4 New Quadio releases coming in June!

[Druid]

I'm quite surprised reading some of the comments about shipping/stock. I'm in the UK and I ordered all 4 on Tuesday evening. They shipped on Wednesday and are arriving today, which was unexpected.

Also, did you get stung for any import duties or fees?

 

[McWolfred]

I'm quite surprised reading some of the comments about shipping/stock. I'm in the UK and I ordered all 4 on Tuesday evening. They shipped on Wednesday and are arriving today, which was unexpected.

Just bizarre - i ordered the bundle on day 1 and still haven't even shipped. Very frustrating. It'll be worth it though.

 

[Zephead2112]

Hi both, they are being delivered by UPS. I didn't receive an e-mail, I just put the tracking number into the 'AfterShip' app and it updated yesterday to say they had arrived in the UK. Not sure about customs duty as they've not actually been delivered yet (some carriers bill you later but i can't recall what UPS do).

 

[Old Quad Guy]

It has been reported that the discs have been arriving in the mail without tracking number email. I’m waiting for the other half of the order, and checking the mailbox.

You can also sign up for “Informed Delivery” with the USPO. I also have the same thing signed up with UPS and FeDEx. I get emails from all three services ahead of delivery. So, no Christmas surprises when my GF sends me something from Omaha Steaks.

USPO:
https://www.usps.com/

 

[fredblue]

Hi both, they are being delivered by UPS. I didn't receive an e-mail, I just put the tracking number into the 'AfterShip' app and it updated yesterday to say they had arrived in the UK. Not sure about customs duty as they've not actually been delivered yet (some carriers bill you later but i can't recall what UPS do).

last time i used UPS was for some shoes from Italy at Christmas.
the vendor forwarded an email from UPS requesting payment of duty/fees within 10 days or they would return the goods to the vendor. upon payment of fees UPS released the goods and despatched them no problem.

fwiw it looks like my Quadio 4some's coming in 2 shipments; the Paranoidio Quadio is still on holiday in "Hannah" Fontana (alright for some!) the other 3 Quadiooo's are languishing in some lugubrious luggage bay somewhere in the UK

here endeth my riveting Rhino report!

 

[gvl_guy]

If they are offering that option that is a good sign that they are going to do another run.

Not really. I was on the Chicago Quadio one. Of course, I never heard anything.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

my GF sends me something from Omaha Steaks.

USPO:
https://www.usps.com/

Sounds like you’ve got a winner there Old Quad Guy -thanks for the info

last time i used UPS was for some shoes from Italy at Christmas.
the vendor forwarded an email from UPS requesting payment of duty/fees within 10 days or they would return the goods to the vendor. upon payment of fees UPS released the goods and despatched them no problem.

fwiw it looks like my Quadio 4some's coming in 2 shipments; the Paranoidio Quadio is still on holiday in "Hannah" Fontana (alright for some!) the other 3 Quadiooo's are languishing in some lugubrious luggage bay somewhere in the UK

here endeth my riveting Rhino report!

You had me at Italian Loafers

Only got half of my Quad Whereyaatios bumble; but I did receive notice of that 13 fast buck (Freddie) refund for two separate shipments of Paranoid and J. Geils. So now I’m further confused, as it’s going to be at least one or two more shipments to complete my order. My Starship Miracles and Billion Dollars are still MIA!

 

[quicksrt]

It has been reported that the discs have been arriving in the mail without tracking number email. I’m waiting for the other half of the order, and checking the mailbox.

You can also sign up for “Informed Delivery” with the USPO. I also have the same thing signed up with UPS and FeDEx. I get emails from all three services ahead of delivery. So, no Christmas surprises when my GF sends me something from Omaha Steaks.

USPO:
https://www.usps.com/

I got a recent Quad package from Rhino with no advance warning or tracking. But I am glad things are moving along anyhoo!

 

[Frank Lovejoy]

Only got half of my Quad Whereyaatios bumble; but I did receive notice of that 13 fast buck (Freddie) refund for two separate shipments of Paranoid and J. Geils. So now I’m further confused, as it’s going to be at least one or two more shipments to complete my order. My Starship Miracles and Billion Dollars are still MIA!

Same here. I ordered them within minutes on that first morning, but have only received Paranoid and Nightmares, of which I also received the refund notice for double shipping. Hoping the others come soon, as I’m champing at the bit for my Alice.

 

[kwd kwd]

Did you get a shipping notice with Tracking numbers from Rhino? I thought everything was coming with the two shipments, but only received half of the order. Black Sabbath and J. Geils. When I rechecked the emails, that’s exactly how they were shipped. So, I’m waiting for the other two titles to come.

Ironically, last night I received a shipping refund of $13.10, even though I wasn’t charged extra, and I live in the States. I sent an email on Saturday letting Rhino know that I didn’t receive the full order. But only received a generic reply. Obviously, they’re overwhelmed with orders they didn’t anticipate. And this should prove once and for all, how popular the Quadio program is.

No one can say now “There’s no market for Surround or physical media.” Hopefully, it’s just a matter of that we unexpectedly blew everything up with all our orders. And we can clean out Warner’s vaults of Quad titles, because we showed them interest in quality music. So, I can wait for the rest of the order. Just let us know the score when the dust settles.

i have received only the order confirmation after placing it, nothing else since. the money from my account was deducted that day.

 

[timbre4]

i have received only the order confirmation after placing it, nothing else since. the money from my account was deducted that day.

This was not a pre-order so they'd go ahead and process payment; if you're looking for a correlation between payment date and actual product shipment, you're not likely to find one.

 

[The Rang]

I can find my order in the website but it just shows that I bought the
Bundle, what I paid and an order number but no mention of when how or if they’ve shipped. Do others here have more visibility?
Did get shipping notices for, and have received, Geils & Sabbath.
I have no problem with waiting for shipments, it’s the randomness that’s disconcerting

 

[Clint Eastwood]

I can find my order in the website but it just shows that I bought the
Bundle, what I paid and an order number but no mention of when how or if they’ve shipped. Do others here have more visibility?
Did get shipping notices for, and have received, Geils & Sabbath.
I have no problem with waiting for shipments, it’s the randomness that’s disconcerting

If you were in the US you could use Informed Delivery and your Rhino account to see the status of your order..but not sure you have anything like that in Canada

 

[GilWave]

Let me just address a few things in your post...I will highlight them for you...I see you joined in 2022...maybe that explains some of your responses....how many people would buy 4 CDs at once...just about everybody on this forum...we have bought bloated box sets for years with about every useless accessory you could imagine just to get one disc...waiting over a month for the product...that is light speed in the surround world...some of us waited 2 years for a product that was listed on Acoustic Sounds before it was finally available...waiting for anything these days is anathema..nobody likes to wait for anything...you are right...but in this case....in this niche hobby it wasn't a long wait....enthusiasm dampened by cracked and broken jewel cases in 2023...you will be hearing the same thing in 2025...if the physical media survives that much longer...and since you are so enamored with amazon....I have received damaged orders from them...mostly due to automation...but it still happens...in fact some of us probably remember getting some expensive box sets from amazon that were damaged....It is easier and ultimately cheaper to provide better packaging...this point has merit...however in this specific release I can only comment on my purchase...I have received one disc and it was in pristine condition...I haven't received the other 3 yet...only then could I render a comment....however you have to look at the big picture...in a lot of cases the damage isn't as widespread as it appears...sometimes the minority of customers are more vocal as the silent majority don't feel it necessary to comment on the topic....

Let me just make one more observation...you use the word premium to describe the cost of these 4 discs...in this hobby I have paid considerably more on the secondary market for older surround discs that were USED...many others on here have done the same....I don't think the standard business model is relevant with this niche market...maybe you have heard of Oppo blu ray players...they were very popular with the surround community...when they closed their doors the secondary market for them exploded...used players sold for many times their original price when new...these discs...especially Paranoid will be worth several times it's original Rhino price point in the near future

Wow.

Yes, I joined QQ in 2022, but have been on Steve Hoffman's forum for years and on Gearslutz.com (now Gearspace) for 20 years. I started playing bass guitar in 1970, had a Quad receiver in the house in 1972, still have my SL200 MKII fro 1979 and have been in the pro audio business since 1982. So, please.

Just because we are accustomed to buying bloated box sets and waiting for product (often limited-production or 'special edition') doesn't mean we should, or that the manufacturers shouldn't strive to do better in servicing their customers. The fact that these are indeed premium products (in the case of the aforementioned Quadio releases, they are at a premium over the standard CD releases of the same titles, at twice the price) means, to my mind anyway, that the customer experience should also be premium.

If you're okay with sub-standard customer service and shipping/fulfillment experiences as if we somehow should accept it as a side-effect of our obsessive devotion to that ancient religion (to paraphrase Admiral Motti) then that's on you. I think we deserve better, especially as we are a select few with higher standards (in audio reproduction, anyway).

If you go to buy a Ferrari or a Mercedes, or a Lexus or Acura - since you have higher standards or prefer a premium experience than the average car buyer, you are treated accordingly. I'm not saying Rhino should serve us a Demi-tasse with our purchase, but I don't think it is too much to ask for a decent shipping package sufficient to protect the premium product that they are expecting us to pay more for than the standard release of the same content.

The idea that we may choose to sell said product when it becomes rare or out-of-print over time is even more reason to expect that the packaging survives shipment - the product is worth less to collectors if the jewel case or box set packaging is damaged.

As for Amazon, I am enamored of their price, selection, prompt free shipping, but most importantly their exceptional customer service. If a CD, DVD, BluRay or box set arrives damaged, I can request a replacement or refund and simply drop off the defective or damaged product at my local Whole Foods, scan the return code, and my money is back I'm my account. Can Rhino or the other niche on-line record shops say the same? No.

Rhino is offering these 4 Quadio releases exclusively through their on-line store, limiting our choice as consumers by forcing us to buy it from them at MSRP. I would think and expect that for that full-price, non-discounted sale/purchase experience they could spend the time and money on proper protective packaging, since they are getting full retail for the discs and not having to give a margin to resellers.

Lastly, yes I have heard of Oppo and own one - the UDP-203. I never imagined when I bought my last BluRay player that it would be the last BluRay player I would buy. I love my Oppo unit, it has all the features I want and yes - I paid a premium for it over getting a Sony or Samsung. Oppo rewarded that premium price with a premium end user experience, including an excellent out-of-box experience.

Unlike Rhino, they went to the trouble of creating packaging worthy of the higher price - a solid cardboard box exceeding UPS and FedEx published standards, proper interior support pieces to cradle the unit, and instead of the usual and customary plastic wrap, they covered the player in a nice protective black fabric which, open removing the player revealed itself to be a very nice and useful tote bag with the Oppo logo on it!

Quad audio discs are not BluRay players obviously, but the premise is the same. If we're being asked to pay more for a special or limited edition product (since you prefer not to consider it necessarily a 'premium' product), sold to a discerning and niche customer base, shouldn't the packaging reflect that?

 

[The Rang]

If you were in the US you could use Informed Delivery and your Rhino account to see the status of your order..but not sure you have anything like that in Canada

I’m having them shipped to a US address so I’ll try that.

 

[Clint Eastwood]

Wow.

Yes, I joined QQ in 2022, but have been on Steve Hoffman's forum for years and on Gearslutz.com (now Gearspace) for 20 years. I started playing bass guitar in 1970, had a Quad receiver in the house in 1972, still have my SL200 MKII fro 1979 and have been in the pro audio business since 1982. So, please.

Just because we are accustomed to buying bloated box sets and waiting for product (often limited-production or 'special edition') doesn't mean we should, or that the manufacturers shouldn't strive to do better in servicing their customers. The fact that these are indeed premium products (in the case of the aforementioned Quadio releases, they are at a premium over the standard CD releases of the same titles, at twice the price) means, to my mind anyway, that the customer experience should also be premium.

If you're okay with sub-standard customer service and shipping/fulfillment experiences as if we somehow should accept it as a side-effect of our obsessive devotion to that ancient religion (to paraphrase Admiral Motti) then that's on you. I think we deserve better, especially as we are a select few with higher standards (in audio reproduction, anyway).

If you go to buy a Ferrari or a Mercedes, or a Lexus or Acura - since you have higher standards or prefer a premium experience than the average car buyer, you are treated accordingly. I'm not saying Rhino should serve us a Demi-tasse with our purchase, but I don't think it is too much to ask for a decent shipping package sufficient to protect the premium product that they are expecting us to pay more for than the standard release of the same content.

The idea that we may choose to sell said product when it becomes rare or out-of-print over time is even more reason to expect that the packaging survives shipment - the product is worth less to collectors if the jewel case or box set packaging is damaged.

As for Amazon, I am enamored of their price, selection, prompt free shipping, but most importantly their exceptional customer service. If a CD, DVD, BluRay or box set arrives damaged, I can request a replacement or refund and simply drop off the defective or damaged product at my local Whole Foods, scan the return code, and my money is back I'm my account. Can Rhino or the other niche on-line record shops say the same? No.

Rhino is offering these 4 Quadio releases exclusively through their on-line store, limiting our choice as consumers by forcing us to buy it from them at MSRP. I would think and expect that for that full-price, non-discounted sale/purchase experience they could spend the time and money on proper protective packaging, since they are getting full retail for the discs and not having to give a margin to resellers.

Lastly, yes I have heard of Oppo and own one - the UDP-203. I never imagined when I bought my last BluRay player that it would be the last BluRay player I would buy. I love my Oppo unit, it has all the features I want and yes - I paid a premium for it over getting a Sony or Samsung. Oppo rewarded that premium price with a premium end user experience, including an excellent out-of-box experience.

Unlike Rhino, they went to the trouble of creating packaging worthy of the higher price - a solid cardboard box exceeding UPS and FedEx published standards, proper interior support pieces to cradle the unit, and instead of the usual and customary plastic wrap, they covered the player in a nice protective black fabric which, open removing the player revealed itself to be a very nice and useful tote bag with the Oppo logo on it!

Quad audio discs are not BluRay players obviously, but the premise is the same. If we're being asked to pay more for a special or limited edition product (since you prefer not to consider it necessarily a 'premium' product), sold to a discerning and niche customer base, shouldn't the packaging reflect that?

I will be brief....your overall assessment is flawed for one obvious reason...you try to make comparisons of dissimilar items and practices...your contention that the CD release isn't as much as the BLU RAY AUDIO disc...are two different things...and from that you keep calling them premium and then the Ferrari/Mercedes analogy pretty much sums it all up...then your constant mention of packaging...which I can say now with confidence that I received all my 4 discs in pristine condition from Rhino....and I'm not the only one...I have received that same type of packaging many times from different distributors....your other statement about "forcing us to buy it from them at MSRP"...no one is forcing you to buy anything....that is one of the differences in your business model comparison with Amazon...this is a hobby.... a guilty pleasure...it's not cheap if you want to buy all these titles...but it's not food or essential items...you can live without these "premium products"....

Just for the record I like amazon and have prime shipping and I have gone to Whole Foods and returned an item....but what Amazon does is not remotely comparable to the niche markeplace that Rhino is in. The reality is that Rhino did an awesome job of providing a product that other companies aren't interested in anymore and did it at a very reasonable price...

I'm done with this...my last response

 

[Clint Eastwood]

I’m having them shipped to a US address so I’ll try that.

If you did that the person on the other end in the US would have to open the Informed Delivery account

 

[GilWave]

I will be brief....your overall assessment is flawed for one obvious reason...you try to make comparisons of dissimilar items and practices...your contention that the CD release isn't as much as the BLU RAY AUDIO disc...are two different things...and from that you keep calling them premium and then the Ferrari/Mecedes analogy pretty much sums it all up...then your constant mention of packaging...which I can say now with confidence that I received all my 4 discs in pristine condition from Rhino......your other statement about "forcing us to buy it from them at MSRP"...no one is forcing you to buy anything....t

I'm done with this...my last response

I'm happy that you received all titles without issue - how nice for you.

As for the forcing comment, I know it's optional entertainmentment - what I meant was, if we do opt to purchase these fine Rhino discs, they are only being offered through Rhino's webstore - we can't buy them elsewhere. That's a choice Rhno made - their other Quadio discs were available elsewhere, and all things being equal, I prefer choice over single-source.

But as you said you're done with this - so I wish you a good day, sir, and may you enjoy listening to these awesome Quadio releases - I sure am.

 

[Old Quad Guy]

I got a recent Quad package from Rhino with no advance warning or tracking. But I am glad things are moving along anyhoo!

Yes, I wanted to ask you since I am waiting for Alice & JS, no tracking numbers on your last package that arrived in the mailbox? Did the last one come in one package or two? Thanks.

 

[Old Quad Guy]

It occurred last night:

As of Today, the new Quadio titles have only been on sale for 15 days, that’s only about two weeks ago! And I’ve already received half the order in one week. So far, so good. With more titles coming.