Ham N Egz
I have purchased several "demo" units from Sweetwater, and the box is clearly marked DEMO, and still has their impeccable warranty. In fact I purchased a Mackie MCCU pro demo that went bad and they shipped me a new sealed unit.
 
I do wonder about a certain "camera" megastore that advertises audio products well below other internet music stores prices, I have purchased some things from them and wonder if they are repacks.

I also had a Mackie MCU where the display went dim and it was about 22 months into Sweetwater's 2 year warranty. They shipped me a brand new one, no questions asked and provided a prepaid return label for the defective one. Had I purchased somewhere else I would have been screwed due to the manufacturer's warranty having expired.

Here is the response from my Sweetwater sales person about Gearfest equipment.
 

We NEVER sell anything as refurbished unless it is clearly marked and sold as such.  In the case of GearFest, manufacturers give us great pricing for the event.

I bought a demo unit of speaker stands at a good discount from Sweetwater.  when I got them, the pole on one of them was bent and basically unusable.
 
i called my sweetwater rep and he immediately sent out a NEW unopened box set for replacement before I returned the old ones.  he included a return shipping label with the new one.  I got the new one in two days and the next day UPS picked up the old one.
 
easy peasey.  great customer service.

Last year I bought an Impulse (new) from Sweetwater that had obviously been opened before. When I tested the board out, I was having issues getting a response from it so I contacted my rep about it. I mentioned the issues with the board but didn't mention that it had been opened because I didn't want to come across as a whiner and the issue with the board was more important. He had me try a couple things then we RMA'd it and I got a new one sent out.
 
I figured the one that had been opened may have been shipped to someone else and sent back for a refund which technically would still be considered new?

Thanks for your replies. I just was curious since both mics came from gearfest. (or as my spellcheck calls it gabfest) They seem to have more demos after Christmas, so I'll be shopping for another mic.

Paul P
 
It's usually pretty easy to see if a box has been opened or not.  One time I told the salesman I wanted an opened box and he replied "it had to be opened to put the item inside".
 
I bought a camera once from a once respectful camera shop (back before I learned to look at what I was buying), and found the guarantee card in the box filled out by the previous buyer.  I took it back, got a full refund, and never went back.

Be thankful it was only a camera.
 
Many years ago, a parking garage in downtown Chicago got caught doing swaps. It was a stacked garage, with 2 car elevators. Staff took your car up the elevator, parked it, and retrieved it for you when you returned. When you dropped the car off, they'd ask how long you'd be, ostensibly to help them decide where to park the car.
 
Not.
 
A guy retrieved his new Corvette, made it about one block down the street, before the engine fell out! Turned out that the garage had been doing engine swaps on order. A guy needs a new engine for his beamer? Place an order with these guys, they call you when they get a sucker. You go down with your beamer and they swap engines.
 
What happened that time? They forget to replace the engine mount bolts! Ha ha ha.
 
They never did learn how many suckers never figured out where their engines got swapped out.

Olive2sing, if they are bad I would contact Sweetwater.  According to what my Sweetwater sales rep commented I would think they are under warranty.  Since you are close by, can't hurt to take them in and see if they will replace them.

Since some of you are remarking about NYC camera shops, I was wondering about a widely known one (letterB&letterH). While I haven't had any issues with the little I have bought from them but is there anything I (we) should know?

I've bought a lot of stuff (a camera lens, disc printer, CD-r's, etc) from them and never a problem.  Well packed compared to some and usually same day shipping.

LetterBLetterH is very reputable. I've purchased a lot of gear from them and never had a problem.