Topping Purchase from Amazon Problem?

[RF Air]

I purchased a Topping E70 DAC Preamp as a gift from Amazon using the "HiFI College" Retailer. The package was received yesterday which required an Authentication PIN for the driver. The package was in an Amazon plastic shipper with a Topping Box that was unsealed and accessible once it was removed from the outer Amazon Shipper Bag. The product lacked any tape on the box or plastic protection for the unit. The Remote Control was missing, there were smudges on the DAC and it was obvious the product was not a "Fresh" new packaged product.

With Amazon, I have encountered past problems like used, damaged or reworked products. I am returning this E70 to Amazon for a refund. The seller at HiFi College Emailed and offered to send an exchange item or Remote if I would provide my personal information. I heeded the warning by Amazon to not provide my personal information. I am not so sure what I received is used or authentic, especially with a missing remote and used packaging.

I am curious if anyone else has encountered this problem with Amazon for Audio Products or with the Retailer HiFi College? I also would like to know if this unsealed box is typical packaging for Topping products? And finally, can anyone recommend a Retailer with some surety that I am receiving an authentic Topping product? Thank you!

 

[Spkrdctr]

Buying things from Amazon does have risks Something like 75% of their products are illegal Chinese copies. The problem is so big that their is not much Amazon can do, since rocking the boat would make Amazon lose hundreds of millions. Just return anything that doesn't seem right.

 

[RF Air]

Buying things from Amazon does have risks Something like 75% of their products are illegal Chinese copies. The problem is so big that their is not much Amazon can do, since rocking the boat would make Amazon lose hundreds of millions. Just return anything that doesn't seem right.

Wow! I had no idea of the scale of the problem. Thank you for your response @Spkrdctr

 

[Chester]

I’ve bought Topping from them via Amazon before and everything seemed legit.

 

[graxxus]

Buying things from Amazon does have risks Something like 75% of their products are illegal Chinese copies. The problem is so big that their is not much Amazon can do, since rocking the boat would make Amazon lose hundreds of millions. Just return anything that doesn't seem right.

75% of everything on Amazon? Just Topping products? All electronics?
How did you arrive at that percentage?

 

[RF Air]

I have learned to be skeptical of any purchase when there is only 1 item available on Amazon. This was the case for this purchase. With Amazon, I have received used or damaged items or they have slipped the delivery date and change the item status to backorder. Appears disingenuous after they "seal the deal" only to change the availability and/or delivery terms. It was a gift, so I rolled the dice on this one hoping for a better outcome...

 

[RF Air]

I’ve bought Topping from them via Amazon before and everything seemed legit.

Hi @Chester!

I would like to ask, were the Topping Boxes sealed with Tape and was the product packaging wrapped or were the contents sealed with any type of plastic wrap to protect from moisture or tampering? This packaging seemed "Hasty" which I did not expect. Obviously, this was used or resent from a previous purchaser.

 

[BinkieHuckerback]

Buying things from Amazon does have risks Something like 75% of their products are illegal Chinese copies. The problem is so big that their is not much Amazon can do, since rocking the boat would make Amazon lose hundreds of millions. Just return anything that doesn't seem right.

Interesting. Where did you find that out?

 

[Chester]

Hi @Chester!

I would like to ask, were the Topping Boxes sealed with Tape and was the product packaging wrapped or were the contents sealed with any type of plastic wrap to protect from moisture or tampering? This packaging seemed "Hasty" which I did not expect. Obviously, this was used or resent from a previous purchaser.

Ah good question, it was a while ago so can’t remember specifically. I remember being suspicious though (the name didn't sound professional to me, but they were the only seller at the time). I’m fairly skeptical of even known brands so I imagine they must have been given I didn’t return.

I might be making this up, but I recall checking the Topping website and seeing them listed as a supplier. That was some time ago though, maybe I just intended to.

 

[chillwig]

I purchased a Topping E-70 DAC Preamp as a gift from Amazon using the "HiFI College" Retailer. The package was received yesterday which required an Authentication PIN for the driver. The package was in an Amazon plastic shipper with a Topping Box that was unsealed and accessible once it was removed from the outer Amazon Shipper Bag. The product lacked any tape on the box or plastic protection for the unit. The Remote Control was missing, there were smudges on the DAC and it was obvious the product was not a "Fresh" new packaged product.

I think I almost ended up in your position. I was shopping the E70 on Amazon and HiFi College had the shortest delivery time, so I hit buy. Then I went back to the product page to recheck something and it came up sold out. At that point I wondered if they truly had any new units in stock at all, and I quickly cancelled the transaction within a couple minutes.

The more I think about it, with Topping putting out new products so frequently, US retailers have no incentive to stock and you just need to wait for the slow boat. If a shipping time seems too short to be true then you may be getting an open box/returned unit.

 

[RF Air]

Hello @amirm

When you receive Topping Products by drop shipment or directly from the Vendor, can you comment on the packaging and how the product appears? I have some concern on how to discern an originally packaged product from Topping, and thought you would have the benefit of having the most experience of new product packaging from Topping.

Thank you! @RF Air

 

[rcstevensonaz]

Going forward, I intend to primarily purchase via Apos since they seem to be Topping's recommended supplier for USA.

That said, I've purchased the following from Amazon in the past, both with no issues at all and no concerns about the product legitimacy:

• E30 — Sold by HIFI College — 18-Aug-2020
• D90 — Sold by Aoshida HiFi-US — 28-Nov-2020 (black friday sale.. one of the very few remaining AKM 4499 available)

One key question for OP: was their purchase "fulfilled by Amazon" or "shipped by seller"?

• If shipped by seller, I believe that situation reflects entirely on either (a) the seller resending used item or (b) anyone who messed with it along the route.
• If fulfilled by Amazon, then it was sent from inventory at Amazon; but my understanding is that Amazon will pool the inventory of an item into a common bin that they then pull from for each shipment... in which case, maybe the bad inventory wasn't from HIFI College but some other vendor's dropship to Amazon?

 

[JustJones]

I just received a Topping E70 Sunday from Amazon. It came in the plastic Amazon outer wrap, Topping outer box and Topping dark brown inner box which was sealed in plastic. All items were included.

 

[RF Air]

Going forward, I intend to primarily purchase via Apos since they seem to be Topping's recommended supplier for USA.

That said, I've purchased the following from Amazon in the past, both with no issues at all and no concerns about the product legitimacy:

• E30 — Sold by HIFI College — 18-Aug-2020
• D90 — Sold by Aoshida HiFi-US — 28-Nov-2020 (black friday sale.. one of the very few remaining AKM 4499 available)

One key question for OP: was their purchase "fulfilled by Amazon" or "shipped by seller"?

• If shipped by seller, I believe that situation reflects entirely on either (a) the seller resending used item or (b) anyone who messed with it along the route.
• If fulfilled by Amazon, then it was sent from inventory at Amazon; but my understanding is that Amazon will pool the inventory of an item into a common bin that they then pull from for each shipment... in which case, maybe the bad inventory wasn't from HIFI College but some other vendor's dropship to Amazon?

Hi @rcstevensonaz

Thank you for the response. I was informed of Apos as possible vendor when I broke the news to the intended gift recipient of my Amazon debacle. This was a fulfillment by HiFi College who responded to me through the Email via Amazon to offer an exchange or send me the missing Remote if I provided my Address and Phone Number. I obviously passed on this for justifiable reasons.

 

[RF Air]

I just received a Topping E70 Sunday from Amazon. It came in the plastic Amazon outer wrap, Topping outer box and Topping dark brown inner box which was sealed in plastic. All items were included.

Thank you @JustJones for the response. There was no plastic on the inner box and your packaging appears the same. Strange that they do not seal their Shipping Boxes?

 

[GD Fan]

I learned to always check who the actual seller is and generally avoid third party merchants for most things. Amazon has a very good return policy but I think the third party merchants can differ on return policy.

 

[RF Air]

I learned to always check who the actual seller is and generally avoid third party merchants for most things. Amazon has a very good return policy but I think the third party merchants can differ on return policy.

Hello @GD Fan

Thanks for responding, I was aware this was HiFi College and looked at the Ratings, but I still felt somewhat uncertain with the purchase. I don't know if 75% is a real number for China product problems on Amazon ( seem's a little bit exaggerated @Spkrdctr ) which in this case is most likely to be a returned/open box item sold as "New" from the Retailer.

I went to Apos as recommended ( @rcstevensonaz ) and when I input my Email Address, it popped up all of my information including a Credit Card of mine to make the purchase of the E70. I am not sure or can't quite recall when I purchased from Apos before, maybe an OPPO Player many years back? Anyway, it appears to be much better as far as authentic Retailer vs. the HiFi College Retailer at Amazon.

 

[threni]

Interesting. Where did you find that out?

He had to type some number in. 90% is obviously wrong. 30% isn't scary enough. But 75% is juuuust right.

I bought a Topping product from a seller on Amazon UK. Used it almost daily for a year or two. It doesn't seem illegal or a fake Chinese copy of a Chinese DAC. Guess I was one of the statistically unlikely lucky ones, eh?

 

[RF Air]

I think I almost ended up in your position. I was shopping the E70 on Amazon and HiFi College had the shortest delivery time, so I hit buy. Then I went back to the product page to recheck something and it came up sold out. At that point I wondered if they truly had any new units in stock at all, and I quickly cancelled the transaction within a couple minutes.

The more I think about it, with Topping putting out new products so frequently, US retailers have no incentive to stock and you just need to wait for the slow boat. If a shipping time seems too short to be true then you may be getting an open box/returned unit.

Thank you for commenting @chillwig and welcome to ASR!

There is always some concern with product vendors especially when you see "Eng-rish" punctuation, syntax or plain omission's of what would be normally expected from a Retailer with a standard for authentic or authoritative presence. The feeling of the "Nigerian Prince" scam has touched all of us in some fashion. And the "business as usual" mentality of Retail differs greatly with vendors based on locale, or the venue of a purchasing/selling environment.

With that said, it is difficult to discern where to go unless we have a consensus of experience that can be shared. I think Amazon has some representation of feedback, just like Ebay, but sometimes we do not trust the numbers. This is one of the reasons this Forum is so valuable. ASR cuts past some of the misinformation or quantifies the information that is provided.

I got the Cart in front of the Horse because I was buying a gift for Christmas and time factored into making a purchase. In spite of being only one item available, I still had skepticism going in at the time of purchase. It go's to show just how easy we can end up wondering why that African Prince won't return our calls and is nowhere to be found!

 

[threni]

Thank you for commenting @chillwig and welcome to ASR!

There is always some concern with product vendors especially when you see "Eng-rish" punctuation, syntax or plain omission's of what would be normally expected from a Retailer with a standard for authentic or authoritative presence. The feeling of the "Nigerian Prince" scam has touched all of us in some fashion. And the "business as usual" mentality of Retail differs greatly with vendors based on local or venue of selling environment.

With that said, it is difficult to discern where to go unless we have a consensus of experience that can be shared. I think Amazon has some representation of feedback, just like Ebay, but sometimes we do not trust the numbers. This is one of the reasons this Forum is so valuable. ASR cuts past some of the misinformation or quantifies the information that is provided.

I got the Cart in front of the Horse because I was buying a gift for Christmas and time factored into making a purchase. In spite of being only one item available, I still had skepticism going in at the time of purchase. It go's to show just how easy we can end up wondering why that African Prince won't return our calls and is nowhere to be found!

I buy from Amazon because, between the UK distance selling rules (return practically anything without giving a reason in the first 14 days of purchase) and Amazon's really good return policy (check you're buying from Amazon, or a seller which is covered by the policy, which is possibly all of them), and paying with a credit card any problem with fake/faulty/missing etc stuff is literally someone elses problem. I really wouldn't worry about it (unless the consumer laws are substantially worse where you are...but surely you still have Amazon's protection, right?).