I’m considering buying a relatively high-end stereo in Taiwan.
There is a pretty highly thought of Taiwanese company called USHER.
I’m thinking about buying the: X-718 speakers and their 160W amplifier.
Altogether, the setup is about 30,000 NT.
These speakers are almost triple the price in Canada / US as they retail for about 1500 USD
Does anyone have any other ideas for a good quality stereo in Taiwan?
Is it possible to get more bang for my buck here than usher?
Thanks in advance
[quote=“sedition”]Altogether, the setup is about 30,000 NT.
These speakers are almost triple the price in Canada / US as they retail for about 1500 USD[/quote]
So go for it. 
[quote]Does anyone have any other ideas for a good quality stereo in Taiwan?
Is it possible to get more bang for my buck here than usher?[/quote]
Dunno of any.
About ten years ago when I bought a stereo system I shopped around a lot and bought one from the Usher store north of Ximending near the tax office. I’m still happy with it.
Yeah, you’d have a hard time finding a better deal, the quality is superb, never mind how cheap it is.
I heard they’re only sold in Germany, and the shop here is basically an “outlet”, that’s why the prices are so great.
Oh, and when we got ours there (just about the cheapest setup they had, but just feckin beautiful), buddy not only delivered it but hung and wired up the speakers to our exact specs, no extra charge!!
ETA: Oh, and if anyone HAS the address, could you kindly post it? I can never remember exactly where it is and inevitably I (or whomever I’ve directed) ends up wandering around behind the Main Station for like an hour until stumbling across the right street…
[quote=“sedition”]Altogether, the setup is about 30,000 NT.
These speakers are almost triple the price in Canada / US as they retail for about 1500 USD[/quote]
My math isn’t very good, but that’s not triple the price.
It’s not even double. 
They did the same for me – which is a good thing, cuz they had to mess with it a little to keep all that and all of the other wiring I had from picking up a pirate Hakka radio station.
The Web site gives Kaifeng St. Sec. 1 No. 67, which is a different location than the place I went to many years ago. (Kaifeng is the east-west street to the south of Nova.) Tel. 2381-6299.
[quote=“Josefus”][quote=“sedition”]Altogether, the setup is about 30,000 NT.
These speakers are almost triple the price in Canada / US as they retail for about 1500 USD[/quote]
My math isn’t very good, but that’s not triple the price.
It’s not even double. [/quote]
“Altogether” and “These speakers” are not the same thing. You’d better re-read that carefully, Josefus.
[quote=“irishstu”][quote=“Josefus”][quote=“sedition”]Altogether, the setup is about 30,000 NT.
These speakers are almost triple the price in Canada / US as they retail for about 1500 USD[/quote]
My math isn’t very good, but that’s not triple the price.
It’s not even double. [/quote]
“Altogether” and “These speakers” are not the same thing. You’d better re-read that carefully, Josefus.[/quote]
Much like my math, my English comprehension is also shite, Stu. 
That’s the main branch, there is another one on the corner of Kaifeng and Zhonghua (South-East corner) and one on Zhongxiao and Zhonghua (South-West corner). Best place to listen and view all their stuff is the main branch however. Map
I’m buying from Taichung so the store here is relatively easy to find.
The price for the whole system is actually a little less than 30 grand but it doesn’t come with a decent set of speaker wires which are about 2000 NT more (people say high-end-speaker wire is rather important)
I’ll also end up buying cheap speaker stands they sell as well.
Everything together ends up being about 30 grand.
Thanks for all the input. I was just wondering if anyone else knew of another Taiwanese company that might be worth checking out as well.
I think I’m gonna take the leap.
Cheers
I would KILL for a good stereo, but more than that, a big stone house to put it in. SICK of headphones. I miss my Taiwan rooftop!
People or audiophiles? In my opinion a 2x4mm2 speaker cable from the hardware store around the corner will be as good as whatever brand they are selling for NT2000, assuming it’s the same material (copper typically).
Good choice. 
Shielded speaker wire is important here in Taiwan as there seems to be much potential for interference, as well as loss of course if you are running them a further distance from the amp. We bought an Onkyo amp, Jamo base speaker and four French wall mounted Focal(see home audio/Sib&Co/Sib) speakers. I think the set up cost around 40,000 not including the previously purchased Jamo base, but I have never heard better quality mid sized speakers from any other manufacturer. We would have gone with Bose for a set of large floor speakers, but our kid would have poked them to pieces a year or so ago when we were looking. I think Bose makes the best floor speakers I have heard yet. Of course a set of two cost around 100,000 though, so they aren’t cheap. I laughed when I asked if they did car speakers and they said yes, they could ship my car to America to have them fitted for a couple million NT. 
Bose make some fantastic products though and I still love their smallest wall speakers, which still manage to provide great mid range quality for their size. I think for most apartments in Taiwan, the wall mounted speakers work very well, but if I had a detached house in the U.K. I would certainly go floor mounted and larger too, even though I can’t turn my speakers up to half volume without waking the entire neighborhood with crystal clear massive sound.
I would thoroughly recommend the shop we have purchased two sound systems and one T.V. through now, situated on Yen-Ping South road,No 51, Taipei City. In the camera/stereo shop area between Hsi-Men Ding and Sin-Kong department store.
They provide anyone with an important lesson in whichever category you are interested in regarding T.V.s to stereos and T.V. recorders. They don’t hard sell. The place is very relaxed and they will only recommend products that are completely suitable to the needs of their customers. They literally spent hours educating me on the pros and cons of different technologies regarding T.V. screens, sizes of screens, manufacturers and everything, and never assumed I was going to buy anything. They only sell good stuff though, so don’t expect bargain basement offers like you will see in other shops including 3C, RT mart and so on, although their prices are still flexible. There’s a woman owner their which is the friendliest and most helpful.
Tel: (02) 2382-1699 Mobile: 0921-866899
A big two thumbs up from me, which is rare.
I love my Ushers so much I exported them to Oz.
Couple of Ideas:
I’m not familiar with the model you are getting. If they are bookshelf speakers get yourself some speaker stands and elevate your speakers up to listening position. Do you have a link to the product?
If you are okay with the look of seeing the loud speakers in the box, take off the front material cover - you’ll notice a lot more ‘air’ (presence between 10-15K) without those things.
Investing in a sub might not be a bad idea, depending on how hard you’re going to drive them, music type, budget etc.
Probably more important than speaker cable is the cable that connects your CD player to the amp. Don’t use those $2.95 jobbies from the electrical store, get yourself some good quality ones. There is no point in spending oodles on speaker cables if the amp isn’t receiving a decent signal from the CD player. Our sales man threw a nice pair in the deal, worth asking.
I recently auditioned a NAD CD & amp around $1000AUS each. Too clinical for me, Judas Priest sounded lifeless and thin, but Norah Jones’s voice kicked arse: open and clear, but the band were pushed to the background. I was relived to get home and rock out with my Sony/Usher combination. Most important is to listen to the products before you shell out your cash. Take a selection of music into the shop and insist on listening to it. Don’t be embarrassed, after all it is you that will be listening to them at home. Make sure you flatten the EQ and match you amp/CD combination. If you don’t want a sub, make sure that they switch it off.
If you like the sound of Usher, an English brand, KEF, might be worth a look too, if you get them in Tw.
Enjoy,
L.
[quote=“sedition”]
The price for the whole system is actually a little less than 30 grand but it doesn’t come with a decent set of speaker wires which are about 2000 NT more (people say high-end-speaker wire is rather important) [/quote]
Quality wire and connecting cables are an absolute must. You will greatly diminish the performance of your system if you skimp on the cabling. Good speaker wire isn’t necessarily expensive. I really can’t stress enough how important wiring is.