which is the better choice?

PoweredByDodge

ya i'm not sure about it either, but i'm just thinking out loud i gues...

i mean... are these 'unauthorized' products stolen? I'm sure some are here and there, but I'd guess 90% of them are legit 'new in box' stuff.

so that begs the question, if they're unauthorized sellers, where did they get the stuff from?

is the product being fake-shipped? meaning, does authorized warehouse A order 5 trucks of polk speakers and they say "hey, we only got 4 trucks, where's the other one?!?" -- so then the 5th truck is written off on insurance when it actually did show up, and the warehouse A is selling it on the side to Joe Blow's car audio online store.

If that's the case, then I'd consider it stolen product.

But I would think that if it was happening enough to supply all these online unauthorized guys with product, then the manufacturers would have caught on by now... that's a TON of product to "misplace", "lose", or "be damaged in transit"... the insurance companies wouldn't stand for it.

I really always have wondered where these guys get their stuff...

the old stock and refurbs i can totally understand... MTX and Audiobahn willingly sell their refurbished stuff and old stock off to anybody who'll pay for it... and they give better pricing for bulk purchases... of course these products would only carry a 90 day warranty even if bought straight from the manufacturer, so the buyer isn't losing anything by having a 30 or 90 day warranty from Joe Blow's car audio.com ...

I dunno -- i'd really like to know where they get their gear for new / current product that is supposedly "new in box". because i've seen new in box ****... i have... i just don't know where they get it from...