Gainward 6800GT Dual-DVI for $385 (dropped from $400)

[Mr. Lennon]

Originally posted by: Glow

Originally posted by: Zeppelin2282
I was going to hop on this deal, but I just found out today that circuit city will be getting them in. I have no clue when though. When it does though, I'll probably be able to get for 300.

Why, because you work there? Take it to the bragging thread. Circuit city will not sell them for anywhere near 300. The 6600s aren't even out yet and are set for 250$.

Hold your horses man. I do work there, and most likely it will be going for $399

 

[Glow]

Originally posted by: Zeppelin2282

Originally posted by: Glow

Originally posted by: Zeppelin2282
I was going to hop on this deal, but I just found out today that circuit city will be getting them in. I have no clue when though. When it does though, I'll probably be able to get for 300.

Why, because you work there? Take it to the bragging thread. Circuit city will not sell them for anywhere near 300. The 6600s aren't even out yet and are set for 250$.

Hold your horses man. I do work there, and most likely it will be going for $399

Only a woman would round $399 to $300, hehe.

 

[brystmar]

Just ordered one...here's hoping it's a GS!

I sent them an email just now too requesting a GS card, so hopefully they will comply. To those of you who have called to confirm: how long after placing the order did they know if your card was a GS or not? I need dual DVI badly and would really like a 400/1100 guaranteed clockspeed out of the box.

 

[Sacrilicious]

Originally posted by: Glow

Only a woman would round $399 to $300, hehe.

I believe that he means that because he works at CompUSA, he gets the card for a huge discount (ie: for about $300) while it's being sold to the public for the full $399.

 

[Glow]

Originally posted by: brystmar
Just ordered one...here's hoping it's a GS!

I sent them an email just now too requesting a GS card, so hopefully they will comply. To those of you who have called to confirm: how long after placing the order did they know if your card was a GS or not? I need dual DVI badly and would really like a 400/1100 guaranteed clockspeed out of the box.

You can not call and confirm anything. You won't know till you open the box. They will reply to your email and tell you they can not guarantee it is a GS.

 

[KingZim]

I emailed and called monarch and I recieved the same message that was given by monarchjoe, a majority of the cards are "Golden Samples" but they cannot gurantee it is a GS. Still a great deal even if someone gets unlucky, you still get a card that overclocks well. (Hopes for GS hehe)

My email:

We cannot guarantee that the card will be a Golden Sample. ( monarch message)

-----Original Message-----
From: XXXXXX
Sent: Tuesday, August 31, 2004 3:41 PM
To: support
Subject: Want to make sure my order is a Gainward 6800gt GoldenSample


Want to make sure my order is a Gainward 6800gt "GoldenSample"
Please make sure it is. Thank You.



FedEx 2nd air shipping
Tracking number XXXXX
Ship date Aug 31, 2004
Estimated delivery date Sep 2, 2004 by 7:00 pm

Reference number
XXXXXXX

Delivery location
XXXXXXX

Service type
FedEx 2Day Pak
Date/Time

Status

Location

Comments

Aug 31, 2004 11:19 pm

Arrived at FedEx Ramp

ATLANTA GA

9:29 pm

Left FedEx Origin Location

DECATUR GA

7:55 pm

Pickup status

DECATUR GA

Pre-routed meter pkg picked up

Yes Im finally gonna get my 6800gt.

 

[KingZim]

HeroOfPellinor, do not wait for the Provantage deal, I called them up yesterday and they informed me that they have 96 orders on backorder just from June orders ( which I ordered on June 16) and they have only received 20 6800gts so far. The provantage customer service woman told me that I will probably have to wait 2-3 weeks and I would get the card!!!! When she said that I ran to my computer and ordered this card from monarch as fast as possible. Canceled my provantage order right after waiting 1 month and about 15 days uhg, glad I found this deal. And monarch has already shipped it man great service.

 

[SgtRock]

Well Monarch jumped on the greed bandwagon and seperated the GS from the standard GT. It is now $380 for the normal GT and $440 for the GS GT. Oh well I shall see what comes in the mail Friday....

 

[INGlewood78]

Originally posted by: SgtRock
Well Monarch jumped on the greed bandwagon and seperated the GS from the standard GT. It is now $380 for the normal GT and $440 for the GS GT. Oh well I shall see what comes in the mail Friday....

I dont think u can blame them. Its not like they were advertising a GS...just some people were lucky to get them. $380 for a 6800gt is still a good deal. Don't start pointing fingers if you don't get one..

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: INGlewood78

Originally posted by: SgtRock
Well Monarch jumped on the greed bandwagon and seperated the GS from the standard GT. It is now $380 for the normal GT and $440 for the GS GT. Oh well I shall see what comes in the mail Friday....

I dont think u can blame them. Its not like they were advertising a GS...just some people were lucky to get them. $380 for a 6800gt is still a good deal. Don't start pointing fingers if you don't get one..

Gee, well I wonder, now that they've publically cleared themselves of all obligation to ship GSs, which cards they'll be using to fulfill the current $380 orders. And nobody here will have any grounds to bitch because you knew you were taking a chance.

Notice in the original post

I spoke with that representative and this is basically what he told me:

Most of what they have in stock are GSs. Their entire last shipment were GSs. They price difference, to them, is almost nothing

So this is gouging at it's finest. Glad these guys aren't getting my money now.

 

[INGlewood78]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor

Originally posted by: INGlewood78

Originally posted by: SgtRock
Well Monarch jumped on the greed bandwagon and seperated the GS from the standard GT. It is now $380 for the normal GT and $440 for the GS GT. Oh well I shall see what comes in the mail Friday....

I dont think u can blame them. Its not like they were advertising a GS...just some people were lucky to get them. $380 for a 6800gt is still a good deal. Don't start pointing fingers if you don't get one..

Gee, well I wonder, now that they've publically cleared themselves of all obligation to ship GSs, which cards they'll be using to fulfill the current $380 orders. And nobody here will have any grounds to bitch because you knew you were taking a chance.

Notice in the original post

I spoke with that representative and this is basically what he told me:

Most of what they have in stock are GSs. Their entire last shipment were GSs. They price difference, to them, is almost nothing

So this is gouging at it's finest. Glad these guys aren't getting my money now.

This is called "operating a business in a capitalistic society" If demand exceeds supply, prices go up. Don't buy the GS and the prices will come down. Dont bitch because it was already stated BEFORE you ordered that there was no guarantee. This is just as bad as returning a perfectly good card just bc it doenst overclock well. AND $380 for a NON-GS is still a good deal!!!!

 

[Jaxidian]

I've updated the OP. All arguments here have their merits. Yes, they did say that they couldn't guarantee you a GS but that you would PROBABLY get a GS which was a nice thing to do (I'm assuming that any more orders as of NOW that does not apply to).

However, as I updated in the OP, if you were sharp you would have noticed that until either yesterday or today, the pictures for the product CLEARLY showed a Golden Sample box in 2 different pictures. I did not purchase one of these as I'm waiting until EQ2 comes out before I upgrade my video. But if I had, I would have definitely taken screenshots of those images as they were posted before at the time I made my order. I'm hoping some of you were that clever. Worst-case scenario, be happy with your money back.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: INGlewood78
This is called "operating a business in a capitalistic society" If demand exceeds supply, prices go up. Don't buy the GS and the prices will come down. Dont bitch because it was already stated BEFORE you ordered that there was no guarantee. This is just as bad as returning a perfectly good card just bc it doenst overclock well. AND $380 for a NON-GS is still a good deal!!!!

I love how one guy always starts evangelizing capitalism as soon as someone complains about business practices. FYI, I never said what they're doing is unAmerican or illegal and I didn't order so wtf am I gonna bitch about. :roll:

I can however express my freaking opinion about these kinds of practices...i.e. give out better cards which cost you no more and then, when your own damn customers educate your ass, decide to turn around and milk them for a few more dollars as a big "Thank you!" for their free assistance. Hell, jack up the price a week later, but have some freaking appreciation and go the extra mile to make a bunch of customers not just happy but ecstatic. In a "capitalistic society" people have options for where to shop...and one factor is how well they're treated in borderline cases like this....there's YOUR free capitalism lesson.

 

[Jaxidian]

Ok, yet another update...

I just talked to MonarchJoe for about 10 minutes and here's the scoop on things (past and present).

First of all, he said that their supply of GS are running out. Previously, most of their cards are GSs. Now, he said that less than 20% of the cards are GSs because of so many people ordering them. I asked him about actual numbers and he said that now he only has about 10 GSs left (total guesstimate). Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS and give the non-GS to those who don't mention anything about it. But at this point in time, he's simply just running out and you should definitely expect to get the non-GS and be really happy if you land the GS.

Secondly, the non-GS cards ARE dual-DVI. He said he opened one up just to make sure.

Ok, now that you're up to date on the present status of things, here is basically what happened before that made this deal happen in the first place:

Monarch made a large purchase of 6800GT cards from Gainward directly (non-GS). They ended up shipping some non-GS and some GS. Monarch called Gainward up and informed them of that and Gainward said, "Just keep them." So Monarch made the decision to sell them all as non-GS cards and pass on Gainward's mistake to their customers. So if you got a GS out of this deal, it was due to Gainward's mistake and Monarch's decision to not charge more for them.

Now to why they have the GS listed seperately. Well, basically, it was because people were demanding it. As for the price of it, that is just their initial stab at the price - IT WILL COME DOWN. The impression he gave me was that he would be shocked if it was still close to $444 in a week from now.

Ok, I think that's all I know...


Overall, I think Monarch has proven their quality to me as a vendor. I've never purchased from them before nor have I with this (waiting for EQ2 to upgrade) but they have been very open about what has been going on with this and the fact that they knowingly made this deal available to all of us really impresses me. Next time I go to buy hardware, Newegg isn't the only first place for me to look now.

p.s. no, I don't work there

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: Jaxidian
Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS

That's BS.

1. They came here and made a public declaration for a specific reason...i.e. to quell expectations.
2. They're going to send all the current non-GS orders GS cards and lose $50 a sale?
3. If they are still trying to fulfill the current orders with GS cards AND they have some left, what reason would anybody have for expecting a non-GS? They won't have any stock of GS cards once they're done, so why even list that item separatly.

Sorry, I frankly don't even care since I'm not in on this deal, but I call them like I see them.

 

[Jaxidian]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor

Originally posted by: Jaxidian
Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS

That's BS.

1. They came here and made a public declaration for a specific reason...i.e. to quell expectations.
2. They're going to send all the current non-GS orders GS cards and lose $50 a sale?
3. If they are still trying to fulfill the current orders with GS cards AND they have some left, what reason would anybody have for expecting a non-GS? They won't have any stock of GS cards once they're done, so why even list that item separatly.

Sorry, I frankly don't even care since I'm not in on this deal, but I call them like I see them.

That's BS that they are charging people for 6800GT cards at a good (maybe not hot) price and lucky people get Golden Samples? I think not. I think that is what many hot deals are - people getting lucky and getting things at a hot price! This has been YMMV and this thread has ALWAYS stated that. If you don't want to take the risk, don't order.

As for why would they continue to give away GS cards at $380? The cards that they mistakenly got at the cheaper price are going as the $380 cards. The $444 cards are a different shipment. They're not mixing them. When they run out of the first set of cards, then they run out. At NO time did they advertise this, it's always been a YMMV deal.

Lastly, please stfu and stop crapping my thread. You saying lucky people getting in on a hot deal is BS is DEFINITELY crapping and I sure as hell don't appreciate it, sir/ma'am. If you continue to crap in my thread, the offenses will be brought to the attention of a mod. If you wish to participate without crapping in it, by all means, do so. Thank you.

 

[GlobalHPSJoe]

Essentially it turned into a non-deal deal. Golden Sample pictures were placed on-line, when it should have been the non-GS version. This has been corrected. All of the item description, as well as the manufactuer's item code listed, pointed to the card being a Dual-DVI Gainward 6800 GT non-GS.

Being that we received both in at the same price, purchasing did not feel a need to do a separate item code for the GS at the time. They figured it would make someone happy to receive a free upgrade to a GS card, without announcing it beforehand.

Unfortuantely due to a website error, and word of mouth, people's expections were raised. In no way was it meant to be a bait-and-switch, as all indiciations were to have a Gainward 6800 GT card out there for a decent price.

 

[oakleaf00]

Originally posted by: Jaxidian
... Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS and give the non-GS to those who don't mention anything about it...

I do hope that this is true. The response to my followup email to Monarch wasn't too encouraging - it was the same one line response that KingZim got: "We cannot guarantee that your order will be a Golden Sample card." No 'Dear sir,' or 'Sincerely yours' or even 'Thanks for your patronage'. This short, impersonal reply was in response to what -imho- was a very polite request (not a demand) to "do whatever you can" to send me a GS. Even if they are just covering their a**(which I completely understand), it's very difficult to determine the tone when it's just a one-liner. *steps down from soap box*

Regardless, mine shipped out yesterday, so I guess I still have a chance to get a GS. It'll just be one of those "Let's see what's behind door number 3!" moments. Either way, I'll be happy and I won't hesitate ordering from them again just because I don't get a GS.

Cheers!

 

[GlobalHPSJoe]

Originally posted by: oakleaf00

Originally posted by: Jaxidian
... Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS and give the non-GS to those who don't mention anything about it...

I do hope that this is true. The response to my followup email to Monarch wasn't too encouraging - it was the same one line response that KingZim got: "We cannot guarantee that your order will be a Golden Sample card." No 'Dear sir,' or 'Sincerely yours' or even 'Thanks for your patronage'. This short, impersonal reply was in response to what -imho- was a very polite request (not a demand) to "do whatever you can" to send me a GS. Even if they are just covering their a**(which I completely understand), it's very difficult to determine the tone when it's just a one-liner. *steps down from soap box*

Regardless, mine shipped out yesterday, so I guess I still have a chance to get a GS. It'll just be one of those "Let's see what's behind door number 3!" moments. Either way, I'll be happy and I won't hesitate ordering from them again just because I don't get a GS.

Cheers!

I apologize in advance for the brief response, I was trying to update everyone via the forums, here and hardforum, about the situation as well as responding back to the 20 some odd requests for a GS card. I try to be more articulate than that in most situations!

 

[oakleaf00]

Originally posted by: MonarchJoe

I apologize in advance for the brief response, I was trying to update everyone via the forums, here and hardforum, about the situation as well as responding back to the 20 some odd requests for a GS card. I try to be more articulate than that in most situations!

No worries at all. I'm probably a little on the more sensitive side when it comes to those things anyways!

And thanks for being so receptive as well as trying to pass the savings onto us!

Cheers!

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: Jaxidian

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor

Originally posted by: Jaxidian
Still, he said that he is still TRYING to hook up the people who send in emails asking for the GS

That's BS.

1. They came here and made a public declaration for a specific reason...i.e. to quell expectations.
2. They're going to send all the current non-GS orders GS cards and lose $50 a sale?
3. If they are still trying to fulfill the current orders with GS cards AND they have some left, what reason would anybody have for expecting a non-GS? They won't have any stock of GS cards once they're done, so why even list that item separatly.

Sorry, I frankly don't even care since I'm not in on this deal, but I call them like I see them.

That's BS that they are charging people for 6800GT cards at a good (maybe not hot) price and lucky people get Golden Samples? [/i]

No, the explanation was.

 

[imported_sjaxkingpin]

Hmmm,

Wonder if I should cancel this. It still hasn't shipped according to their online status, and I ordered yesterday. I sent an e-mail and they said they couldn't promise it was a golden sample, but now with them saying they're out of GS's and charging more for them, I guess my shipment will surely be a regular GT at MSRP. I don't know that it's such a "hot deal" anymore

 

[Mr. Lennon]

Originally posted by: Sacrilicious

Originally posted by: Glow

Only a woman would round $399 to $300, hehe.

I believe that he means that because he works at CompUSA, he gets the card for a huge discount (ie: for about $300) while it's being sold to the public for the full $399.

Exactly, I work at circuit city though.

 

[wpenhall]

Originally posted by: oakleaf00

Originally posted by: MonarchJoe

I apologize in advance for the brief response, I was trying to update everyone via the forums, here and hardforum, about the situation as well as responding back to the 20 some odd requests for a GS card. I try to be more articulate than that in most situations!

No worries at all. I'm probably a little on the more sensitive side when it comes to those things anyways!

And thanks for being so receptive as well as trying to pass the savings onto us!

Cheers!

Second that - Monarch tried to do a nice thing here and we have no right to jump on them about it. I ordered with the full understanding that I may not get a GS. That's my risk - not theirs. I sent an e-mail and was slightly taken aback at the seemingly terse reply (almost made me think sending the e-mail worked against me), but it's great of Joe to come on the forum and explain.

HOWEVER, I called Monarch this morning (~10:30) and Rick told me that he didn't think sending e-mails would have an effect one way or another. Hopefully Joe's story is the actual situation... Joe - are you, personally, involved in actually shipping the cards? I get mine tomorrow, and will post results.

One question, though. If we need warrenty service, will we need to submit a receipt? Because I suspect that even if I get a GS, my receipt will only show a vanilla GT. How do we prove we are in proper possesion of a GS?


Edited to include additional verbosity.

 

[imported_sjaxkingpin]

Well, I assume I'm Pooched on the GS, but.. I will say that the monarch folks were working late tonight getting orders out. I ordered late on 31st, after COB, and they got it out today, with my shipping, I will have "something" new for the long weekend. Nice touch considering they say 1-2 days to ship orders