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Roland price drop?

LibraryJoe

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An accordion dealer here in the States just wrote that Roland is currently offering a "huge price drop" on their V accordions. Has anyone heard anything else? Is this permanant? Does this portend something?
 
Considering that the FR8x was introduced in 2013 and the FR4x in 2016 and nothing since we can only assume that the V-accordion is dead: no new models and end of production of the latest models... It's about time that there is a huge price drop or "clearance sale" to get rid of the last items from the last production runs before they won't even last past the warranty period after being sold. After all, it's electronics and mechanics and even when not used these do not last for many decades...
It's time for something new (Proxima???) but it's unlikely to come from Roland.
 
Considering that the FR8x was introduced in 2013 and the FR4x in 2016 and nothing since we can only assume that the V-accordion is dead: no new models and end of production of the latest models... It's about time that there is a huge price drop or "clearance sale" to get rid of the last items from the last production runs before they won't even last past the warranty period after being sold. After all, it's electronics and mechanics and even when not used these do not last for many decades...
It's time for something new (Proxima???) but it's unlikely to come from Roland.
Thank you! My thoughts too
 
The V-accordion design is old in a technological sense! Other manufacturers offer digital solutions and Roland sort of lost traction and interest...
1 - Yes it is old
2 -Other manufacturers still don't offer ANYTHING better in comparison to the FR4/8x units, there is just no competition out there for them!
 
logically

most music stores send that message when their rent is due and they don't have it
(or)
when the next minimum qualifying order to Roland is due and they still have too many in inventory

ps: Roland is severe about their MAP pricing and have chokeholds on their dealer network,
so if it is a legit change we will see it reflected everywhere soon

now officially, legally, the fr8 fr4 fr3x are all still shown as active products.
we know sales have been brisk for the 4x and remain strong with a nice
backlog of orders that roland is unlikely to discount, and is fulfilling.
fr8's are also back ordered to the point we wonder if they will ever make any more,
period,
so they obviously do not have any 8's to liquidate

they may have a pallet of fr3x to liquidate, but that will be offered to the top 2 or 3 dealers
as a package (all or nothing) and Liberty will likely grab it if offered to them

so no, no big price change is happening because there is no reason for it..
first we would hear about Roland deciding to ramp up production significantly
(they had a lot of extra parts to use up ? LoL)
because they had a sudden shift in confidence in the marketplace ???
(then they would have some inventory to lower the price on) and
they want to milk the market dry before they get out of the Accordion segment completely

now how the phone call works: dealer has a scratch and dent showroom floor model they can sell for
(below MAP)
which legally gets them off the hook with Roland, unless they do enough of them to
make another dealer notice and complain. and of course it is not a showroom model
and if it needs a scratch they will unbox it and make one for you.
(the offer of a free case already violates MAP but is a grey area)

Sweetwater gets away with a fair amoiunt of scratch and dent, because they are
a huge and important customer for Roland.. if you talk to them about an expensive
keyboard but don't buy it, typically you will get a feeler a few weeks later
from your rep about "hey we have a return in the warehouse at a great price.. "
or similar, with full warranty and everything is there in the original box...

this is just the way the retail music biz works.. watching the used market is your
best bet for a good deal on a Roland in the USA IMHO
 
I saw the site of Kevin Solecki in PA has big banner headlines for a Roland markdown. He is moving Bugaris, at least the 34/72 models, which aren't cheap themselves, he's stocking them with TAM. Impressed that he actually posts what he has in stock, with gobs of color photos of the internals, and the transparency seems to be working for him. I really hate the smoke-and-mirrors, call-us-and-ask-what-we-have nonsense with some of the U.S. dealers. Refuse to play that game, actually.
 
we all hope i would be proven wrong,
because people really wish and hope for new models of Rolands

nevertheless, the history of Roland suggests that simply announcing new models
would depress selling prices of current models
which leaves the Dealers holding the bag for the discounts and loss

would you lower prices for products you already are stretched to fulfill ?

and it seems unlikely that Roland R&D for the FR line has been
reconstituted somewhere somehow sometime last year
and no-one has heard about it

but hey, secrets can happen
 
Maybe it was a prank call I received from the dealer, who knows!

Don't think so, the carniegie-accordion site has a big banner headline concluding with, "Call for information":

HUGE ROLAND ACCORDION SALE!!!

$$$ PRICE DROP!! $$$

ROLAND 4X, 4XB, 8X, & 8XB
 
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