My church orders from Full Compass all the time and I've done some business with them too - they're a quality company.

Regards,
Paul

Hey Paul, thanks from Paul and also thanks Mike from Paul and also Paul Whewwww that was weird :-) I will purooose the catalog and see what I can find for the new year.

Paul B

.... the prices seem on par and perhaps a little cheaper than B&H ....

I'm not so sure about that .. maybe on a "special" or "sale" but, taking a quick look, I think many items are priced higher than B&H.

For instance .. B&H wants $2,000 for the Canon GL-2 .. Full Compass wants $800 more!!

I order from Full Compass all the time. They are an excellent company to deal with and send paper catalogs to your door (there is something about flipping through a paper catalog that just can't be beat). ;-)

~jr

I get two from B&H every year. I rarely look at them. The problem is that by the time they print it, none of the prices are accurate any more so they just say call. And many of the models have changed as well, so it's not all that helpful.

This is one place where I really prefer the immediacy of the net.

I have also purchased from Full Compass, but check the price of the same item at B&H, they are back and forth who is cheaper.

Hi Paul, I live about 8 miles from Full Compass and buy from them all the time. They have been around for some 30 years or so.

Terry

I bought my latest camera from Full Compass. At the time they offered the best price and fell all over themselves keeping me informed via email and phone calls of the status of my order, because I was in a hurry to receive it for a job.

I ordered my cam from Shawn Tallard at Full Compass, and would definitely order from him again.

Jerry

Hey Tshaw, that is cool do they have a retail shop in house. Also have you ever been to the SCS headquarters in Madison. I hope to get my Editor cert sometime in 2010.

PS and thanks for all the responses, now I have 2 places to shop at.


Paul B

Hi Paul, Full Compass has a retail shop of sorts, it's not a typical shop. It's more like many show rooms and a reception area. They just moved from Middletion to a much bigger place in Madison.
As far as SCS I have not been to their headquarters, and they are just down the shore line from me.

Terry

You can see the SCS headquarters via the Street View in Google Maps:

SCS Building in Madison

They have a lake right across the street, muct be a nice place to have lunch in the spring and fall.

Kind of a coincidence -- I was in need of some mag-tape leader and splicing tape and found some at Full Compass just a couple of weeks ago. Hadn't heard of it before.

Reasonable prices on what I needed, but the shipping cost was pretty hefty -- $8.99 for an 82-ft spool -- not even on a reel -- of 1/4" splicing tape. The leader was out-of-stock, but at least I won't have to pay an additional shipping fee when it comes in.

Yup. Bought my last camera from them. Great service and a friendly staff.

Been buying from them for years. Since I live and work in NYC, I have an 8.5% price penalty on anything ordered from B&H (NYC & NYS sales taxes). Even if I need things in a hurry, overnight shipping from Full Compass is still cheaper. If I am not in a rush, then their prices are the best.

I've bought over 50k worth of audio and video gear from Full Compass over the last 15 years- cameras, microphones, mixers, outboard, you name it. Dealt exclusively with rep Martin Vire (x1179). I can categorically state that this guy will go to the wall every single time for his customers, and more importantly, he takes the time to learn your needs as a media producer and does not try to sell you something you don't need. He learns about you, finds your particular niche and its price point and works with that. He remembers the inventory of stuff you already have. For example, I'll say, "Martin, anything on special right now?" and he'll reply, "Well, we have some bad-ass Audio Technica tube mics on sale right now, but you've already got a lot of good mics already, so you don't need 'em." No hard sell. Many many times he was able to expedite an order during a critical deadline. One time, and he probably wouldn't want me to reveal this, I was ordering an XH-A1 kit in the evening on Dec 23rd, 2006 - a big package, camera, field recorder, mics, wireless microphone system, cables, cases, pretty much turn-key field setup. He says, "You'll probably want this before Christmas, right?" and I gulped and said, Well, ugh, sure, Martin, I guess, but I wouldn’t really want to pay the express shipping on that... And Martin says, "No problem- you are a loyal customer. Merry Christmas." Just like that. Big box arrived the next day. And on top of that, the wireless mics I ordered? He swapped out a Sennheiser 112 series for a 512 series for me, same price. They had been sitting in the warehouse from the previous year. I said, dude this is more than I ordered. Again, "Merry Christmas." A straight arrow. Very quality person, which I think reflects well on any company. And to stay with one retailer that long? Speaks volumes. I know I sound like a shill for Full Compass, but all I know is how well they have treated me, and I will proudly do business with them in the future.

They're located in my hometown, and I use them all the time. Prices are competitive, but their service and customer relations are top-knotch. If you're a repeat customer, they give you your own sales associate. They are also a full-service repair center for most of the major brands.

I can't recommend them highly enough.