A&B Sound, Vancouver

The rest of the reviews in this category, concerning A&B Sound, were correct for the dates they were written. Last year, A&B Sound ceased to be a family business, when Future Shop bought the business from the Steiner family. Future Shop kept the A&B Sound name on several of the stores, but they now have similar prices to Best Buy and Future Shop.

A&B Sound is a shopping institution in Vancouver. They set the standard here for insanely low priced CDs. In fact, they deliberately keep their music prices low so as to entice customers into the store past TVs and other sorts of electronics.

There are several outlets in and around Vancouver. Nowadays I'd also compare prices at the Future Shop and London Drugs but A&B Sound continues to be competitive.

Forget Virgin Records and all the other overpriced CD-Shops! There is only one good adress for CD's, DVD's and Electronic Equipment: A&B Sound!

Good for those guys who are in Vancouver around Christmas: Check out the Boxing Day! Even more discount is provided during these crazy days!

What to buy: CD's, DVD's, Electronics

What to pay: I usually spend less than 10 bucks for an older CD and about 13 for newer ones.

Due to its position as the central port for North American distribution, Vancouver is renowned for some of the cheapest CDs and DVDs in the western world. The big Future Shop on Granville Street is catching up, but A&B Sound is still where most Vancouverites in the know do their CD and DVD shopping.

You can find the odd deal at other stores, but 70-80% of the time, A&B Sound is the place to go for your new releases and back catalogue items.

What to buy: The average price range for new releases on CD is from $12.99 to $14.99 Canadian ($10-12 US). You can regularly find discs for $6.99, $8.99 or $9.99. I just picked up the new Tragically Hip two-disc collection for $8.98.

DVDs, of course, range from incredibly cheap to exorbitantly expensive. Upstairs is DVD land, and the selection is normally quite good. Chances are, even if that 10-DVD concert retrospective of punk cross dressers from Zimbabwe has to be ordered in for $290 plus tax, it's a whole slice cheaper here than at other places.

What to pay: See above.