How Do I Identify A Fake Beatles Mono Box?

If anyone's interested, I have put up a blog post with pictures comparing a real Hard Day's Night mono with a counterfeit:

http://superdavekp.blogspot.com/2010/02/beatles-mono-cds-fake-chinese-crap-vs.html

 

Is the SID code also duplicated, that is, does the SID code on the fake indicate that the disc is manufactured in Japan or is it China as mentioned earlier?

 

Can you tell me what that is and where to look for it?

 

Has anyone compared the fakes to the real ones as far as the digital content is concerned? I assume they're just digital copies. If that's the case, one perspective is that the fakes are quite the bargain.

 

So the SID code is IFPI plus a number/letter code? The supposedly real Hard Day's Night has two, both seen in my pictures:

IFPI L154 - on the silver inner-ring - which, if I understand correctly from KennyG's database, is China;
IFPI 28A4 on the inner-most ring, the plastic hub - I guess this is EMI Japan.

On the fake disc there are two codes:
IFPI L164
ifpi DB72.

So why the two codes on the 'real' disc?

 

Does any of you want to buy a real mono box set, sealed, for $235 plus shipping at cost? I bought it at borders in Sept. or Oct., and it has a "received on" sticker dated 9/10/9. I would just be breaking even at this cost, but you would be getting the real thing.

 

According to KennyG's databasefiles it is the innermost code that defines the pressing plant. The other IFPI code is a mastering code, whatever that means.

 

I see, thanks - so the counterfeiters must have copied the IFPI L154 and IFPI DB72 is the pressing plant.

 

Exactly, my real mono box has IFPI 40xx (or was it IFPI 44xx?) which indicates that it has been pressed in another japanese pressing plant compared to yours.

 

if it's worth someones while to sell these fakes at $70, then how much did it cost to make them? $25? yes they are lesser quality, but also likely a smaller production run, so double the manufacturing cost to $50 for a full quality product and it sells for what $225 on average?

shows ya just how much of a markup there is on the real Mono Box.

 

I bought another one through Amazon fullfillment for $140. A little more expensive than the $90 phony, but likely a legit copy this time. Will let you know when it arrives. A simple sniff of the packaging will be all the investigation required.

 

Well look on the bright side. If it does turn out fake, then maybe there's a possibility the discs will be digitally identical to the REAL thing?? How sad would it be if you got the box and they were just dupes of the 87 releases? DOH!!!

 

The phony discs I got wouldn't even play in my home stereo. They did play in the car (barely). They were the mono masters, say true.

 

What's Amazon Fulfillment? If it's that third party sellers whose orders are shipped by Amazon, then it's likely another fake. Unless Amazon themselves are selling it for $140, chances are very high it's bogus. And I haven't noticed Amazon selling the set for $140...

Note: JAPANESE fakes are now appearing, and I've heard that other Chinese fakes that take care of some of the early errors are showing up.

 

What would lead you to believe it's fake by the photo?

 

I wonder if the people bidding on the sets that sellers have a lot of in stock are getting second chance offers for an even lower price?

 

Absolutely.

Remember: You can get these fake Beatles boxes shipped to you via a middle man for about $30 or less each. That includes: middle man profit and shipping from China.

There is a HUGE profit margin built in here, and even if you consider returns a part of business you are likely to make out like a bandit since, more or less, you win if you even get 50% returns.

The chances of making money increase, I guess, because even the people who get scammed and figure it out are not inclined to mention that fact if the seller makes up some story and promptly refunds their money (see other threads here on SH.tv and elsewhere).

 

Absolutely.

Remember: You can get these fake Beatles boxes shipped to you via a middle man for about $30 or less each. That includes: middle man profit and shipping from China.

There is a HUGE profit margin built in here, and even if you consider returns a part of business you are likely to make out like a bandit since, more or less, you win if you even get 50% returns (and that assumes you trash the 50% returns--which is unlikely...most of these scammers will just sell them off separately, reseal them, or sell them as open boxes to the next fool).

The chances of making money increase, I guess, because even the people who get scammed and figure it out are not inclined to mention that fact if the seller makes up some story and promptly refunds their money (see other threads here on SH.tv and elsewhere).

 

I can see the shoddy printing from here.

 

It's in the "new and used" section. Sold from Amazon. Free shipping. It will be alright.

 

Again: Free shipping doesn't mean it ships from Amazon. Here's an example of a set of listings.

The first listing is SOLD and fulfilled by Amazon. That one is safe.

The second listing is sold and fulfilled by a third party. No free shipping.

The third listing is sold by a third party and only shipping is handled by Amazon (third party stores their stuff in Amazon's warehouse and Amazon ships it out upon sale; Amazon makes no effort to determine the quality/authenticity of the goods). The third listing qualifies for free shipping, but is no safer than any other third party seller.

 

Okay, but Amazon will get my back if it's fake, so I got nothin' to lose! I'll let you know what I get.

 

Having been through the process multiple times, I can tell you how it will go.

A) You will get a fake.

That's about 99% assured.

B) You will try to use the return process through Amazon. It will tell you you have to contact Amazon, not the seller.

C) You will contact Amazon. You'll have to explain the whole thing. They will then authorize a return label. You will have to return it through UPS no matter how it was shipped.

D) Some time after it's received back at Amazon, you will, with luck, get your refund. Maybe you won't, or maybe you'll get a refund reduced by a certain percentage, or maybe they'll deduct shipping. All are possible, and they mean you'll have to call up again and complain. And wait.

Your money will be tied up for a minimum of two weeks, best case.

 

That was not my experience with a fake on amazon.

Amazon takes this seriously and will refund promptly and suspend the seller.

 

You're saying they took your word for it and refunded your money and suspended the seller before the item was returned for examination? That DEFINITELY is not my experience with them, and if they do that they're idiots.

Once you receive the counterfeit, you have to repackage it and drop it off at UPS, where it will get shipped back via ground. That will take several days. Then it has to go through receiving. If it's flagged, someone there has to evaluate the package.

Once it has been evaluated, they will either refund your money in full or not--this portion of the process is fraught with potential for error. It has nothing to do with whether you will ultimately get the refund, but they FREQUENTLY make mistakes initially with respect to how much of a refund they give and whether they refund shipping. This can be fixed with another call, but that's more time, more headaches.

And then, once they issue the refund, it can take several days to appear on your credit card.

So, again, even if the process runs smoothly, it goes like this:

card is charged
item is shipped
time in transit to you
delay in repackaging and reshipping
time in transit back to Amazon
time in receiving for evaluation
refund issue
delay between official issue and appearance on credit card

It's very hard for that process to be less than two weeks, and it can be substantially more. Meanwhile, you get to waste time on the phone with Amazon, driving to UPS, etc.

No fun at all.