Rigol model price differences

[jrmymllr]

I'm hoping this hasn't been posted/asked before as I couldn't find anything similar, although I'm sure the topic has come up.

I just sold my Tek for a Rigol and am thrilled, but couldn't help but to be amazed at the Rigol scope pricing structure. 

First, the DS1054Z (50MHz) at $400 is crazy.  This scope would sell for more I'm fairly certain.  Going up to the DS1104Z (100MHz) is more than twice as much, or $430 more, even though the hardware is supposedly the same.  From the DS1054Z to the MSO1104Z is $500 more, essentially to add the LA to the same base hardware, which is probably not a lot in cost. 

This makes me wonder, how much is Rigol making on the DS1054Z?  My first thought was they are breaking even or roughly thereabout in order to get new scope buyers.  But if I go by the difference in stock numbers on Tequipment, essentially everyone is buying a DS1054 since they have 14X the stock of the DS1104Z, and about 50X the stock of the MSO1104Z, for example.  This exponential price curve is a little odd to me, but great for 1054 buyers. 

[mswhin63]

It is all about supply and demand. More supply the lower the cost the less supply the higher. I suppose most people are buying the 50MHz scope more so than the 100MHz.

Usually first time market there is a play on cost to test the market and popularity, but Rigol has already done this with other model to get a baseline figure on supply and demand.

EDIT: On the other hand if the company want to make loads of money they can charge a whole lot more on a popular brand. It is the consumers decision to purchase in the first place or look around for another low cost brand,

[Fungus]

But if I go by the difference in stock numbers on Tequipment, essentially everyone is buying a DS1054 since they have 14X the stock of the DS1104Z, and about 50X the stock of the MSO1104Z, for example.

Either that or the DS1054Z is artificially scarce. There's been a waiting list for most of the time since its introduction and they seem to arrive at the distributors in their hundreds, not thousands.

Whatever, I'm sure they're not losing any money on them.

[Muxr]

The profit margin must be thin, but I am sure the high volume helps reduce the parts cost. Also it's sort of a loss leader for Rigol. The popularity of the 1054z most likely increases their other sales. How many people bought their PSUs, Signal Gens, bench DMM or higher end scopes due to the popularity and good price/performance experience with the 1054z? Probably many.

Personally I don't understand the price of function generators. If a 4ch 100Mhz scope can be sold for $399. I don't understand how their 2 chan 25Mhz DG1022A is $499. Must be a volume thing, as I don't think function generators sell as much as scopes do.

[jrmymllr]

Also it's sort of a loss leader for Rigol. The popularity of the 1054z most likely increases their other sales. How many people bought their PSUs, Signal Gens, bench DMM or higher end scopes due to the popularity and good price/performance experience with the 1054z? Probably many.

This was my thought.  Previously I would have never thought to buy a Rigol meter or PS, but now I would strongly consider it.

[eas]

The marginal difference in the underlying costs between the DS1054z and the MSO1104z aren't very relevant in understanding pricing. I'd suggest thinking about supply/demand and artificial scarcity aren't very useful either.

Rigol designed a product line of instruments built on a common platform. This is a practice pursued across a wide range of industries for at least half-a-century. Its so prevalent and entrenched because it makes economic sense, because it allows companies to spread their fixed cost for design and tooling over a large volume, and improves their bargaining position for sourcing the common components used across the product line. Within those constraints, pricing is set to serve the companies goals, generally a trade-off between short term profit and market share. Pricing to end users is also influenced by the agendas of distributors and retailers.

If, however, we accept simplistic free-market models for the actions of companies who function internally like planned command economies, the apparent scarcity of the 1054z in the months after its introduction need not be artificial. Rigol's production was/is almost certainly constrained by volume and cost considerations. Say production capacity and supplier terms limit them to making 1000 scopes a day. If they can sell 1000 MSO1104z scopes a day and 2000 DS1054z scopes a day, how do you think they are going to allocate their production assuming relatively small cost differences between the models?  For profits the choice would seem obvious. For market share, it might seem like a wash, but I suspect that customers for the DS1054z are somewhat more willing to accept delays in getting their orders filled than that of the higher-margin product, and may still be in the market if supply constraints are eased.

Clearly though, Rigol has done a number of things right, otherwise we wouldn't be talking about them. I'm guessing that the DS1054z is at least profitable on its own and goes a long way to helping amortize the up-front costs of the entire product line.