Conference napalm::commusic_v1

    
    Seems about the same as always to me.  The new hot boxes sell for close
    to list at first, then become more and more heavily discounted.  Those
    who paid $2000 for their Kurzweils may end up weeping at $500 closeout
    prices, but that's life, eh?
    
    Accessories seem more resistant to price drops.  I just paid $130 for a
    Korg O3 module, which listed for about $700.  The ROM cards for it,
    though just went up to $80, and *every* dealer I called wanted full
    list price.  Never mind that they were only $70 a month ago and he's
    probably sitting on old stock.
    
    I am certainly not seeing drastic price drops compared to years past.
    I *am* seeing stuff with more bang for the buck...compare the CZ-101 to
    the FB-01 to the MT-32, for example.  Also I see a recent rash of
    closeouts from Korg, Kurzweil and others due to extreme competition. 
    
    
    							Brian

    re $500 Kurzweil modules.. I grit my teeth and tell myself I've had the
    use of the gear for a year and a half... $73/mo.
    
    karl

>< Note 2113.2 by SALSA::MOELLER "Nested assumption calls" >
>
>    re $500 Kurzweil modules.. I grit my teeth and tell myself I've had the
>    use of the gear for a year and a half... $73/mo.

Karl, if it makes you feel any better,  
I was talking to a guy (Chris something) who works at Acton Music 
here in MA. He *claims* that the 1000 PX "blowouts" from Guitar Center were
defective modules that were "reconditioned" at the factory and then sold en 
masse to Guitar Center. Personally, though this sounds like bullshit to me.
His store sells Kurzweil and I think he made it up because they can't come 
anywhere near that price. These guys (Acton Music) were the same people who 
didn't even know that Kurzweil made HXA and SXA soundblocks for those 
respective expander modules until I told them!

Mike D.

	List prices are created so that mom & pop stores can sell one or
	two units, offer a small discount and still make a profit. 
	Volume operations obviously purchase in quantity so they pay less
	per unit to start with.  Pricing on items like cables is held
	artificially high since they're cheap to start with, therefore
	they don't cost as much to keep on the shelf, and they don't go
	out of style or fashion; the dealer can afford to wait to make
	his 300% profit. Blowouts happen when someone (the dealer or the
	manufacturer) is stuck holding a quantity of equipment just about
	to be superceded by the next new thing on the horizon. 

	In my experience, you can get good deals on just about anything
	you want if you're not in a hurry.  Time is on your side and
	working against the dealer. 

		
	But in response to the topic's question: maybe...  but I don't
	think so. We've just got more consumer dollars chasing more
	equipment.  What we're really seeing is a real leap in the
	bang/buck index as manufacturers scramble to preserve/improve
	market share.  It's tough to be a music dealer now; my
	neighborhood music store no longer carries any MIDI gear or much
	electronics. Guitar Center blew them out of that part of the
	market. 

	I used to browse through here looking at the various equipment 
and hot deals topics to see if there was any reasonable price/time rule 
of thumb.  I didn't do a lot of arithmetic on what I found, but it 
seemed that 18 months to 2 years was about the mean time to 50% off
full recommended retail price deals (sort of a half life).  The 
Kurzweil stuff has exceeded this, one could argue that it was late on 
the price/performance curve when announced, or that rumors of its 
replacement have doomed it - lotsa room for subjective marketing type
speculation here.  Maybe the EMU is going for pent up demand with the 
proteus in the hopes of holding full retail for longer - who knows ?

	R

    I would guess that the recent spate of Kurzweil blowouts have more to
    do with Kurzweil's new policy for retailers.  To be a Kurzweil dealer
    you now have to have certain minimum inventory, which is very
    expensive.  If you used to be a Kurzweil dealer but can't afford the
    cash flow caused by the manufacturer's new policy, you drop the line
    and blow out your remaining inventory.

    >>> I would guess that the recent spate of Kurzweil blowouts have more to
    >>> do with Kurzweil's new policy for retailers.
    
    Also, I read in the local paper (Middlesex News, Framingham, MA) a few
    weeks ago that Kurzweil had laid a few people off and had decided to
    focus on the home musical instrument market more.  One can read into
    this but I won't speculate.  As a shareholder, I know that Kurzweil's
    line to investors has always been:
    
    	(1) Establish a name at the high end
    	(2) Lower prices to the semi-pro market
    	(3) Reap the biggest profits by going after the home piano, home
    		music market.
    
    It could be that we're seeing other ramifications of the move towards
    #3.
    
    - John -

    ooooh, trying to make it big in the music-makin' industry, eh? 
    Something doesn't sound right about that formula ...
    
    Steve

    re .5
    	I think this touches the heart of the matter.  I predict that
    in three years, many of the retail music equipment dealers we all
    know and love will be extinct.  In their place will be national
    outfits like Guitar Center, who sell everything at 15% over cost.
    
    	You will also have an MIDIphile elite which buys exclusively
    at boutiques which cater to those who demand "analog" sound.  The
    situation will be roughly analogous to what has evolved in the audio
    (stereo) equipment marketplace.  
    
    	If this is true, what would be the ramifications for us as users?
    
    re .8:
    
      If what I read in the Financial Pages is correct, I sincerely
    hope that KRZM is one of your smaller holdings... :-) .
    
    Clusters,
    Bill
    

    >>> If what I read in the Financial Pages is correct, I sincerely
    >>> hope that KRZM is one of your smaller holdings... :-) .
    
    When I was childless and couldn't afford a Kurzweil, I bought 200
    shares to show some support for a local company whose products I
    respected.  Besides, it gets me on their mailing list of press
    releases.  Like my musical purchases (I've neglected the goals note so
    infer my answer here), it's not money I expected to see a return on. 
    (Not that I'd mind one.)
    
    Now with the price of the stock at ~1.75 (I paid 6), it's not worth
    selling.  Besides, I've been able to go to the annual meeting and (1)
    drink free juice and tea, (2) eat free danish, and (3) meet Bob Moog,
    Ray Kurzweil, etc. and (4) play with the equipment they make that I can't
    afford.
    
    Money over the dam,
    
    - John -