Cary Audio and Upscale Audio

[Justlisten2]

Hey, does anyone here know what happened between Cary and Upscale Audio? Kevin Deal and Dennis Had used to be best friends. I know Dennis Had retired in 2009, but I just found out that Upscale Audio is no longer a Cary authurized dealer.
Upscale is selling off their remaining Cary stock at pretty good prices, I just picked up a SLP-98P F1 preamp. Cary will still honor the warranty, but Kevin can't get any new stock.

I'm just curious as to what happened. Upscale was Cary's best dealer for many, many years.....and now they are divorced.

[BlueFox]

No idea, but it doesn't sound like good business. Maybe, god forbid, they sold something over the Internet. Oh, the horror.

[audiomaniac]

Originally Posted by Justlisten2

Hey, does anyone here know what happened between Cary and Upscale Audio? Kevin Deal and Dennis Had used to be best friends. I know Dennis Had retired in 2009, but I just found out that Upscale Audio is no longer a Cary authurized dealer.
Upscale is selling off their remaining Cary stock at pretty good prices, I just picked up a SLP-98P F1 preamp. Cary will still honor the warranty, but Kevin can't get any new stock.

I'm just curious as to what happened. Upscale was Cary's best dealer for many, many years.....and now they are divorced.

I was wondering why I haven't seen the new Audio Electronics gear listed on Kevin's site. Congrats on the preamp.

[taters]

Originally Posted by audiomaniac

I was wondering why I haven't seen the new Audio Electronics gear listed on Kevin's site. Congrats on the preamp.

My local dealer just picked up the Cary line. He is also in Southern California. He told me they took the line from Upscale Audio. He didn't say why.

[cpreal]

I also noticed that he is listed as a Quad dealer. I wonder if this is current, as Quad lost their US distributor a few months ago. My local dealer lost Quad because of this.

[vintage_tube]

Received the February Cary Newsletter (email) today here is what they have to say -- you can read thru the lines and understand they have taken a different approach and instituted an area sales manager/Remote Direct Sales Program for those areas nonsupported by a dealer:

Direct Sales Program

It’s easy to see that the world is shrinking due to the Internet. Business models are also changing rapidly as traditional brick and mortar stores find it increasingly difficult to find a successful niche in which to operate. Cary Audio recognizes this trend and fully supports its existing dealers in both the integrator and two-channel worlds as they adapt to new practices.

Because of these changes, however, there are geographic areas which do not have an authorized Cary Audio dealer. In some of these markets we have not yet firmed up a relationship with a dealer. While we are exploring these opportunities to provide better availability across the country, we also recognize that there are many consumers who would love to buy Cary Audio systems but don’t have an authorized dealer nearby. To serve and support these customers, we have developed a Remote Direct Sales Program. If you enter your zip code under the “Where To Buy” tab at the top of our website pages, you will either see a listing of those nearby dealers, or if there is none within 100 miles of you, will be told to contact us for directions. At that point, here is how it will work:
• Place a call or email to the regional manager indicated for your area to answer any questions and get the Direct Sales forms sent to you.
• Fill out and return the forms for your order and credit card payment authorization.
• Your product(s) will be built and shipped to you.
• You will have 30 days in which to evaluate your new Cary Audio. Before that 30 days expires, you can return the equipment if it does not meet your expectations.
• Your equipment will have a regular Cary Audio limited warranty of three years on electronic products and 18 months on mechanical models (e.g. CD players). We have an automated return and service tracking system in place in case you do ever need repairs, to expedite your service and give you real-time updates on the status of the repair and return shipping.

That’s it. It’s very simple and straightforward. If you live near an authorized dealer you have a place to go audition Cary Audio gear and purchase it. If you do not live near a dealer, you can order it directly from Cary Audio. In either case you have the full support of our factory in North Carolina.

Best

Bob

[jdandy]

Bob.......Great information. That should clear up any confusion.

[Masterlu]

cpreal... Welcome!

[lakesailor]

So in other words...if you are buying Cary online you are buying directly from Cary....

[Justlisten2]

I think that may be what split up Cary and Upscale Audio. I don't think Kevin would take kindly to a manufacturer selling direct to the customer. It will be interesting to see how this works out for Cary. It looks like my SLP-98P F1 may become a collector's piece, seeing that it was a Upscale Audio exclusive. Maybe the value will go up.