Bargains

[teamsaint]

What are these algorithms monitoring that makes it so essential to keep changing prices (sometimes just pennies and other times several pounds) and pissing off potential customers in the process?

I really don't know.The market ?hits on the page? sales data across the sector?But I think that you have a good point. In my case, I will certainly hold off ordering the Myaskovsky , in the hope that it comes down again. Some sort of trust in the pricing would certainly help me, but I guess the algorithms say that business is better for Amazon the algorithm way !!

[cloughie]

I really don't know.The market ?hits on the page? sales data across the sector?But I think that you have a good point. In my case, I will certainly hold off ordering the Myaskovsky , in the hope that it comes down again. Some sort of trust in the pricing would certainly help me, but I guess the algorithms say that business is better for Amazon the algorithm way !!

I think it's all based on the big boys, Amazon as a seller and those merchants geared into lowest price, moving with the tide - that tide based on currency fluctuations as well as sellers suddenly coming in with a cheapy. Amazon will often undercut merchants on the site in the UK but not necessarily elsewhere. We have to keep our little eyes open all the time.

[Dave2002]

La Musique des Lumières / Music of the Enlightenment - Limited Edition 30 CD set [Box Set, Limited Edition]

currently £15 from the amazon!

It's a wonderful set

I had it for about that price some while ago. I think normally it's at least twice that. It might come up as new from the Harmonia Mundi store within Amazon for £15, plus £1.26 postage.

[hafod]

Although it has yet to put in an appearance on the 'Best Modern Brahms Symphony Cycle in Digital Sound' thread, the Harnoncourt cycle can be had for £6.50.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Brahms-The-Symphonies-etc/dp/B000000S8T/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=FP2WHFW2B6W6&coliid=IKQXFJH8N9JC6

I have taken a punt on the basis of the following review.

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2003/Nov03/BRAHM_Symharnon.htm

[Dave2002]

What are these algorithms monitoring that makes it so essential to keep changing prices (sometimes just pennies and other times several pounds) and pissing off potential customers in the process?

Now [Myaskovsky set] gone up to around £38, with a download at about £25.

Re the Harnoncourt Brahms set I have it, and it's good, but whether it is the ultimate in hi-fi I can't say. Harnoncourt's performances of many things are also not to everyone's taste, though maybe meet generally with slighlly better approval than Norrington's. Good at around £6.

[cloughie]

Re the Harnoncourt Brahms set I have it, and it's good, but whether it is the ultimate in hi-fi I can't say. Harnoncourt's performances of many things are also not to everyone's taste, though maybe meet generally with slighlly better approval than Norrington's. Good at around £6.

Interesting Dave - Three conductors I do not go out of my way for are Harnoncourt, Norrington and Vaclav Neumann - probably an amount of the irrational there but I like some Mozart by Harnoncourt and Norrington in his LCP days but not more recent stuff.

[hafod]

Interesting Dave - Three conductors I do not go out of my way for are Harnoncourt, Norrington and Vaclav Neumann - probably an amount of the irrational there but I like some Mozart by Harnoncourt and Norrington in his LCP days but not more recent stuff.

I used to do that with Neumann for reasons lost in the mists of time until I bought his earlier Dvorak box in one of Amazon's severe new release underpricing exercises (honoured on this occasion), and was pleasantly surprised. Dated sonics of course (most of it mono as I recall) - it is after all 60s/early 70s Supraphon sound - but a very fresh take with the idiomatic Czech Phil. Costs four times now what I paid for it.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0077DDWEE

[MickyD]

Some remarkably cheap 3 CD William Christie/Erato sets on Amazon which I have snapped up today:

Rameau's Zoroastre

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008F2J3T4/ref=s9_simh_gw_p15_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=10GF25BTK0VS5XWMSWWQ&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=358549767&pf_rd_i=468294

and Charpentier's Medée

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charpentier-Lorraine-Hunt-William-Christie/dp/B006W7SVNI/ref=pd_sim_m_h__6

[Stunsworth]

La Musique des Lumières / Music of the Enlightenment - Limited Edition 30 CD set [Box Set, Limited Edition]

currently £15 from the amazon!

It's a wonderful set

It certainly is. A bargain on a stick.

[Hitch]

Oh, I really must protest. One innocent look at this thread and my wallet was relieved to the tune(!) of £15. It's enough to make a man turn to and more and even ...if I could afford it.

[hafod]

Oh, I really must protest. One innocent look at this thread and my wallet was relieved to the tune(!) of £15. It's enough to make a man turn to and more and even ...if I could afford it.

Only £15?

[teamsaint]

Oh, I really must protest. One innocent look at this thread and my wallet was relieved to the tune(!) of £15. It's enough to make a man turn to and more and even ...if I could afford it.

Hitch, I sympathise. Somebody else is to blame !

That said, its not a lot of petrol, for instance, and that is gone in a short spin down the A36. Money well spent, that set I should think.
As he said in the Singing Detective (of his Readers Digest draw tickets)....."Those are my assets !"

[amateur51]

Oh, I really must protest. One innocent look at this thread and my wallet was relieved to the tune(!) of £15. It's enough to make a man turn to and more and even ...if I could afford it.

I bought this set for a friend at Christmas, Hitch and shelled out £24, feeling I'd got a tremendous bargain. Friend was delighted & thrilled too

You have got a top-of-the-range bargain - enjoy it!

[hafod]

Gatti/RPO in Tchaikovsky 4-6 + fillers on Harmonia Mundi new from an Amazon marketplace seller for £5.50. Mine came this morning and I have only played the 4th which is quick, dramatic and in wonderful sound. Hitherto I was unaware of these recordings and if the 4th is anything to go by this will prove to be a great buy. Anyone familiar with these?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/B003QLY5HE/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&colid=FP2WHFW2B6W6&coliid=I1LE06YNYWPLBZ&condition=new

The seller (Oxfam Crouch End) has 5 copies left. This is not the first time they have had several copies of a brand new item at a great price and the two occasions I have bought from them their service has been first rate. And a charity to boot!

[Dave2002]

Not sure about qualified irresistance. IMO something is either irresistible or not. Take the Silvestri box at £24.98 delivered as advertised in the link in the quote above. Is that irresistible or not? The 'even more' suggests that resistance is not viable in this case and that it is a only matter time of when to submit. Now consider the same box in the link below for £20.60 delivered. Time to flash the plastic I think (or perhaps to wait if you can be sufficiently certain that the price will remain unchanged until the advertised 26th April). What a dilemma!!

https://arkivmusic.eu/music/album/859904/Icon-Constantin-Silvestri-15-CD-Set

BTW there are a number of other Icons from this source at potentially irresistible prices as was flagged up on this thread a while ago.

The price at ArkivMusic now seems to have reverted to £37.99, which is a shame as I've been having problems with ordering from that site due to some nonsense with my account.

I am rather beginning to wish that sellers did not insist on customers having accounts in order to purchase items.
Some give the option of registering or not, while others effectively force users to have an account, whether they want one or not. Additionally, firms may change their policy on this from one visit to the next.

I'm not totally against accounts, but when one visits only fairly infrequently, gaining access with passwords which have been lost or forgotten seems to me often to be the norm, rather than the exception. Most sites do have ways of getting this sorted quite quickly, but some others are clunky, and the functionality does not work properly.