Scam??? Overstocked unknown brand HT?

Question

I was approached by two chow ah bengs at a car park last week. They wore some red polo tees uniforms and claimed that their supplier have delivered two additional sets of Home Theater Systems by mistake. Wanted to get rid at a very low price. Led me to their van and showed me the 'set'. Its a 5.1 HT system still in OEM boxes, floorstanders front and large bookshelves rear, brand "Cleu" ?? Very dark, can't tell clearly. Anyway, never heard of the brand before. Also showed me their listed price @ S$2999, willing to let go at S$300. BTW, I m using B&W back home and got no more room for such untested, pehaps illegitimate set. I told them "no" and walked away but they continued to blast me with Tech details blowing how bad B&W is. Felt harassed but not succumbed to pressure. I said "NO" assertively and walked away. Checked with my colleagues this morning, two of them were also approached previously in a similar fashion. Qn: Will u trust them to buy an unknown, untested brand HT @ S$300?

Answer 1

Not only is it a scam but it happens all over the world. The same few companies making speakers with different names. The guys who approached you paid $100 for the entire set. The speakers often are nice to look at but the sound always sucks. They use the very cheapest of components. They often have names that are familiar to other speaker manufacturers.

The guys who approached you know absolutely NOTHING about speakers or how to connect them. As evidence they said that B&W were bad speakers. Stupid. Not only did they insult B&W, they insulted your intelligence for having bought them. (Good choice by the way.)

Look up White Van speaker scam on yahoo. You will be floored by the results.

If anybody gets approached in this way and figures it couldn't hurt and that you need some speakers anyway think about this. Many people have purchased these speakers (you can check with your local Better Business Burreau to find out about the complaints) and the only people who don't feel cheated are the ones who got them for under $200. Otherwise they end up joining the masses who are now trying to unload them on their friends or selling them on ebay.

Buy a set of Energy "Take Classic" for $500 instead.

Finally, never buy speakers without listenning to them first.

Answer 2

It is a scam. I recommend that you do your part and contact the local authorities as to the time and place. In most states it is illegal to sell items without some form of license, especially retail consumer goods.

Make sure to update these two sites for the model number and experience that you had.

Answer 3

EXCELLENT QUESTION!

YES, this IS a SCAM!  And it one of the oldest ones in the Consumer Electronics business.  DO NOT purchase anything "marketed" to you this way.  Over the years I have been approached like this several times, and its always the same story... Little did they know who they were dealing with! Heh-heh.

It used to be just these big, super-crappy tower speakers they were selling, now they've simply gone with the times since home theaters are the rage...BUT ITS ALWAYS THE SAME BULL-c**p and very little has changed from the general theme of the pitch:

"Oh man, we ended up with an extra unit...blah-blah.  Our boss will be really upset with us if we come back to 'the shop' with this one, blah-blah..." They usually pull into a busy parking lot, open up the van door and prey on the unsuspecting person the same way every time.  They will always try to act like they're your "bud" and you're just doing each other a big favor, and they have a slick "comeback" for every "objection" - I'm telling you these guys are pros, this is what they do for a living every day of the week!  The are REAL SCAM ARTISTS!

ITS AWAYS a rip-off, too - no matter how sweet they make it sound.  ITS NEVER a reputable brand they're selling, they simply play off your not knowing the name, and try to make you feel like a boob if you don't let them scam you!  ...Nice.

Only when enough people have spread the word on this at-least-25-year-old "sales technique" will they maybe go away. They're counting on the age-old truism that "There's a sucker born every minute."  DON'T LET YOU OR YOUR FRIENDS BE ONE, TOO - PASS IT ON!  

HERE'S ONE WAY you can tell immediately that its NOT legit:  talk real loud with them from the start and tell them you "already know about this scam" and to "take it somewhere else" - watch how pissed off they get.  Don't worry, they won't actually do anything to you because they're in public, but watch how much they HATE having their cover blown!  Have some fun with it!  They certainly deserve it for all the innocent people they've ripped off!

Answer 4

Absolutely it is a SCAM. If you do want to buy something from these guys do not ever offer more than 50 bucks for anything. That does not mean what they are selling is not worth getting for your garage....Just make sure it works first and do not expect any sort of warranty or support.

I personally would never buy anything from these yahoooos cuz I just don't like scam artists.

Ya know what, do what the others said and report the bastads

Best off to just keep your money and do not give them any information about yourself or any components you may have. Also keep this in mind:

All good electronic components will have licensed authorised dealers and will never sell anything or authorise the sale of their stuff from a van.