tommyg

If I were to get that deal, I'd sign on the dotted line today...

With the dealers I'm working with, the price is exactly the same. The Sundance doesn't come with an ozonator though ($400 extra), and the D1 doesn't come with stainless jets ($300 extra), so back to even. D1 dealer has a blem that i can get $800 off, which would be nice...

Ok, so we're down to two models (finally), trying to figure out which is best. We're looking at the D1 Californian and the Sundance Cameo. Both are similarly priced. I know the wet test importance, but interested to hear any thoughts/feedbacks from current owners of either of these spas, or individuals who are very familiar. My wife is leaning towards preferring the Sundance layout, and I'm leaning towards D1 (of course, you know who wins that battle), but ultimately we'll both be happy with whichever choice. We're taking price into consideration, but open to hearing feedback...

our local dealer has a leftover '05 floor model, willing to give up for $7k. Fully loaded, including stereo, lighting, water features, stainless steel jets, cover, etc. only downside is that we're not crazy about the color, and the layout of the seating doesn't seemlessly correspond with our backyard plan (lounger seat won't be facing the optimal direction). Thoughts, feedback? Good deal? For the dollar, it seems to be the best value we've seen. Of course, we haven't been looing at other '05's...

actually, just realized that the @home line for D1 only has a 3 year mechanical warranty, so I think we're going to pass on this deal. the Californian is still in the game though...

Roger, thanks for the recommendations. Happy to see your post, as the wife and I just came back from the Dimension dealer, and I think we are going to put a deposit on a Venture model tomorrow morning. Our local dealer has a floor model that we can get a really good deal on. We were originally looking only at 7 foot models, but we really liked the extra room in this one, and D1 seems to have an excellent quality reputation. That, plus this floor model is going to cost us less than most all of the 7 footers we were looking at. I really like the lounge chair (with the dual arm rests). I realize it's not as "high end" as the Californian or Chairman II, but I think will give us everything we need, plus a little extra elbow room. That being said, it was dry, so we're going to put down a deposit pending a wet test, which we'll do at some point this week.

Roger, which are as good and better, in your opinion? Ultimately I'll make my decision based on our needs, but always interested in other opinions...

A dealer who sells Dynasty and Vita (which I'm planning to check out this weekend) said they were two of only 5 brands to be rated as 5 star companies by the National Pool & Spa Institute. I can't find any info on-line to verify, can anyone else back this up? If so, i'd be interested to hear what the other three lines are as well. Also, if it is true, is this organization truely a non-biased group? My guess is not, but would be interested to hear what the deal is.

Just came across local dealers for Dimension One and Dynasty, so we're going to give those a check this weekend...

Thanks for the insight, guys. I probably am placing too much emphasis on the stereo, just think it would be nice to have it right there and easily accessible. That being said, i'm not going to let it be a deal killer. Does anybody have thoughts on the second armrest for the lounge chair? Am I making too big a deal out of it? It just seems like it would really get bothersome...

So, my wife and I are trying to find the perfect spa for us, and not having the easiest time. I think the closest we are finding right now is the Sundance Altamar. We haven't wet tested it yet, but will, along with a few others. We admittedly haven't been focusing too much on construction stuff, b/c every dealer seems to have a different story as to why their product is so far superior. It gets pretty darn confusing. As such, we're really trying to focus on just making sure we buy one with a good warranty. Here are my thoughts on what we've seen and liked/disliked. I'm certainly interested in thoughts and feedback and other options we may be missing: Sundance Altamar: as I said this one seems to have the best mix of what we're looking for. Nice lounge seat, cool-down seat, nicely laid out controls. I like the stereo better on the Certa (w/o the pop-up speakers and floating remote), but it's unfortunately not an option here (though it does have integrated iPod which is nice). Like I said, no wet-test yet, so we'll see. One thing that I think is going to be a must for us (that this model has) is a second armrest for the lounge chair. Maybe this is something that won't be a big deal, but it seems really odd to me that so many of the lounge chairs only have one armrest. With the focus on muscle relaxation, I would think this would strain the neck muscles on your left side. am i wrong here? Cal Spas A726L: we made the mistake of seeing this one first. I say mistake b/c it set our pricing expectations much lower than everything we've seen since. It was the first we saw, so we had nothing to compare it to, but I liked it. Then I came here and read complaints about CalSpas and figured it's likely best to stay away. They have a ton of different models, but this was the only 7' x 7' model they had, and the guy said it was far and away the one he sells the most. It was $6,500 plus $225 delivery, $500 off if we bought within a week. Nice price, but worried about quality. Caldera Spas Tahitiaan: we really liked this one, and Caldera seems to have a really good name. Downsides...first, no stereo option? WTH? Who sells a spa w/o a stereo option? Maybe it shouldn't be, but it is an important one for us, as I want the ability to listen to some tunes while I'm soaking. Nothing fancy, just easy and accessible. Other downside...no secon armrest on the lounge chair. Hotsprings Vista: this is a little bigger than the others we're looking at, but I really liked the layout. It's the only one we (or I, as my wife's pregnant) wet-tested. I'm 6 foot, 180 lbs, and I felt like I was getting blown out of each seat I sat in. Is this normal? If so, give me less jets. I asked the salesman to turn it down, and fiddled with the seat-side controllers, but the effect was minimal. I had a hard time staying in my seat. Especially in the lounger. I also didn't like the control panel location or looks. Masterspa LS700: beautiful spa. dealer said $11.8k plus tax with stereo. buh-bye Arctic: no dealer within 50 miles (SF bay area) Marquis: my wife didn't like any of them. might have had something to do with the fact that the showroom was a mess and the tubs were dirty. Doesn't say much for the dealer. Jacuzzi: neither of us really liked. They seemed pretty blah, and the filter location on the models we sat in seemed very obtrusive. Thoughts? Feedbacks? Recommendations? Thanks!