v -prices...

[LIVEfreak]

Hey all, does the release of the new v-concert and v-session set mean that the costs of the v-pro and v-custom will go down? I HOPE TO GOD THEY DO, then this poor college kid can get in on the action.

[puttenvr]

I don't think so. The Vpro will be replaced by the new red and purple sets

[Boingo]

Originally posted by puttenvr:
I don't think so. The Vpro will be replaced by the new red and purple sets

I think you're right. It looks like an opportunity to try to keep the prices up. You know, change the packaging (color), change the label (session, concert) and keep the guts the same. Competition is the only thing that will get prices to drop. Hopefully, NAMM will provide that.

[cliff]

V-Pro prices are already coming down. I've seen them as low as $3100 + free shipping. The price may even go a little lower until stock is gone. I don't expect to see the new gear for awile. Remember NAMM stands for "not available, maybe May".

[Boingo]

Cliff

You're absolutely right. But, in my mind, the V-Concert IS the V-Pro. Other than color, what's different? It hardly justifies an increase of the magnitude of what Roland is asking. So I'm going to have to get used to the idea that, technically, it is not the V-Pro. I stand corrected.

Unfortunately, many consumers are dumb enough to fall for this. Hopefully, competition from Yamaha, DrumTech, Hart, etc will put enough of a dent in Roland's sales to make this increase short lived.

[puttenvr]

Originally posted by cliff:
Remember NAMM stands for "not available, maybe May".

great joke

[jrcel]

I still think Roland could sell these kits for less money. It's odd that they're labeled Profesinal drumkits, most profesional drummers I know can't afford them. If you make your living playing music and are trying to buy a house, make car payments, keep up an acoustic kit as well, pay for health insurance and making quarterly self employment tax payments, you might as well forget about ever owning a set of these drums unless you are a rock star. Most pro's are not rock stars. It seems as though they are for hobbyists who have lucrative jobs outside of the music industry, which there is nothing wrong with, I'm just saying.

[Boingo]

Originally posted by jrcel:
I still think Roland could sell these kits for less money...

You're probably right on all counts. When I started looking at the V-Pro's they were going for $3700 most places (and you still needed a throne, snare stand, kick pedal and amp). Once the supply of folks with the bucks were used up, the prices started dropping. Roland is run by shrewd businessmen. Now they repackage the V-Pro with a new name and color and start all over again. The sad part is that it never gets low enough for a large number of people to afford it. I think that has been your theme in many of your posts. I don't disagree with your sentiments. It's just that, as long as people are willing to overpay, we either have to find a way to come up with the cash, wait, buy used,... or do without. I don't like it either. It appears I am just more desensitized than you.

[puttenvr]

Don't forget that the Japanese Yen is connected to the US dollar. We - here in Europe and using other types of money - can see this very well.

In the 1970s 1980s products from Japan were very cheap. Ofcourse the wages were low in those days, but the dollar also was. Now with a rising dollar the Roland prices raise over and over again. So if Roland would manufact their products in Taiwan, like Pearl does ...