Whether or not this gets moved to the Moan Zone or elsewhere probably depends on our ability to stay civil and not rant about our political ideologies

I looked up a list of the products and associated tariff codes that would be impacted by the 25% tariff the USA is going to apply to goods coming from China. Sure enough, Harmonized Tariff Code (HTC) 92071000 ("Keyboard instrument that generates or expands sound by electricity") are included. Because of how HTCs are treated, this also includes the sub-category of Synthesizers (92071050), whether or not a keyboard is included.

Sources:

https://qz.com/1618238/all-2493-item...-us-trade-war/

https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files...dification.pdf

To be clear, this is not all gear; just stuff coming to USA from China. So I would think that manufacturers like Arturia, Novation, Waldorf would not be impacted. It seems that it would certainly apply to Behringer. Possibly Korg and Yamaha as well as Zauba indicates that many (but not all) models come from China, not Japan. I'm sure the same is true for Roland, but they don't seem to be shipping any new synths, hahaha.

It probably also impacts (as indicated last year) components from China for gear, even if it's assembled in the USA by someone like Moog Music.

Has anyone (in the industry or otherwise) seen any price hikes or indications that gear that's about to become available is about to jump 25%?

If you were getting ready to buy something for $399 when it became available, would you still purchase it for $500?

I'm glad I buy mostly used, although if new stuff rises in price, used
may follow.

It doesn't have to be a political discussion, though. It's a legitimate concern as a very large % of the people who come to this forum buy gear in the U.S.

A 25% potential increase could mean people buying gear sooner or not buying gear at all.

If a synth I wanted was $400 and then increased to $500, I am sure I would still buy it. What other option would one have? Wait it out?

If this impacts anything made in china then places like Novation or Arturia would still be impacted.

i cant see this effecting Ems in cornwall

Do those finished products ship from China to the USA? Or does the tariff apply to any finished product manufactured in China?

It won't affect my purchasing unless things get outrageous. The way I figure, I'm already laying out money for a musical instrument and if it means I need to budget 20-30 percent more than I originally hoped for, so be it. If anything it helps weed out the forgettable impulse junk that might go unused for the sake of protecting my budget so I can get the stuff I really want. It will stratify the wish list, if you will. And as others have said, as far as purchasing power, we don't have it too bad in The States. If I lived in say, Australia, where synths are already very high it seems, a substantial cost increase would probably impact me much more.

I think the thing that would weigh heavily for me is whether or not I know that I’m definitely going to keep and use it for quite some time. I don’t want to pay $500 for a $400 item, only to see the price goes back down in a few months or a year. And if I didn’t really care for it, I might find I can now only sell it used for $300! It gets even worse if we’re talking about gear that is $2000+ today, but much more next week. I may want to get some preorders in now rather than wait to see the damage when they’re released later this year, and lock in my price.

I dunno either way. I just know that a number of things being designed in Europe are made China. I would expect them to ship from China, it's the most direct route.

I am pretty sure even with a 25% increase the Behringer DS-80 will be much cheaper than the Yamaha version if they make one.

In answer to your final question in the original post: no.

I'm pretty much finished at this point anyways; any artificial jump in pricing means bye-bye, sorry.

I don't know anything about tariffs, but I would assume that you can't just get around them by temporarily shipping the item to another country.

Generally, you can’t. There are just degrees of “Made In...”, and I wasn’t sure where the final place of manufacture (beyond boards and parts) and packaging was for those two companies.

Now that I’m back at home, I see that my gear from both does indeed have “Made in China” labels on them (sometimes with a “Designed and Engineered in ______”). So, as ToyBox indicated, they are subject. My Waldorf Streichfett, OTOH, says “Made in Germany”.

It's unfortunate this thread got moved. I almost couldn't find it. Any updates on this?

I would encourage you or anyone else in the USA that is interested or concerned about this to call your sales rep at your favorite retailer, as I did yesterday. Short version: price hikes are coming; the “when” and “how much” is actually up to the individual manufacturer, not the retailer; how the retailer chooses to honor pricing for pre-orders is up to the retailer.

If products are manufactured in China for a company based in the UK or elsewhere, there will be tariffs on that item especially if they are shipped directly from China.... Its kinda gray as to whether they would be taxed if the items were shipped to the UK first. The good news is that we will be paying down the tax cut from last year with tariffs this year.....

Reviving this thread as it’s getting closer to tariffs time.

Will all synths go up in price or just a few and for USA only?

Predictions are difficult, especially those regarding the future

I can not answer your question without getting political, even when only presenting the facts of the status quo this February 2025.

Disruption is lurking around the corner. Nails, coffins. Nails on the coffins of established order.

The question is not about US but Germany and the EU. BRICS can do without the US. EU could, too, but they are on the not so long leash.

Interesting times they call that.