| Store Name: | HSC Electronic Supply (formerly Halted Specialties) |
| Address: |
Santa Clara, CA 95051 |
| Phone: | (408) 732-1573 |
| Hours: | 08:00-19:00 Mon-Fri and 09:00-17:00 Sat. |
| Web Site? | |
| Primary Line: | Electronic components and semiconductors, all types. |
| Secondary Line: | Electronic test equipment, lab equipment, tools, supplies, racks, wire, cable, power supplies, subassemblies, audio, computer and networking. |
| Pricing (Primary Line): | C - |
| Pricing (Secondary Line): | F |
| Variety Grade, Primary Line: | C |
| Customer Service Grade: | D - |
| Variety Grade, Secondary Line: | F |
| Overall Grade: | F |
LOCATION CHANGE ALERT: I have learned that HSC will be moving within this year. As of the date of this update (28-Jun-08), I do not have any info on exactly WHERE they will be moving to, nor do I know if the Rohnert Park store will be moving as well. If any of the site's readers happen to learn the particulars, please let me know so I can update the listing.
SCROUNGER RIP-OFF WARNING: Extreme overpricing on test gear, and multiple instances of overpricing on components (notably fans).
NAVIGATION NOTE: The MapQuest link above does not show a neat shortcut. If you turn north onto Copper Rd. from Kifer Rd., and proceed to the end of Copper, you will find HSC's parking lot on your left. Go up the driveway (carefully! It's a sharp slope), and drive around to the front, always keeping their building on your right side.
LAST REVIEW: 14-Sep-07
HSC continues to be a rotten value for the test gear shopper, and they appear to be losing ground on components as well. Their hallucinatory pricing on both product lines is as bad as ever, and has shown very little sign of backdown. The only thing that saved them from straight F's on the '07 trip is that they accepted an offer I made for a somewhat beat-up programmer from Data I/O.
Therein lies one of their two saving graces: They will consider offers on any item of test gear that is not being sold on consignment. You can, in some cases, tell consignment from store-owned by the color of the price tag (hot pink is often associated with consignment, and orange with store-owned). However, please note that this is NOT 100% reliable. Always ask a sales clerk if in doubt.
ON TEST GEAR, SPECIFICALLY: HSC is drawing the basis for much of their test gear pricing from high-end commercial dealers, including 'Used-Line.com.' I've been told that the typical pattern is to take the price shown on such sites, and deduct 20 - 30%. I've also been told that much of their test gear is being priced with overseas buyers in mind (as in China, Europe, etc.) These foreign buyers are, apparently, willing to shell out big $$ for older gear, even if it's in poor condition.
While this certainly explains much of the insanity in their pricing structure, it does not in any way excuse it. If they want to sell this stuff overseas, then it should not be on display in the public part of the store, period.
Perhaps the worst part of this mess is that their stock of test equipment seems to change very little from year to year. Every time I come down, I see items that have been there, gathering dust, for at least five years. Worse, they rarely (if ever) get updated, price-wise.
HSC's only other saving grace is that they have a customer test bench available. Take advantage of it! You may also want to carry a basic hand tool kit and multimeter with you.
ON COMPONENT PARTS: Well, they have a decent variety. I'll give them that much, and their pricing on passives and actives at least seems reasonable (in some cases). However, for reasons that remain unknown to me, they appear to have an odd obsession with cooling fan prices. They seem, in many cases, to be asking near-new prices for surplus parts. I have no clue what their issue is, but you should shop around at ACE and Excess Solutions before falling back on HSC.
IN SUMMARY: It's not impossible to find decent deals here, but it is difficult. Far more so than it should be. This is really a shame, because HSC used to be (about 20 years back) one of the premier surplus places in the Bay Area, if not the country. No matter what you want to buy from them, be extremely careful in doing so. You may be stressing your wallet more than you need to.