Headroom: The best place to buy headphones online
Written: May 25 '02 (Updated May 28 '02)
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Introduction / Site Info
I first came across Headroom while searching for some new headphones. I found their website very professional and well organized. The site was easy to navigate, albeit somewhat slow. They had a very big selection, good prices, and fairly objective advice about the products they were selling (most comments were positive, but some like "a real letdown" about the AKG 270 S and "Good, but too pricey" about the Sennheiser HD 25 seemed very objective. I have found that vendors rarely say negative things about products they are selling). Headroom also had a good buying guide so you could see what models they recommend for different uses and different price ranges.
Headroom seemed like the best place to buy the fairly specialized headphones I was looking for (Etymotic ER-4) and they were selling them at $60 below retail ($269 vs $330). Before I made my purchase, however, I had to decide which model of headphones I wanted. I contacted Headroom's sales department about getting a discount for the more expensive option I was considering.
Correspondence Part I
I wrote to Todd Green, Headroom's sales manager, about a configuration of headphones (Etymotic ER-4S), a portable amplifier (Total Airhead) and a bag (Airbag). He responded the same day and offered to throw in the bag ($49) for free. I was impressed by his quick reply and generous offer. However, the price was still $468. I decided to go for another model of headphones (ER-4P) that would not require an amp.
The Order
I placed my order the evening of Thursday May 9th and chose FedEx 2nd day air for $7. I thought that $7 was a reasonable price for 2nd day air, but was surprised that 2nd day air is Headroom's cheapest shipping method. That's right, ground shipping is not available so you'll have to pay at least $7 to have your package shipped. The other two shipping options are "Standard Overnight" for $14 and "Priority Overnight" for $15. I expected my order to ship the next day (Friday), and arrive on Monday.
Correspondence Part II
I received a conformation e-mail the same day I placed my order. It's a fairly standard procedure, but I appreciate getting an e-mail telling me that my order has been received. The next day, the 10th, I received an e-mail to say that my order had been verified. Again, no big deal. A few hours later, however, I received yet another e-mail informing me that my headphones were on backorder. I was obviously not happy to hear this, but glad they let me know. I would have appreciated it if Headroom had included what day they expected to get the product back in stock, so I could know approximately when it would arrive.
I wrote Headroom's sales department on Sunday the 12th about that very topic. Mike Noyes, Headroom's other salesman, responded the next day. He told me that my headphones should be arriving and shipping that day. However, I wasn't as impressed with Mike's e-mail as I was with Todd's (the Sales Manager). Mike misspelled my name (or forgot it rather, he called me Brian instead of Brendan) and also had an error in his one-sentence reply. It got the point across, but it somewhat lackluster fashion.
My headphones shipped the next day (Tuesday the 15th) and I received an automated e-mail again. I was pretty surprised that the headphones arrived the same day. Montana to Tennessee to Oregon in one day is pretty impressive on FedEx's part (I don't know why the package went all the way to Tennessee first, that's just what FedEx's site said under "Order Tracking").
Final Thoughts
So in the end, even though the order was backordered, it arrived only one day later than I had expected it to. If I had ordered my headphones through Etymotic, they would have charged me $8 for ground shipping. So it in addition to costing $61 more for the headphones, and $1 more for shipping they would have arrived later that my Headroom order.
My order was well packed, and everything arrived unscathed. So on the whole, I am pretty satisfied with Headroom and their customer service. Another good thing about Headroom is that they have a 30-day money back guarantee. If the product is in "like new" condition they will take it back, no questions asked, and not charge a re-stocking fee. All you would lose is the shipping. I would not have been willing to spend so much money on headphones I had never listened to before without this guarantee.
More Information / Sites to visit
www.headphone.com
Headroom's Website
www.etymotic.com
Etymotic's Website
http://www.epinions.com/content_64383585924
My review on the Etymotic ER-4P headphones
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Location: Portland, Oregon
Reviews written: 41
Trusted by: 23 members
About Me: I love reading, photography, movies, music, ceramics, computers, hi-tech gadgets, and writing epinions!
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