Price increase

This is something that I really did not want to do but in order to keep this company (and myself) alive, I'm forced to increase the price. This has the following reasons:

Higher shipping cost

Since Corona, shipping cost (from China) are almost sixfold of what they were two years ago (source). This is a huge difference and this has now become a significant part of the total cost of the controller.

Higher material costs

The price of raw materials has also risen. The price for oak in Germany for instance has almost doubled compared to last year (source, in German). Other materials show similar trends.

Global chip shortage

Because of the global chip shortage, not only is it hard to get chips, but the ones that are available have also become more expensive. Sometimes up to more than 10 times the original price (I've even seen them offered for 100 times the original price).

Inflation

The current price was calculated based on the prices of 1,5 years ago. In the mean time, inflation in Germany has risen to a staggering 7.4% and is expected to rise more. Most of the rest of the world is not doing any better. This means that almost all costs are higher: the membership of the maker space, tools, parts, cost of living etc.

More expensive panels

Since the Chinese factory could not deliver the required quality, the production of the panels has moved back to the Netherlands. These cost almost twice the price of the Chinese panels (but this is worth it).

New prices

In total, the cost to produce one KNTRL9 has increased with about €50. The new price of one KNTRL9 will therefore be € 365 incl. VAT. for the oak version and € 380 for the walnut one.

Important: If you are ordering from outside the EU, you will not be paying VAT (it will be deducted from the price at checkout) but you might get a customs bill. Please refer to your local customs office for more information on this.