Survey Info: Video Plus Audio (VPA)


Video Plus Audio (VPA)
6533 Roosevelt Blvd
Philadelphia, PA 19149
Phone: 800-226-6784
Fax: 215-537-4916
E-mail: vpa@videoplusaudio.com
WWW: http://www.videoplusaudio.com/~vpa Customer Comments:
Tuesday June 16, 1998

Don't do business with these guys!!, they ripped me off!! They gave me a low price, so i would order. then after they got my credit card #, the price went up. I told them to forget it, I didn't want it anymore. then they went ahead and charged my credit card, saying that I placed an order and then cancelled it - charging me a re-stocking fee!!
Monday June 8 , 1998

I ordered some speakers (floor standing and central)from them before. Although I did not get them on time, I got what I want. This time, I order a Polk power subwoofer (PSW 300). I got it in 5 days as it was promised. They have very good price. I'll order from them again. -David
Monday June 8 , 1998

i've been doing mail order many times before, mostly with cameraworld in oregon and b & h. i recently ordered a jvc sz9 (discontinued model) camcorder at video plus audio. the saleman named nic repeatedly promised me that they would not send me a refurbished one. however, they DID and the box was not in the original condition. i called them and was told that nic was on vacation?!?! i ended up talk to daniel. after a long garbage type of explanation, he told me to send the unit back without giving me the RA #. i am still struggling in this issue... @#%*!!!
Wednesday May 6 , 1998

I had my poison keyboard all ready, because my order seemed to be taking an awfully long time. As it turns out, my Marantz remote came right when it was supposed to, but the UPS delivery slip never got to me. Finally called VPA and got the UPS tracking number, and discovered the package had been waiting for about a week. Good service from Mike on ordering and no problem getting the tracking number.
Saturday May 2 , 1998

Lastmonth I ordered a Velodyne subwoofer from Video Plus Audio. Jay (owner? salesman?) accepted the order and promised to ship the next day. When I got nothing I called again and he said he couldn't supply that model (he did not see fit to call and let me know). We agreed on a different model and he promised to ship the next day. He did call several days later, to tell me that he could only the sub by the end of March and promised to call before he shipped. He never did.

Jay's prices are fairly good, but meaningless, considering that he does not deliver. I suspect he sells what he doesn't have, then leaves the customer high and dry when he cannot deliver.
Tuesday March 31, 1998

Charged my card the day I called. It has been a week and I haven't recieved my item yet. Will not order from vidoe plus again, never.
Friday March 20, 1998

I ordered a receiver and a pair of speakers from them. Very good prices, and they beat other competitors prices. Nick, the salesman, promised that he had everything in stock right in front of him, and would send them out the next business day. After reviewing the experiences that others had from this list, I called them to get the tracking numbers for the shipment after 3 days. Spoke with 2 different people, who gave me 2 tracking numbers, which turned out to be invalid at UPS. Then, Nick asked me to be patient, and that the items had been shipped, but could not provide a tracking number for anything. Then, spoke with Daniel, the manager, who was quite helpful. He informed me that they don't carry anything in stock, and that the items would be drop shipped by someone else. Anyway, got everything I ordered after 3 weeks. If you are dealing with VPA, my suggestion would be to speak with Daniel directly. Also, be prepared to wait for a while to get everything. Don't beleive them if they say they have everything in stock.
Wednesday February 18, 1998

I bought a set of speakers from them. It took a month for me to get the speakers I ordered. But, that's OK. I was not in a hurry. They price is very good. So, the rule is that if you want something in a hurry, do not pick up the phone. I may order form them next time if I can not find the stuff from somewhere else.
Friday February 13, 1998

I purchased an A/V receiver from VPA in March, 1997. One of the aspects that I liked about VPA was that they had a one year trade-up policy. I asked them about it at the time and they assured me that I could trade up within a year and get 90% of what I had paid for the receiver. I just called and asked about the trade up policy again. Now the story is since the receiver model that I bought had been discontinued by the manufacturer they could not honor the 90% deal. Now they will consider giving me $400 for my $729 receiver as a trade-in. And they acted as if this was a gift. I realize that audio equipment has very high depreciation, which is why I was so impressed with VPA's trade-up policy. If something is too good to be true, it almost always is not! Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me; but they are not going to get another chance!
Friday February 13, 1998

UNACCEPTABLE. On 2/5/98 I placed an order for a Harman/Kardon HD710 CD player--I'm not the same guy who ordered the FL8450 below. The salesperson, Jay, told me that it was in stock, and that it would take approximately 5 business days. He also asked what the best offer I had so far was--$219. He offered $215--great--but shipping would be $20. Fine, although most places would charge a bit less than that.
2/11/98(yesterday) comes around. I call back, trying to get a tracking number. I use the UPS website to track it. Eric tells me that number was what _H/K_ gave him. Excuse me? Did Jay not tell me that they(VPA) had it in stock when I ordered last week? Eric takes my phone number down, promising to call me back after he gets the right tracking number from H/K. No call.
2/12/98(today). I call back at 5pm, and am told that H/K is on backorder. I said that I was told it was in stock when I placed the order. He says that their warehouse is basically H/K's warehouse. I canceled my order. The guy makes a smart remark about how they weren't making a profit at the price they gave me. Unbelievable. Sign me, Ivan C. katana@glue.umd.edu
Wednesday February 4 , 1998

I called Video+Audio (Jay) to check if they had a unit of the discontinued Harmon Kardon CD Changer- FL8450. He said it was available and could mail it the same day. I placed an order and asked for a tracking number. He said it was not necessary as it would reach me soon(!). When I didn't hear from them for about 5 days, I called them again. A lady told me that my order was not at all in the computer but it would still reach me!! Few days later I asked Jay about the order, he said that I should have received it. I said I didn't receive it. I asked for a tracking number. He gave me a number. When I checked with UPS, I was told that the number was invalid and was short of a digit. When I called Jay again, he gave me another number-- this time it had the right number of digits!! This was also non-existent (as per UPS). When I called him back, I was told that UPS was lying because they had lost it (Did he think I would believe it?!!). He asked me to forget about the order because it was a discontinued model. I couldn't believe my ears!!
The policy of Video+Audio seems to be "Dishonesty is the best policy". So beware...
Saturday January 17, 1998

I had very good experience with Video Plus. I found that their prices were far below any one I contacted in reference to the Sharp LCD Projector I purchased from them. I trulely say they saved me over $1800. However, acquiring the product took longer than I expected.
Wednesday January 7 , 1998

What a bunch of liars! First, I called to see if they had the Harman/Kardon FL8450 and a Denon AVR 2400 receiver in stock and was assured by a guy named Nick that they were. I threw them a curve by telling them I would pay them a visit and buy them in person. Not wanting to make a wasted trip (a 50 minute drive from my home), I called Nick again before I left and he again assured me these items would be there. When I got to their store (actually it's not a store at all, everything is packed in a very small room with barely a component on display and boxes of gear scattered everywhere, reminded me of a sorry home grown operation) the guy I talked to on the phone told me he had meant the items were at the warehouse and it would take a couple of days to get them to the store. To make this long story short, the two items promised to me were not in stock, it was a scam from the beginning. I don't know how these guys stay in business. Beware and wish you good luck with these dirt-bags because you'll need it

Moderator note: It has been brought to my attention that Video Plus Audio was in the process of moving to a new location at this time and that may explain the disorder.
Wednesday December 17, 1997

Bought the Yamaha RXV-2092 receiver. Talked to Nick. Received in 5 business days as promised. Receiver arrived double boxed in fantastic condition. Only complaint - ser# cut off from the box. receiver works perfectly. I would use VPA again. - Sid
Monday November 24, 1997

Dealing with Video Plus Audio was a very pleasant experience. Their price for the Yamaha RX-V992 was very competitive and the service was excellent. Order was placed on the 18th, delived on the 20th in excellent condition.
Sunday November 9 , 1997

Ordered a Denon avr5600 from VidePlusAudio opened shipping carton to find serial and model number cut off face of the factory box and the warranty card removed from what appeared to be an unopened factory box. After repeated calls and contadicting explainations, I shipped the receiver back by UPS( signature required for delivery). AudioPlusVideo now said they had did not get the receiver back, too bad someone at AudioPlusVideo signed for the delivery. Do not order from this co. What a pack of liars! The onnly good thing about this place is the calls are free.
Tuesday October 28, 1997

I contacted Video Plus Audio on 20 Oct to purchase a pair of the latest model Polk speakers primarily based on this listing and customer comments. The salesman was friendly and helpful, and I couldn't beat the prices. They were even willing to come down on the price of the older models and they didn't try to push the more expensive later models. I was very pleased with the service and ended up purchasing the latest model. I was assured the speakers were in stock and would be shipped immediately. I received the speakers today, 27 Oct. You can't beat that for service.
Saturday October 25, 1997

Excellent prices , a little pushy on the accesories but can't be beat for video cams.
Monday August 11, 1997

I ignored this company at first due to the numerous bad evaluations. There were other companies listed with similar prices that had much better customer evaluations. I was unable to find the receiver I wanted (which was fortunate) at the competition so ended up chancing this company. I talked to Nick and asked if the item was in stock. Nick said that it was without hesitation which I thought was rather humerous since I had just read the numerous comments at this site regarding "in stock" items that really weren't. I asked Nick to double check, which he did and again said that the receiver was in stock.

It turned out that the price of the receiver had dropped $150 from their internet posted price, which already was an excellent price. I also expected a delay in the delivery due to the UPS strike if they shipped it as they said they would, the day I ordered it. I got the receiver a day sooner than the normal delivery should have taken. I don't know if I just got lucky but I ended up with a Denon 3600 in three days for for $500+ less than I would have paid at any local audio store. This also turned out to be the best price I found on the internet.
Wednesday August 6 , 1997

After reading all of the comments regarding "out-of-stock" you would think this company would stop telling people they have something when they really don't. They are still at it. I would avoid ever ordering from them if you want something quick.
Monday August 4 , 1997

Called them on the phone and spoke to a rep named Nick. He told me that they had the item I wanted in stock on the premises. Since they were not too far from me I paid them a visit, long story short... A LIE, 'we can get that for you but it will take 7-10 days'. This company is suspect.
Friday July 25, 1997

Here is the story: On monday I ordered a pair of Infinity SM105 speakers from VPA. The quoted me the best price and matched the shipping of another company. All was good and I figured I would have the speakers in three days. On Wednesday I called to check the status of my order. The speakers had not been sent out, they were out of stock, VPA had no idea when they would come in, and they charged my credit card anyway. I told them to cancel my order. On Thursday I called my credit card company to verify that the charges were credited, they weren't. I called VPA and the person I spoke with said he would call me back after he looked into the matter. He never called. I called them back again and another person finally verified that my accound had been credited. This lack of care for the customer really pissed me off. Nonetheless, the were very friendly and finally did do what I asked. And to not totally discredit them, their prices are incredible. If they have it in stock (Make them check before you give them your card number), go with VPA, othewise don't bother.
Wednesday July 23, 1997

They are a mixed bag. Good prices but you might be told something is in stock when it really isn't. My card was also charged even though they didn't have the item. Everything did eventually come at promised price.
Tuesday July 22, 1997

Friendly service (I spoke with Maria), good prices, and the free FedEx shipping only applies to items listed on their web page.
Fri, 23 May 1997

excellent prices, even better than Sound City or other discount places. Very willing to deal, especially when you mention prices that you have been quoted from other mail-order companies. Took their time with me, without the high-pressure tactics.
Wed, 28 May 1997

I suspect some of the pieces I bought were pre-opened. They didn't have everything in stock that they said they did. The receiver they shipped me was Dead on Arrival. It wouldn't power up. David has been good to work with.
Thu, 5 Jun 1997

Hal knowledgable and helpful
Tue, 10 Jun 1997

Friendly although slightly hurried on the phone, spectacular prices, willing to deal. VPA did backorder an item they said was in stock (i.e., correct speaker model, wrong finish), but only a 2 week delay which didn't bother me because of the great price. I would definitely buy from them again.
Mon, 16 Jun 1997

If you order, make sure they only charge your credit card for items in stock (they charged me for all 3 items the day I ordered, but a month later I'm still waiting for the last one to show up).
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