Bose / Ebay Warning

[Don Scorese]

Just wanted to give a warning to my fellow mooniacs. I purchased 4 new sets of Bose A20 headsets on ebay in March. As an accountant I don't do any flying until after April 15th. One of the sets I purchased was defective. (When using panel power a loud continuous screech would blair in the headset, when using dual plug adapter only the left ear would work, but no screech). I contacted Bose (and I did register them in March) for warranty work. They told me the headsets were from 2012 and the warranty has expired. I told them the ebay seller advertised they sell "Direct from Bose to you" and it appeared they were an authorized reseller. Bose said they cannot track the serial number to determine who they originally sold it to (which, as an accountant, I find very hard to believe). Anyway, they left the burden on me to track down this guy on ebay and get all his real information (name address etc....) and proof of purchase and then if it is determined he was an authorized reseller they would honor the warranty.

Bose was extremely dismissive, and as a lifelong Bose enthusiast, I was very disappointed how I was treated. But the warning is for anyone purchasing items off Ebay…..just because it is advertised as "New" may not mean there is a valid warranty. And don't expect Bose to help you afterwards. They said I should have taken the serial number before I purchased the headsets and contacted them to check the validity of the serial number.

So it looks like if I can't track down the seller I will have to pay Bose $225 bench fee to fix my brand new headset. I guess it could be worse, but after an hour and 20 minutes on the phone with them and their outright dismissive attitude towards a 30+ year Bose supporter will certainly make me look at other options next time I am in the market.

Oh, and Ebay wants nothing to do with it since it is past 30 days. I did use Paypal and they will open a case up to 6 months. So I am trying to contact the seller through Paypal. At some point, I would think Ebay will have to provide me with the sellers information if I want to pursue legal action. My first call to Ebay they said they won't provide that information to me. If I don't get anywhere with Paypal I will revisit Ebay. It would seem to me that if they are trying to help cover up the seller's identiy when there was possible fraud, false advertising etc.... that would make them an accomplice? I'm not a lawyer but it doesn't seem right that Ebay is the conduit to facilitate this transaction then help cover it up.

Hope this helps.

[Niko182]

44 minutes ago, Don Scorese said:

Just wanted to give a warning to my fellow mooniacs. I purchased 4 new sets of Bose A20 headsets on ebay in March. As an accountant I don't do any flying until after April 15th. One of the sets I purchased was defective. (When using panel power a loud continuous screech would blair in the headset, when using dual plug adapter only the left ear would work, but no screech). I contacted Bose (and I did register them in March) for warranty work. They told me the headsets were from 2012 and the warranty has expired. I told them the ebay seller advertised they sell "Direct from Bose to you" and it appeared they were an authorized reseller. Bose said they cannot track the serial number to determine who they originally sold it to (which, as an accountant, I find very hard to believe). Anyway, they left the burden on me to track down this guy on ebay and get all his real information (name address etc....) and proof of purchase and then if it is determined he was an authorized reseller they would honor the warranty.

Bose was extremely dismissive, and as a lifelong Bose enthusiast, I was very disappointed how I was treated. But the warning is for anyone purchasing items off Ebay…..just because it is advertised as "New" may not mean there is a valid warranty. And don't expect Bose to help you afterwards. They said I should have taken the serial number before I purchased the headsets and contacted them to check the validity of the serial number.

So it looks like if I can't track down the seller I will have to pay Bose $225 bench fee to fix my brand new headset. I guess it could be worse, but after an hour and 20 minutes on the phone with them and their outright dismissive attitude towards a 30+ year Bose supporter will certainly make me look at other options next time I am in the market.

Oh, and Ebay wants nothing to do with it since it is past 30 days. I did use Paypal and they will open a case up to 6 months. So I am trying to contact the seller through Paypal. At some point, I would think Ebay will have to provide me with the sellers information if I want to pursue legal action. My first call to Ebay they said they won't provide that information to me. If I don't get anywhere with Paypal I will revisit Ebay. It would seem to me that if they are trying to help cover up the seller's identiy when there was possible fraud, false advertising etc.... that would make them an accomplice? I'm not a lawyer but it doesn't seem right that Ebay is the conduit to facilitate this transaction then help cover it up.

Hope this helps.

Paypal is usually pretty good with that. Overall, i dont think its fair to blame bose. Its out of their warranty. If you bought it direct from bose you wouldnt be having this problem, and they would be honouring their warranty. I had one minor case of warranty with my a20's. I went to the bose store, showed them my receipt, and the replaced the part no questions asked right there and then. Buying off ebay has its concequences. For me its been rare, but ive had my fair share of shitty deals. This was one of them. I definetely wouldnt blame bose for this.

[kris_adams]

Hey Don, ebay is still a little bit of the wild west.  I'm always relieved when I order something off ebay and it works.  Hope things work out with Paypal.  Thanks for letting us know about this.  -KA

[hypertech]

I don't see this as a Bose problem either.  Its an eBay seller problem.

Bose was really great to me with my pair of A20 headsets that I bought straight from them.  I bought the headsets before I got the plane with the two plug connection.  Then, the plane I bought came with the LEMO plugs.  Several months after I purchased I called Boseto see what could be done to convert my not LEMO plugs to LEMO plugs.  This is an easy thing to do but it involves replacing the whole cord assembly including the controller.  And since mine are bluetooth, I was looking at a standard price of about $600 to make the change.  Note that there is no retail price difference had I ordered them this way to start with.  They bent over backward to do an exchange for me at a really good price.  Despite my headsets now being used and the purchase having been several months old.

[Don Scorese]

I agree it is an Ebay problem, and that's the warning.

As for Bose, my problem with them is their absolute lack of effort to do anything. They can't even look up when they originally sold the unit and to who. If they told me on the phone they sold the headset to their retailer XYZ company in 2012, then I would have been happy with the service. But they claim they have "no idea" when it left their inventory. Really? I mentioned that I am an accountant, and there is no way they don't track $1,000 items. While I was communicating with seller during the transaction we went back and forth about which model he would order for me, so it seemed he was ordering it at that time. If it turns out the seller did in fact order it in March from them and they couldn't track a transaction back to March would be most unbelievable.

[mike_elliott]

9 minutes ago, Don Scorese said:

I agree it is an Ebay problem, and that's the warning.

As for Bose, my problem with them is their absolute lack of effort to do anything. They can't even look up when they originally sold the unit and to who. If they told me on the phone they sold the headset to their retailer XYZ company in 2012, then I would have been happy with the service. But they claim they have "no idea" when it left their inventory. Really? I mentioned that I am an accountant, and there is no way they don't track $1,000 items. While I was communicating with seller during the transaction we went back and forth about which model he would order for me, so it seemed he was ordering it at that time. If it turns out the seller did in fact order it in March from them and they couldn't track a transaction back to March would be most unbelievable.

Ebay does have a 30 day policy that for whatever reason was not adhered to. We are all busy professionals and should take our time constraints into account when entering into a purchase like this. If we do not or cannot make the time to check out the functionality of something we buy within the posted "rules", should we be mad at ourselves or should we demand a policy change from Ebay to accommodate our busy schedules?  I dont mean to beat up on you, just want to sort out the facts that this was ordered well before your need to examine merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose by you, something one should do whenever they purchase something I believe.

[MIm20c]

Is the dealer authorized? If so it doesn’t matter if the headset was made in 1812. The sales receipt sets the start of the warranty. If you are planning on going to OSH I’d give them hell. I own two sets of a20’s but I’m not a fan of Bose as a company. 

[kortopates]

If the headsets where being sold with a Bose warranty that would have been very clear in the ebay posting. But instead, I'll assume the only representation of a warranty was merely that they could be returned within 30 days. At least that is what I am familiar with from having viewed the "Brand New" Bose headsets. There is nothing unusual about buying "Brand New", even un-opened merchandise without a manufacturer warranty on Ebay - in fact that is the norm.  That's the trade off we make in getting the discounted pricing and have to ask if it's really worth the savings before rolling the dice. But it really makes checking them out promptly on receipt very important. Frustrating as it is, hopefully you'll still be $ ahead with 3 that are okay and all last past the normal warranty period.

[201er]

Sure sounds fishy... hard to believe an accountant would have time to be browsing ebay and purchasing headsets in March!

Just use the 3 working Bose headsets for passengers and get yourself a Halo. You'll be happier that way in the end and you can pretty much buy the Halo for the price of bench testing that head squeezer anyway.

[rbridges]

I bought a new Dell computer from Ebay.  I normally don't get too uptight about warranties since I usually get inexpensive stuff for my office.  Anyway, one of the units ended up having a bad motherboard.  I contacted Dell and the warranty was expired; the sell date was about 4 months before my purchase date.  Not a world crusher for me, but it did make me realize that "new" on ebay isn't necessarily the same as "new" from the manufacturer.  If I buy anything expensive, I make sure it's an authorized reseller.

[MIm20c]

57 minutes ago, rbridges said:

 If I buy anything expensive, I make sure it's an authorized reseller.

Big risk, big reward. I personally only buy factory sealed items on eBay. However, most are very expensive items. On average I save 40-60% off Amazon/Costco prices for the same item. I just picked up a new 65 OLED for 1/2 off Amazon’s price. That $1500 savings for 1 year of warranty is a risk I’m willing to take. 

[Danb]

Don... I feel your flying pain my flying season also starts around. May 1,

How’d your tax season go, ours went surprisingly smooth even with the changes,SURVIVED, I’m in Canada on my first vacation 

 

 

[Shadrach]

As a counter point, I have been kind of disappointed in Bose.  I have three Aviation X's and one A20.  The A20 was bought direct. One of the X's was bought new from an authorized eBay seller and two were bought used.  All three of the Xs have had to go back to the factory for refurbishment at least once due to shorts in the wires from the panel to the head set. One of the X's has been back twice (I think I was charged a flat $175 each time).  The A20 started to short out whenever my knee brushed it about a year and a half into ownership but I have the wire clipped out of the way so it's fine if untouched.  I like Bose products and their support is reasonable. However, I do not understand why they cannot make reliable wires and connectors for $1000 headset.  I also have an assortment of decades old David Clarks and Telex headsets as well as the 20 year old $99 Flightcom from my student days.  None of my low end passive sets have failed. 

[gsxrpilot]

Buying off Ebay is a crapshoot. If it works out well, count yourself fortunate. If you get ripped off, chalk it up to education. It really is the Wild West. And at times, we like it like that. I'm glad I don't have to jump through a million hoops when I need to sell something. I can just post it, say whatever I want about it, post some pictures and verbiage off the manufacturer's web site and sell it. For those times, it's convenient, but it also makes it easy for fraudsters to set up shop as well.

I almost never buy expensive stuff off Ebay. I'll deal with members here on MooneySpace or over on BeechTalk. I also find that Barnstormers works pretty well for me also. Most of my everything in my panel has come from those three sources. But you have to be very careful and ask lots of questions.

[m20kmooney]

4 hours ago, Don Scorese said:

I agree it is an Ebay problem, and that's the warning.

As for Bose, my problem with them is their absolute lack of effort to do anything. They can't even look up when they originally sold the unit and to who. If they told me on the phone they sold the headset to their retailer XYZ company in 2012, then I would have been happy with the service. But they claim they have "no idea" when it left their inventory. Really? I mentioned that I am an accountant, and there is no way they don't track $1,000 items. While I was communicating with seller during the transaction we went back and forth about which model he would order for me, so it seemed he was ordering it at that time. If it turns out the seller did in fact order it in March from them and they couldn't track a transaction back to March would be most unbelievable.

It is not fair to blame Bose for your shortcomings and you made a few mistakes here. Why didn’t you obtain the serial numbers and check with Bose before paying for them? Why did you wait and allowed the thirty days to lapse? Why are you so trusting of some seller on ebay? Bose is a fine company with a fine product. I have a Bose X headset with the lemo plug for ship’s power which I leave in the airplane. Exiting the plane one day I inadvertently tangled my foot on the cord causing it to pull a little from the plug. It stretched enough to damage a wire inside the cord. I reluctantly called Bose because it was out of warranty and I had caused the damage. The person on the phone advised me to send it in for an evaluation. Long story short Bose replace the cord at no charge! It took a few weeks but they helped me. This is the kind of company Bose is. 

Edited May 7, 2019 by m20kmooney

[Bob_Belville]

Who needs such grief? Stick with David Clark, Worcester MA, USA. Built for profession pilots to be practically indestructible. A company that takes care of its customers. In fact one of the very best companies I've ever dealt with. 

https://www.davidclarkcompany.com/

[Yetti]

We are pretty big ebay sellers.   As a buyer to have all the rights.   Do a return "not as advertised"   It is up to the seller to make it right when you take this course.

[Mcstealth]

The poster says he is only offended by the attitude at Bose. Said it more than once. 

[thinwing]

Your “new” eBay headsets are according to Bose 7 years old!Do you really think 4 headsets would sit on some dealers shelve unsold for that long!Im guessing they are at best refurbished well used units sold with original packaging.I hope you bought these with a steep discount.

[Mcstealth]

2 minutes ago, thinwing said:

Your “new” eBay headsets are according to Bose 7 years old!Do you really think 4 headsets would sit on some dealers shelve unsold for that long!Im guessing they are at best refurbished well used units sold with original packaging.I hope you bought these with a steep discount.

In his post, he said that the man was ordering them so he was misled. He only figured out the age after he called Bose. 

[Niko182]

2 hours ago, Bob_Belville said:

Who needs such grief? Stick with David Clark, Worcester MA, USA. Built for profession pilots to be practically indestructible. A company that takes care of its customers. In fact one of the very best companies I've ever dealt with. 

https://www.davidclarkcompany.com/

I have both DC and Bose Headsets. the DC headsets have proven themselves because they're older than I am, but the Bose A20's are truly amazing headsets. I haven't had issues with mine. only problem I had was with the bag, and bose replaced that no questions asked.

[Bob_Belville]

14 minutes ago, Niko182 said:

I have both DC and Bose Headsets. the DC headsets have proven themselves because they're older than I am, but the Bose A20's are truly amazing headsets. I haven't had issues with mine. only problem I had was with the bag, and bose replaced that no questions asked.

Only certain rocks are older than I am but when I returned to flying in 2011 I dug out 2 H10-30 headsets that I had had from the '70s. DC refurbished them to better than new condition for about $100. They apologized for charging me but they were 30 years out of warranty...

[ilovecornfields]

I’m sorry you had that experience. That sounds very frustrating. There is probably a reason prices on eBay are less than in retail stores. I pay a premium and only buy from reputable stores to avoid this problem. I have had good experiences with Pacific Coast Avionics in Oregon.

As an accountant you may want to look up this paper who’s author shared the Nobel Prize for economics in 2001 for explaining the phenomena of pricing in “markets with asymmetric information.” Unfortunately, when you are buying on eBay you are participating in one of these markets.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Market_for_Lemons

[carusoam]

So...

• it wasn’t Bose
• it wasn’t Ebay
• it was the seller on eBay...

Did that seller have a name?

Was it An individual or a company?

Did that seller not want to take back the broken item?

 

When buying stuff on EBay, I’m Surprised when everything works as expected...

my ability to buy this way is quite limited...

Good luck getting things back in order.

Best regards,

-a-

[steingar]

I had an instance of out and out identity theft off Ebay and Paypal.  They were utterly atrocious in dealing with it.  I have suspended both accounts and will happily never do business with either again.  Forgive me if I'm less than surprise that someone got scammed off Ebay.