'm working on this... but the AU deal, as it was developing... well, THAT is probably dead. I'm just not going to do all that to save each of you $50-60... BUT... I will do less then that to save you $50-60. I don't know why the AU shipping thing is so outrageous... but if nothing else... I may be able to get this going elsewhere... for less trouble... at the same final price.

If that's the case then I'm still going forward with it... and thank you for your willingness to help Noel!!! I honestly appreciate it... but at this point I don't think these will be coming from AU. Not under the circumstances I set in this thread.

Best,

Matt
 
Last edited:
Maybe a group discount will be available to you guys on a bulk order from within the US?
 
Brad S. said:
For what it's worth, I did a search for the blimp and found this site that is selling it in the US for $300. I've never ordered from this store so I can't vouch for their customer service, but with free shipping that doesn't seem too bad.

http://www.frontendaudio.com/Rode_Blimp_Windshield_p/9999-04490.htm

And this: http://www.performanceaudio.com/cgi/product_view.cgi?products_id=13567

So I guess the US retail price will be $300 rather than $400.
Click to expand...

Yeah... I already knew about this one... the goal was to get them in the $220 range... for a group of members.

You'll notice that my previous post says "I'm not doing this to save $50-60..." and now you know where I got those figures.

The part that bugs me is these are UNDER $200 USD in AU... like pushing almost $160 in fact... as of today, the AU is rebounding, it was as low as $150 USD...

Still... anything in the range of up to $250 USD is still decent... but at $300 we're paying nearly twice as much for these... and as I said... in EU the retail street price is about $205 USD.

If I could get them for around $225 (and not more then $250) then I would... but the original plan was to get them at AU prices... and ship them here... resulting in about $200 per member.

Worst case scenario... as you found (and you could infer from my previous post)... you can get them for $300 here (which is why I again wondered why that other member only quotes MSRP in all his posts)... the honest truth is that I don't NEED one of these! We have a rycote already... and while it's in bad condition... nobody can see that through the fur, and so far no real effect on sound... nothing I've heard anyway.

So if this falls through I probably won't even get one... at all.
 
by the way Australian post takes 160-200ausis for 10kg depends on the method you ship
i will also sedgiest Matt TO CHECK HOW MUCH IS paypal to non USA ACOUNT OR MONEY ORDER ( AND IF he make you money order how much you noel will have to pay for )
and by the way IT 225 USD where i live ;-)

by the way these who need something you can find me on facebook
 
akamoll said:
noel i have a better idea , check with rode directly how much would cost you 20 blimps :-)
Click to expand...

I'm already trying this... but if Noel could be more effective since he's in AU then I'm all for it... I would be thrilled if somebody else made this happen and all I had to do is pay my share and wait.

akamoll said:
by the way Australian post takes 160-200ausis for 10kg depends on the method you ship
i will also sedgiest Matt TO CHECK HOW MUCH IS paypal to non USA ACOUNT OR MONEY ORDER ( AND IF he make you money order how much you noel will have to pay for )
and by the way IT 225 USD where i live ;-)
Click to expand...

All that Paypal stuff is already checked out and completely explained in this thread. I've explained every penny of the potential costs. Noel would pay nothing... he would be paid via Paypal with the balance of everyone's contribution. The order would be placed, and paid, directly. There's a store in Melbourne that already had the best price... with good seller ratings... and the willingness to drop the price further AND do all this. So THEY incur the Paypal fee for collecting what we send them... NOT Noel... and *I* would incur the currency conversion fee! If Noel was going to paste a new label on the box that he receives and we gave him $50 USD... or $52 if you like (for Paypal fee)... then that's a different story, and nothing compared to the cost and fees of the master carton purchase.

$160 Aussie? Do you mean for shipping to the USA?

TMT is $30 to ship the package to Noel.

The deal breaker is trying to get them to the USA... so far... and yeah, you're right about your price vs. our price... that's what has me pissed... that's why I wanted to try this. There's no special value in me trying to get a master carton of these (for me alone I mean)... it's about trying to beat the system, as they have it now, for whatever DVXuser members want to try one.

Based on some of my relationships I'm sure I could get one for myself at a really good price... but the plan was to open a door here.

Do you remember all the conversations we've had about what a total rip-off Rycote stuff is? At the price I mean? THAT is what this is all about.

If anybody else can facilitate this then by all means please go ahead and do it... in my past experience people are usually really eager to SAY they will do this stuff... but then when I actually say "OK let's do it"... they suddenly refer me to B&H.

Don't worry... I know all about fees in collecting international payments... and for as much of a BS situation as Paypal is... it's not like a bank transfer has NO fees. The main thing I didn't want to do is have to handle everybody's money as deposited income to my business account... and then pay through that... vs. having a Paypal in Paypal out situation... with a clear view that I didn't make anything on this.
 
Last edited:
yep shipping to usa
pay pal to non usa account is 5.2%
money conversion thru the pay pal may take another 2-2.5 %
still might be a good deal .
by the way noels time is worth something also , don't you think so - :-)
by the way i do like that blimp - not that my opinion worth something , especially on boards like that :-)
 
akamoll said:
by the way noels time is worth something also , don't you think so - :-)
by the way i do like that blimp - not that my opinion worth something , especially on boards like that :-)
Click to expand...

1) your opinion is worth a lot... even though we've had some friction between us I'm the first one to stand up for you and the first one to say this place is better with you here... I can easily separate personal differences and see that you are full of good information, and you've probably helped a lot of people around here with your knowledge and experience.

2) Noel's time is worth something? You must not be reading the thread. I also insisted that he be paid... even if though he said he didn't want to... that is part of the budget. Originally he was to get $96 to pick up the package... and the latest plan it was $50 to accept a package at his door... put a new label on it... and put it out for pickup. All of which was to be arranged by me... so all he'd have to do is stick a new label on the box and get $50 USD to do that... and I never said that was great money, but Noel wanted to do it for free and I insisted that no, he would be paid something. $50 to print a piece of paper is way better then Noel asked for. :)

3) you're explaining Paypal fees and such that I've already clearly laid out.

4) Yes I agree that this blimp might be the thing we were waiting for. I almost ordered one of the indian blimps... but the fur looks (and fits) like crap... and the stretched fabric over the basket is a DIY solution... as opposed to the fused material that Rode has (like the Rycote). From what I've seen so far the Rode looks like it could be the EQUAL to a Rycote system... which is also why I'm guessing they're screwing us on the MSRP here vs. the rest of the world.

5) I'm not buying that the new LYRE suspension system in the Rycote is noticeably better in actual use... I think that they are smart to come up with something that looks cool... still works... and can differentiate them in the marketplace. Eventually they will have to do something to hold on to the market share that they've enjoyed for so long. Even if somebody wants to argue that the LYRE system is superior... the Rode (in it's CURRENT design) is pretty much the same system that's been in successful use forever. It's not like the Rode blimp isn't going to work... and be good. The ONLY thing that I'm really eager to evaluate is the fur jacket... that's the ONLY thing that may or may not be audibly equal to a Rycote.

6) Frankly... I think the new Rode blimp is beautiful. While the pros will see that gray/black handle and know you aren't using "the real deal"... every client would see that next to a Rycote and assume the Rode cost more... or maybe it's more accurate to say that no client or anybody else will ever think twice about it. It's not a RED... it's a freakin' blimp.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top