Drop + Sennheiser HD 8XX Headphones

Feb 18, 2021

The headband says made in Germany - Can EU buyers get them sent directly from Sennheiser? It would save people like myself ~$300 + a couple of dollars in shipping.

Answer

Luna55

318

Feb 19, 2021

I wonder why all of these shipping from EU questions get no answers. For me it makes the difference between ordering these or not.

178

Disadadi

Feb 20, 2021

Luna55Then simply don't. Drop is obviously tailored for customers located in North America, nothing you can do about it.

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Luna55

318

Feb 22, 2021

DisadadiWell, as long as I don't get an answer I won't buy. I can keep to my 800S.

Mar 10, 2021

Luna55Sorry Luna... it feels like I’ve been answering this same question repeatedly. Drop has an exclusive collaboration contract, and buys ALL the HD 8XX made. Then, the entire production run will be sent in one shipment to Drop (which is located in the US, since their EU branch didn’t receive enough sales to stay in business), who then distributes the individual orders. So, all Drop exclusive models (HD 8XX, HD 6XX, HD 58X Jubilee) can only be purchased and shipped from Drop, a company founded and operating in the US. US residents will pay sales tax in addition to the purchase price in most states, and sometimes shipping too. Europe’s VAT isn’t included in the price shown here. Shipping the HD 8XX to the EU will probably still be less expensive than ordering an HD 800S at the typical price, plus you get the HD 8XX’s sound tuning.

(Edited)

Luna55

318

Apr 14, 2021

YatesDupoint1) One person? My comment was endorsed 173 times. 2) You can’t destroy and I haven't destroyed anything. 3) Your manners indicate that you’re most certainly not fit to teach me any lesson. 4) Talk about pretentiousness. Do you think the 2k$ of a 0 like you matters? Maybe in your imaginary world that revolves around you.

(Edited)

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starboard

May 15, 2021

EvshrugObviously a deal for us europeans would be if the prices would be cheaper since some of the headphones are actually come from the EU. Instead they were more expensive from your EU center than if we'd order from US. No wonder you had to close it. At the moment I cannot order the HD8xx as you dont ship to EU, so how far this can go? do I sense some problem on your side , drop?

Jun 17, 2021

starboardOh, just to clarify, I’m not with Drop. I had just asked the same question and got an answer, so I tried sharing. I have some insider contact with Sennheiser. At any rate I’m jealous that your Euro is stronger than the US dollar right now, but even so I wish you the best of health and happiness.

starboard

Jun 17, 2021

EvshrugI got this wrong then.. :D a strong currency is not always good of course, but our problem at the moment is that we don't have a company like Drop in the EU, and the regular prices are generally higher then in the US regardless they were produced in the US, Asia or in the EU. That's what got me upset, I am sorry for that, especially it was misdirected. Anyway thanks for the wishes, wish you the same!

Butterking

Jul 14, 2021

Luna55If you have the 800s’ why would you want the toned down version?

spartaman64

Jul 22, 2021

Luna55why are you even looking into buying this if you have a 800s and yes in the past all drop headphones ship from the US no matter where they are manufactured

(Edited)

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HarryVN

Jul 26, 2021

EvshrugI'm in Germany. I bought HD6xx, beside shipping cost from US to EU, I had to pay another import tax by 70 Euro to get it shipped to my house.

JohnAcon

429

Jul 26, 2021

HarryVNDon't really know where u wanna go with that comment but 70€ tax is very unlikely for only the hd6xx as it ist 19% of the (6xx + shipping) + maybe a fee for dhl/fedex/etc because they paid the taxes for you.

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larry909

Feb 7, 2022

HarryVNHere in Canada, one can get hit with a brokerage fee that is charged to clear through customs as well as usual GST/sales tax. Brokerage fee can be expensive.

mtimpson

Mar 4, 2022

starboardBTW--there is services like Stackry in the US that will ship you something to anywhere in the world. You just have it sent to them in New Hampshire. I do it all the time to Asia, and it is typically under $40 shipping.

Alex64

Mar 9, 2021

Hi, just got the answer from support: This is Susie with Drop Community Support. Thank you for contacting us. I would be happy to help. The HD 8XX are sent from our US warehouse. so for europe Austria in my case it's ~1400$ with Tax and import fee :(

(Edited)

Mar 9, 2021

Alex64F. That's what I expected to be honest, but it's still a bummer they couldn't arrange something for us EU buyers.

TextureMan

294

Feb 19, 2021

This is clearly just dumb idea, They know Sennheiser, They already know they are capable deliver top of the notch headphones, I understand they want check rest of the small manufacturers quality, but this is just seriously... Imagine people living in Germany who has to pay taxes for German product...

Feb 19, 2021

TextureManI live in Denmark which is straight-up attached to Germany and both are EU countries. There is a lot to be saved if I don't have to have them shipped to the U.S. and then literally straight back.

TextureMan

294

Feb 19, 2021

NonnegaardI understand, we pay taxes for European products... Even when we are Eu citizens...

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Disadadi

Feb 20, 2021

TextureManOf course they have to pay taxes. It's not like VAT is only for imported products.

brunitou

Apr 13, 2021

TextureManThis is how the Empire works.

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Akbert

Aug 3, 2021

TextureManThey simply want us in EU to purchase their HD600/650 at 350€ than this HD58X at 170$. Simple as it is.

WarmTimbre

Feb 19, 2021

I believe that Drop gets taxes deducted cause they're not in the EU. The taxes would be reapplied if they were to be sold in the EU, so getting it directly would only save us about $5 on shipping. (I'm fairly certain but not 100%)

(Edited)

silvdwelle

Feb 19, 2021

WarmTimbrethe main problem isn't the shipping for me but the VAT, that's about 300$

Feb 19, 2021

WarmTimbreExactlt, it's VAT and import which you save on.

WarmTimbre

Feb 19, 2021

silvdwelleI know but the vat will apply as soon as an EU buyer buys it so we will pay the $300 anyway, Drop should be able to get the vat deducted as they are overseas. (I have had friends buy EU products from the overseas)

Drfear

Mar 8, 2021

NonnegaardAny product listed for sale in the EU already has a 20% tax baked in right? All the items you see on NA sites are pre tax. I don’t think you are paying any more money other than shipping. If there was an EU specific version for this listing it would just be 20% higher. Correct me if I am wrong.

Mar 8, 2021

DrfearYeah, that's complety right. That's why I was thrilled to go to the US... one year ago... :)))) It would just make it an insane deal if they could get them to EU buyers at that price.

(Edited)

omniweltall

Jul 21, 2021

silvdwelleThat's the problem with a lot of non-US countries. A lot of us are in the same boat as you. It's that much more difficult and expensive for the rest of us. People in the states have it easy :)

inmytaxi

175

Oct 31, 2021

omniweltallI'll pay the taxes for free health care which is 1k a month for a 8k annual deductable

Partypooper81

Feb 22, 2021

Good to know is that products offered for sale in the USA generally do not include VAT since the VAT in the USA is different for every state. VAT still needs to be added also for USA customers, depending on the state they live in. At least that is the official way. Not all shops charge VAT when shipping to different states but my understanding is that it is not allowed, but I'm not entirely sure about that. A few years ago Texans didn't pay the VAT on Drop products but I think in the mean time this has changed.. This means the 8XX is 1100 without VAT... For Europe this means you will have to add the VAT according to your countries VAT policies. Some countries also charge a custom fee and import tax. I advice you check your local policies on importing products from outside of Europe to find out...

ossenavlys

Feb 23, 2021

Partypooper81This is correct. Different states, down to counties within each state, will have different tax rates. Where I live in Los Angeles, sales tax rate is roughly 9.5-10% so I paid about $110 in sales tax for my pre-order. Shipping was free though.

Mar 3, 2021

Partypooper81Hi, we have sales tax in the USA, but we don’t call it VAT.

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n00bek

Apr 12, 2021

Partypooper81It is not just VAT that we need to add (but also VAT is waaayyy higher in Europe...), lemme show you. 1100$ base price, add 22%VAT and tou get = 1342$ and then you need to add extra 15% to that since the USA is considered "third" country so the import tax is added + customs fee (30$) and you get to 1543$+30$ = 1573$..... See this?

Partypooper81

Apr 13, 2021

n00bekYes, I see it ;-P Thanks for confirming what I wrote earlier ;-)

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Neuromaencer

May 11, 2021

n00bekWhile you are right, in my country HD800S standard retail price is 43,990 CZK (2,090 USD / 1,718 EUR), so even with import tax, customs fee and VAT it's 500 USD cheaper than buying new HD800S directly in my country. I'm from the Czech Republic. Funny, Germany is Czechia's "neighbour", yet the cheapest way to get HD800S is having it shipped from the US. :D I am not a lawyer, but I just did a quick check on import tax (using EU's TARIC system) and headphones should come with 0% import tax from the US. I hope I read that right. Still, VAT needs to be paid and the shipping company might charge you for going through the import process with you.

inmytaxi

175

Oct 31, 2021

NeuromaencerWho the hell can afford these things in the czech republic? I mean, do average people buy these like in the US? I mean not lots and lots of average people, but some? I don't understand who buys them here.

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PandaSPUR

356

Feb 21, 2021

Does Sennheiser usually sell direct to customers in the EU? If not, then no, they wont bother doing that just for this because they're not set up for it.

Mar 3, 2021

PandaSPURSennheiser does do direct sales using a service company called Digital River (they also can sell direct to US that way), but not for this collaboration with Drop. The HD 8XX isn’t a standard, stock for all dealers, open distribution product. Drop negotiated it to be an exclusive product, and they’re buying all the inventory. Then, Drop sells that inventory to customers. That’s why they are “dropshipped” to Drop first, rather than straight from Sennheiser to the end customer.

(Edited)

ferretallica

922

Apr 14, 2021

EvshrugDigtial River? Damn, I didn't think I would hear a name that made the round trip to the US through (mass)drop to be any kind of added value but I would happily order something via USA, back to Germany, North Korea, around the Antarctic, up through Africa by foot, through every war-torn part of the Middle East and then marched to its destination at last on the back of an army of fire ants than deal with the imbeciles at Digital River given my experiences with them and Lenovo. That said, if (mass)drop are too spineless to openly answer this kind of question openly in the product Q&A instead of needing to be individually pursued, that's enough to tip me over the line of giving this a miss anyway.

Apr 14, 2021

ferretallicaYeah, distribution is indeed a whole business in itself, and Sennheiser is more concentrated on designing and manufacturing the products. That's why they contracted Digital River to take care of that for them, though to some extent Drop is somewhere between a distributor and a retailer. Distribution and sales aren't easy, but even so it's a shame you had a bad experience with Lenovo and Digital River in the past. Hopefully you have better experiences in the future as competitive pressures help push companies to create the ideal smooth transaction experience that everyone involved wants to see.

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tictaktoe333

Jun 16, 2021

EvshrugWhilst I might not like what you have to say, I really appreciate that I finally have a straight answer about shipping to Europe. Thanks man!

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Jun 17, 2021

tictaktoe333No problem, and I do truly hope things get smoother :)

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Aug 21, 2021

tictaktoe333Just to add a bit of insider info.. apparently, Drop was looking at what it could take to open a Drop EU again… right before the Covid pandemic. Still! It’s possible that they may revisit the idea again.

tictaktoe333

Aug 21, 2021

EvshrugThat's nice to know, I won't hold my breath but I hope it is worth it. I hope they add a Massdrop-EU option for products based in the EU. If the logistics can handle it hopefully it will be more efficient.

Aug 22, 2021

tictaktoe333They have to open a whole distribution center somewhere in the EU to make it worth it… pretty big investment, but never say never!

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vanpopperen

Oct 12, 2022

the picture of the 8XX is quit old. sennheiser was sold. as far as i know, all headphones are coming now from ireland the cheaper ones from Corona Country = PRC.

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HarlowPWhitcomb

Apr 9, 2021

Maybe a friend in the US (preferably in a low or no-tax state) can buy them for you and ship them over? Or if you work for a large company they probably have offices in the US you could ship to and they could forward...

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