My take:
1. Magnepan should have communicated with you promptly once they received the damaged speakers and should not have waited five weeks to give you an estimate. I assume you now have the estimate and the insurance claim is in process, right?
2. Shipping crates- cost more money than cardboard and styrofoam to fabricate, and add to shipping weight. If they have experienced alot of damage by cheaping out on packing, it would be self-defeating, and more costly to them in the long run. But, is it clear that your seller used the original shipping cartons and packed them properly?
3. Turnaround time- you should have probably been told what to expect when you first contacted Magnepan. I don't fault small companies for this- it sort of comes with the territory. When my Lamm L2 started acting up, I called Vlad and was told they were leaving for the Munich show and wouldn't be back for a month. He's a one man band. Had to wait until he returned and then drove the units to his house/factory because I'm in NY. He repaired it quickly after that, and the initial wait was frustrating, but I adjusted my expectations, and bought something to use temporarily in the interim (which I thereafter resold once the Lamm was repaired).
4. This is one of the downsides of buying stuff used or from private sellers. I'm not advocating buying new from a dealer (I have taken advantage of used equipment here and through dealers), but the premium you pay a dealer should cover delivery and set-up, loaners when there are issues and generally make your life easier. They may also have more clout than you, as an end-user. The dealer I rely on locally makes house calls, delivers stuff, provides loaners, takes trade-ins and is responsive to emails and phone calls when i have questions or needs. That's why I go to him. I don't think about the premium there because at the end of the day, it's worth it.
1. Magnepan should have communicated with you promptly once they received the damaged speakers and should not have waited five weeks to give you an estimate. I assume you now have the estimate and the insurance claim is in process, right?
2. Shipping crates- cost more money than cardboard and styrofoam to fabricate, and add to shipping weight. If they have experienced alot of damage by cheaping out on packing, it would be self-defeating, and more costly to them in the long run. But, is it clear that your seller used the original shipping cartons and packed them properly?
3. Turnaround time- you should have probably been told what to expect when you first contacted Magnepan. I don't fault small companies for this- it sort of comes with the territory. When my Lamm L2 started acting up, I called Vlad and was told they were leaving for the Munich show and wouldn't be back for a month. He's a one man band. Had to wait until he returned and then drove the units to his house/factory because I'm in NY. He repaired it quickly after that, and the initial wait was frustrating, but I adjusted my expectations, and bought something to use temporarily in the interim (which I thereafter resold once the Lamm was repaired).
4. This is one of the downsides of buying stuff used or from private sellers. I'm not advocating buying new from a dealer (I have taken advantage of used equipment here and through dealers), but the premium you pay a dealer should cover delivery and set-up, loaners when there are issues and generally make your life easier. They may also have more clout than you, as an end-user. The dealer I rely on locally makes house calls, delivers stuff, provides loaners, takes trade-ins and is responsive to emails and phone calls when i have questions or needs. That's why I go to him. I don't think about the premium there because at the end of the day, it's worth it.