Muppet Show at Richer Sounds

Isleman

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After reading lots of reviews and lurking through forums ( thanks to ChrisGeo) I decided Sony 26V4000 is the best I can get for my max budget of £400.
I have seen the TV on Amazon for £385 and at Richer Sounds for around £360.
Obviously I wanted to buy from Richer Sounds as it's cheaper and I don't mind driving half an hour to their shop.
Surprise surprise , it's impossible to find the TV anywhere at their shops . I called Guildford branch yesterday and they said they will get a batch this Friday. Called them again today and they said maybe next week Tuesday.
The biggest surprise I had calling at Reigate branch . I told them the model I was after and the guy told me that Sony doesn't manufacture TVs anymore as they are doing PS3 now so all their budget is going in that direction. I could barely stop myself laughing and I asked him what he recommends . He said the best is a Sharp which "luckily" they got it in stock.
I called the Reading branch and I was in for another surprise. This time they tried to convince me that LG is far better and superior to Sony . He even told me Sony is using LG Panels . I told him I heard about Samsung panels being used by Sony but not LG and as far as I know LG has poor black and strong back light bleeding. He said probably those are 3 years old models .
However I decided to get one from Amazon . What really troubles me is having this sort of guys giving " expert advice" . I do hope somebody from Richer Sounds reads this and be embarrassed by the poor training some of the guys can have.
Probably it is a part of the strategy to come with the cheapest prices on the web so they can get you in and fool you with some rubbish .
 
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My experience with Richer Sounds was pretty crappy as well, went down to their Birmingham branch last Friday. The problems i found:

  • Pushy sales staff that don't take 'NO' for an answer
  • Persistance in trying to sell me an Onkyo 606 despite it costing the amount that i'd set aside for the amp AND speakers
  • Giving me bad information on the Onkyo 506, telling me it will upconvert to HDMI and do LCPM multichannel audio. When i corrected him he insisted he was right because he's "tested it and it works fine, so i shouldn't believe what i read on the internet."
  • Trying to push a Samsung projector on me as it's "better" than the HD65
  • When i asked if i could demo the projector to see if it is better than the HD65 i was told they don't have a demo room. You can see the demo room from outside the store!
  • Finally, i tried to get them to price match some kit and the salesman said "we don't pricematch".

So basically i had a misinfromed, pushy, liar for a salesman. So Currys, but with an added smugness and sense of self-importance. :clap:
 
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Oh dear, I am about to purchase a sony 40w4500 and onkyo cinema system from Richer, had heard good reports earlier. Somebody from richer please come on and tell me why I shouldn't go to S&V instead.......these reports are incredible considering you're supposed to be experts:confused:
 
I'd agree about RS staff's knowledge being pretty poor - much the same as DSG group now. However, if you do your own research and know what you want, their returns process is excellent and I've always found their staff to be well mannered and friendly.

My biggest gripe with them is the lack of demo rooms in branch these days. You may know if you like an item once you get it home, but have no opportunity to compare it to the competition.
 
Julian Richer does say to contact 'him' if you aren't satisfied. Link on front page of website I think.

I would concur about the pushiness of staff. When I went to order a Sony 40w4000 I'd been to the Sony Centre on Tottenham Court Road where they conveniently have glossy leaflets with reviews from What LCD and Plasma etc of their TVs. I have bought several magazines (and read the archive of marks in several- sorry WH Smith) and found the reviews not to be edited too severely (they did give 5 stars in all cases). I then hopped over to the London City branch as it is a mile from my flat so convenient for pickup/delivery. I asked for a set to be ordered from the warehouse and was told I had to pay a non refundable deposit or in full (not quite sure what the situation is if the box is all bashed when you pick it up). I was then suddenly told that the Sony is rubbish, that the panel is produced by Panasonic (and then later Samsung) and thus that the TV cannot never be better than a Samsung. I asked how the Samsung was better- picture, sound, connections- 'everything- its just better' is what I was told. He then pushed the Samsung A686, which no doubt is a good set. I asked him how the Sony had got such reviews and he said he didn't know.

End of the story is that I left feeling slightly stupid and embarassed despite having done a lot of research. THanks to advice here, I'm upping the budget for a 4500, but ordering from London Bridge as R S are still cheapest at the moment. I will complain once I safely have my TV!
 
Isleman said:
What really troubles me is having this sort of guys giving " expert advice" . I do hope somebody from Richer Sounds reads this and be embarrassed by the poor training some of the guys can have.

I would assume these guys get more sales training than technical and will be out of their depth if they're not interested in AV and happen across a clued up customer.
 
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Just to show the other side of the coin - I've found the Leicester branch of RS to be reasonably knowledgeable, helpful, friendly and able to do a deal. And the last time I came barging in through the door ten minutes before they were about to close.

Seems there's quite a lot of variation throughout the group.
 
I would assume these guys get more sales training than technical and will be out of their depth if they're not interested in AV and happen across a clued up customer.

I understand what you are saying but there is a contradiction. How can you sell whithout knowing what you are selling ? :)
I can understand if you would go to Asda/Tesco or other major supermarket and ask technical questions but we are talking about a specialist AV chain of shops and they are misleading customers.
I don't deny they may have good specialists but I am afraid they are put in the shadow by all these muppets.
 
I understand what you are saying but there is a contradiction. How can you sell whithout knowing what you are selling ? :)

Indeed and I agree you'd expect some knowledge of the products being sold, however, if you have no sales skills you'll not sell anything regardless of how technically informed you are. It's a balance I guess these shops have to work with, unfortunately you didn't get the technical support you required because "He said the best is a Sharp which "luckily" they got it in stock.", sounds exactly what I'd expect a salesman after a quick sale to say ;)
 
I'm currently in the market for a 37 or 40 inch 1080 LCD.

I've visited John Lewis, where I found the staff to be knowledgeable and helpful, but the prices a little higher than elsewhere even factoring in the 5 year guarantee.

In Currys, the staff are inly interested in pushing extended warranties.

I previously had a bad experience with Comet so will not consider them.

Seven oaks were condescending in the extreme, I went in during my lunch time so was not at my smartest, and the looks I got mede me feel like I shouldn't soil their shop with my prescence!!

At Richer sounds over 3 visits with 3 different members of staff I was told what was the perfect set for me which did everything I wanted. The problem was on 3 visits spread over a month I was pointed to 3 different sets, the only thing they had in common was that all 3 "perfect for me" sets were in stock at the time!!

Ho hum.

All shops visited are in Southampton.

I have now decided to purchase a 40" a656 Samsung from Novatech at Portsmouth, the computer warehouse outlet. In stock and reasonably priced but definately a no-frills retailer. No ******** too.
 
would agree with shadowTD leicester RS has always and is now a fantastic branch to deal with, easpecially when I stomp in demanding price matches (now I'm gonna look for a good sony 40" deal... Brian!)

Varies across branches (found notts and some southern branches wanting)
 

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