Now that RadioShack's gone in most places, where do y'all go to get your fix?
Twin cities reporting in
>>968646
>amazon
>>968646
>parts express
really fuckin chaps my tits that i have to order and ship simple inexpensive components now. i really hope some retailer steps-up and fills the radio shack void. this shit's pants-on-head retarded.
>>968646
dfw - tanner electronics
Main Electronics. I love how most of the staff has been there for 40 years and they'd rather lose a sale than pander to audiophiles or arduino hipsters buying parts they don't need. I saw them berate a guy and tell him to get the fuck out of the store for thinking his stereo would sound better if his AC wall plug was made out of gold.
>>968671
the vast majority of audiophiles aren't bad people, and they're not full of shit either. they've been duped and given misinformation. i think it's better to teach them the difference so they aren't being taken for a ride... as opposed to blaming them. it's the same reason why you don't get mad at old people who send their social security checks to millionaire televangelists, you get mad at the fucking televangelist. scam artists need to be blamed, not their victims.
>>968671
From the looks of it i bet the owner gets pissed easily
>>968646
our fix of what?
Do you think any of us actually shopped at radioshack except for when we were to pissed off to wait for something to ship?
I'm glad radioshack is gone, they weren't the company they use to be, bunch of greedy fucks.
>>968671
fucking lost.
My first impression was wow, what a miserable place to shop, ran by asshole jews.
But after reading your post I kinda like them. Yea, you shouldn't buy shit you don't need. Altho I think in some situations they should allow for an exchange. For example I have memory problems and on the off chance I hit the wrong key on my phone when making a note of what to get, and I then get the wrong part like some 20k resistors instead of 10k, they shouldn't be assholes about it.
>>968646
Mouser or Digi-Key for components, Amazon for other gubbins.
>>968673
I find him jolly and helpful, but he's got no patience for people who want to buy a part that won't do what they think it will do.
There's another electronics shop in my city where the staff is super friendly to everyone, but they have no idea what they're talking about. Every time I have to go in there I hear them giving customers horrible electronics advice.
Customer holds up a 2A 5v DC motor: Can I connect this to my Arduino's IO pins?
Clerk: The IO pins are 5v and that motor is 5v so yes.
Customer: How do I control the direction?
Clerk: You need a bridge rectifier for that. Points at a KBPC802.
>>968646
If you're in Columbia SC, Graybar is the place to go.
>>968693
>Clerk: You need a bridge rectifier for that. Points at a KBPC802.
I actually looked right over this the first time I read it and focused on the almost-but-not-quite correct bit about the motor.
Then I caught it. What the fuck? If you're giving out advice like THAT you have to realize you have no clue what you're on about. So why the fuck do you keep giving it instead of deferring to someone competent?
>>968706
The staff was just trained with answers to common questions so they can appear helpful. They don't know that an H-bridge and bridge rectifier are completely different things. If the customer wants to control motor direction sell them something with the word bridge in it.
>>968671
Sounds like a bunch of cocks.
>you must know everything to shop here
We've all been to shops like that, and we've all seen them go out of business.
ebay
mostly shit from china
I'd kill for some kind of hobby electronics store in my city. I literally live in the largest city in north dakota and we don't have anyone who sells stuff beyond wire and solder.
>>968671
I prefer Lee's because I'm a dirty chink and know the owners pretty well. They also have more random-ass discrete electronics bits and pieces.
Though I have gone to Main for the odd switch or two.
>>968672
>and they're not full of shit either. they've been duped and given misinformation.
>Not full of shit
>regurgitate wrong information
That by definition is full of shit.
>>968985
My brother was/is an audiophile hipster. Bought moster cables and shit.
One day while watching his pets while he was on vacation i replaced his monster audio cables with coat hangers.
Called me six months later screaming bloody murder at me.
>>968646
I hate it that neckbeards who can't be bothered to leave their basements have killed off brick and mortar shops. I like the experience of taking a drive to the store, speaking to someone and not having to wait three days for UPS to decide they lost my order.
>>968671
That guy's expression and the angry posters plastered around his store make him look like a huge asshole.
>>968646
If you're actually twin Cities, go to axman
There were 3 radio shacks in the general vicinity of where I live last year. Now there's one. I got some decent stuff on sale when the first one closed, but when I went to clear out the second one, they told me they sent all the electronic components they usually keep in the drawers back to the warehouse when they decided to close down. All they had was the rest of the garbage they already can't figure out how to sell. I will not miss them when the last one is gone. Every time I go in there I end up spending even more than I would on parts + shipping from digikey et al.
>>969051
People are buying online because of price and selection, not laziness. If something is locally available for comparable price people will usually source it that way.
Ack Electronics in Atlanta
>>969088
Or Am Sci in Chicago.
For anything I can wait for, Digi-key or Mouser. I try to keep my bins stocked with common parts.
Also.
tube amp tech here
>antique electronics supply (ce distribution if you have a business and want a wholesale acct)
>mouser
>nte
>new sensor (electro-harmonix)
There is actually a radio shack yhats walking distance from my workshop. I'm pretty much the only person that still buys parts there. The selection gets worse all the time, but sometimes I find what I need. They dont keep the parts organized at all, so I have to go through all the drawers to find stuff. I probably know their parts inventory better than the employees, who are all dumb as a bag of hammers.
>>968646
Ace is the place for me, + surplus store
dawoof reported in formally cottage grove
>>968646
What happened to radio shack? There's three in my town still, with a population of only ~45k.
>>969348
radio shack went so bankrupt that they didn't even have enough money to *close* stores. SO they borrowed several hundred more million to make payroll and fund an "orderly liquidation" where like 70% of their stores shuttered (most consolidated their stock to the regional "flagship" store that stayed open). Now that they've managed to cut all the dead weight and sutre a lot of the hemorrhaging they're hoping to rebuild similar to how Hostess and Drakes did - launch a much smaller operation within an existing framework, relying heavily on online sales and centralized warehousing, and get the company profitable again. This might not happen, they might go tits-up yet. As of now most stores have shut and the product stock on their website doesn't seem to be replenishing... but they're sposta be starting that. 4 radioshacks near me closed and consolidated into one store, the nearest one after that is like 60 miles away. there used to be like a hundred.
>>969350
I think it will work, IF and only IF, they can keep the stores stocked and organized with knowledgeable staff. If its the same jag-offs on payroll as before, its delaying the inevitable.
>>969351
another big problem is their stock. they weren't competitive, selling cheep toys and hifi shit that belongs in the 80s and 90s. if they became like a mini best buy except more of a hobby shop they could probably do really well. but idunno.
>>969350
>>969351
I suppose the stores here must just be special then. They really do get a lot of business, always at least 8-10 people in any of them most of the day. The stock has always been pretty consistent, I've never gone after anything they didn't have. And I'll call the staff "knowledgeable" in the respect that if you ask them where something is, they know. They mostly have no idea what the things are, or what they do, but they can show you where they are. Now if you have questions, I don't know how helpful they'd be, but I go in knowing what I'm after. I'd assume most others around do too, otherwise the stores would have failed.
As someone whose always like radio shack it's a shame to hear about their fall. But if it's as bad as it sounds in other places, I completely understand why it happened. I hope my local stores get to stay though. At least the one closest to home.
>>969355
what region are you in if you don't mind me acksin?
>>969360
Lower Midwest US.
![gatewaylogocolor[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/rLM51Sh.jpg "gatewaylogocolor[1].jpg")
>>969113
that picture makes me sad
it's all we have left ;_;
>>969041
Good shit
>>969066
>If you're actually twin Cities, go to axman
Dubs for truth
>>969066
The dubs speak the truth, just ignore all the hipsters working there.
>>968646
radio shack was never anything compared to axman
>>969801
Or Lafayette Radio Electronics for that matter †RIPâ€
>>968646
Radio Shack, they closed one of two near me, but one is on my way home from work. I just have to yell at the sprint guy to leave me the fuck alone when I enter.
> twin cities
Nice try achmed. We're not gonna help you build another 'clock,
Here in the Denver area we used to have half a dozen electronics stores. Gateway was my favorite before they closed up and went back to St. Louis. The last place, JB Saunders in Boulder, just went tits up. These days, I buy most of my stuff from Jameco, which is a bit cheaper than Digikey and Mouser.
>>969351
>If its the same jag-offs on payroll as before, its delaying the inevitable.
Doubt that's going to happen. As it is, it seems like there are two distinct businesses operating inside any radioshack; every one I know of is also a Sprint retailer or something. And I often see the one radioshack employee have to juggle multiple customers (on the odd chance that there actually is someone else in the store besides me) while the sprint guy just sits there. I doubt they even report to the same manager.
>>968658
>only shop at a particular store as allay resort and then only to buy cheap shit
>wonder why they went out of business
Parts express shipping is fuckin expensive. I used to live in between their two shops and would make the drive. After I moved in red assed to pay that much. I guess it's karma for all those times I charged a 10 pk of crimp on connectors at RS.
Protip... If you're ever in the vicinity of Dayton OH you must go to the Dayton store. It was on the first floor of a warehouse. The third floor is a huge industrial/electronic grave yard. Amazing place. It's called Mendelsons. They do mail order too.
>>969355
>always at least 8-10 people in any of them most of the day
Shit's weird. There used to be two near-ish to me (that I went to, anyway; I'm sure there were plenty more in the area) and it was rare to see more than like...maybe three people including myself.
I feel like the market(s) they were trying to pander to wasn't generally stupid enough to pay the grossly inflated prices they had. $1 for two 2n2222s, wtf? $20 for a fucking 5-foot USB cable?
Hence the toys and cell phones. But they simply weren't big enough to offer sufficient variety on the foolery, and I think the cell phones were the only thing keeping them going as long as they did.
I'm not old enough to have seen Radio Shack back when they were good (or so I'm told), but they've kind of always been like that as far as I can remember. It doesn't exactly surprise me they went down so hard once online shopping started to become really huge.
>>969066
OP's picture is clearly ax-man.
>>968646
I'm also a Twin Citian and long time repair tech.
Two local places that I haven't seen mentioned yet are:
www.aeielectroniccenter.com/ at Hwy 55 and Douglas Dr. in Golden valley. Big on Hobbyist stuff.
and www.nesselectronics.com/ Off of Hwy 13 in Burnsville. Ness used to be the place to go for TV repair parts. Don Ness sold out to Shop Jimmy a few years back and then bought his store back a couple of years ago. I haven't been there since all that happened, So I can't say what he's still selling. Hope this helps ya.
>>969886
Parts Express shipping is not expensive - 6.95 if total under 100, free otherwise
I wasn't aware they had two shops, I always went to Springboro
And if you know exactly what you want for components, use Octopart and compare prices from plenty of distributers - Mouser, DigiKey, Allied, etc
>>968646
Twin Cities reporting in.
Axman is useful sometimes, and hilarious all of the time.
Nowadays I buy most of my hobby stuff online at amazon, digikey, etc.
>tfw radioshack never existed where you live
>>971851
w-where do you live anon?
>>971854
Singapore
>>971855
did you guys never have tandy electronics?
>>971859
Not as far as I know.
One of the only places I know of where you can get electronic components is an old quiet shopping mall called sim lim tower. The shops there are mostly for electronics buffs, contractors, people who need technical equipment, etc and most are privately owned.
>>968831
Sounds more like if you go in with half a brain and ask for help you will get it. But if you go in and tell them you want this for reasons then you are SOL.
>>969041
Did something similar to a friend of mine, but I went full hog and bought some braided sheathing to put over the hangers. It's been almost a year and he hasn't noticed.
>>969089
I live in western Michigan and u buy shit from Am Sci every month or so. Favorite thing I bought was a roll of the thermoreactive plastic stuff they make mood rings out of.
I made a hat out of it. Still have like 12 feet. It was like 6 dollars for a big roll.
Also bought like 8 dipping birds because my cat kept breaking them.
>>971745
There is also a place in Maple Grove called next day automation. You can go to their store and walk around, they also have an ebay store.
http://www.nextdayautomation.com/
Digikey offers free shipping if you order by mail and pay with a check or money order, slows the process down, but if you're not in a hurry, it saves some cash. Plus still way faster than china.
>>971864
Singapore got some dank diy, wtf are you whining about?
https://youtu.be/-hGQmvLHAqA
>>968646
axeman
>>972270
>B&M's killed themselves. Too small selection, obsolete parts, everything overpriced by 8-10x.
>Too small selection
Real estate costs money. You can't just have a store dedicated to a niche product that covers millions of different items.
>Obsolete parts
Volume pricing, stores don't magically get a better price because they are a business, they get a better price because they buy massive volumes. Buying in volume mean your slower items have a low turnover a rate. You don't just throw product away because a newer version has arrived.
>everything overpriced by 8-10x.
Running a B&M store has a whole additional set of costs tacked on top of an online store. The prices are generally higher to account for this.
>>973357
and fuck you too
>>973418
There's no need to be rude.
Wew lads, anyone remotely near Raleigh NC? I have been thirsty for somewhere that has a goddamn discrete component of any kind that's not Radio Shack. Scrapyards or such would be nice too.
>>973357
Minneapolis reporting. This is basically a MN/ AXEMAN thread now.
>>973396
OK so what's your argument? That B&M electronic stores are outdated? They could never survive?
>>969811
looks like it was a very comfy place to shop
>>973396
Discretes barely take up any room at all with sliding bins.
Radio cuck managed to pack all their parts in a 6 foot wide section at the back.
And no you don't need 100,000 qty of everything when retail plebs purchase maybe 2-5 parts at a time.
>>973876
This makes me want to open a tiny hobby shop. I wonder how I'd get bulk parts too though...if from somewhere like Mouser I would have to mark shit up, not to Radiocuck standards but still
>>973590
>That B&M electronic stores are outdated? They could never survive?
Pretty much. Basically any store dedicated to such a tiny niche for items that retail for such a small price can't survive as a B&M store.
They didn't kill themselves, they were killed by online competition who is able to save a huge percentage by not having a large retail space (warehouse space costs a fraction of retail space) in out of the way locations. Not to mention postal deals with China that allow them to send packages to the United States for pennies.
>>973876
They take up a huge amount of room if they are organized into a non-clusterfuck. Radioshack stocked MAYBE 500 parts at a good store. Substantially less in most mall locations, some had none at all. Compare that to Digikey who has more than 1 million items in stock and has a 700,000 Sq ft warehouse in TRF. Plus they offer products that drop ship from suppliers.
No, you don't need to purchase 100,000 of each but you do need to buy in bulk. A retail store can't buy product at retail cost and survive, that is why they buy bulk.
>>974237
Realistically you would have to probably be at about the same level. Radioshack had the benefit of buying product in the millions since they had so many locations. You'd be purchasing items in the thousands so would likely pay a great deal more. On the bright side, Radioshack packed all of their products into stupid flashy containers which increased cost, had to pay tens of thousands of employees, pay to have product trucked around the world, pay to run their own university at one point, pay the wages of executives, pay for national advertising campaigns, and all that other bullshit.
However it still boils down to, retail space isn't cheap to rent and people don't tend to come in and drop 1k on components in a single visit. You'd likely not be breaking even each day.
>>972193
Digikey also gives free shipping if your order is >=$200 (at least in Canada they do)
Has anyone tried to get free Digikey shipping with check/mail-order?
>>974237
If you run some sort of existing store it shouldn't be too difficult at all. Call some of the surplus electronics places and tell them what kind of stuff you want to stock.
Starting a new store from scratch would be a lot harder.
Dayton Ohio reporting in
Mendelsons Liquidation Outlet.
The Third floor has, quite literally, everything.
short video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9sanlSXT0Y
long video to show the tinkerers glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFoxLQDJrrE
>>968646
Axeman.
>>969113
Odds are you'll never look at this post again but my solid state amp head broke when I wasn't paying attention and accidentally plugged a speaker wire into the line in. Now it won't work with the front inputs and but I can get sound through the cab if I plug directly into the line in, or out.
Normally I pay really close attention to what I'm doing since I personally don't know how to fix electronics but my grandma died today so I had other shit on my mind.
Where do I get my "fix"?
I live in tacoland btw
Any good electronic components shops in Northern VA? Preferably Loudoun but Fairfax works too.
