SDA 1C Studio What are they worth?

rock79

Hi,

I have a pair of SDA-1C black studio speakers with 194 tweeters and upgraded sonicap crossovers and mills resistors. There are some minor scratches on the very bottom from moving, but they play very well although I need to replace two of the 194's in my right channel since my nephew popped the tweeters. I bought these at Harvey Sound in New York in 1990. I have no clue what they are worth and I'm in Florida. Grills are original as are the SDA cable. They look mint except for the small scratches on the bottom on one of them. Can someone tell me their value?

Thanks!!

Alan

Toolfan66

Considering you have upgraded them I have a hard time believing you have no idea of the value of them. :rolleyes:

There is no way you haven't been on this forum with the upgrades that are done, therefore I'm sure you know the rules around here!!!!

rock79

I looked up upgrades for SDA-1C quite some time ago and was a member of this group and lost my password and login so I signed up again. I was unaware of rules about asking the value. Sorry.

Alan

shack

There is no rule against asking for values. There is a rule against trying to sell with less than 100 posts. My guess if they are in pristine condition they are probably in the $250-$275 range once the tweeters are replaced.

cayovelez

Are you kidding me that someone can't ask how much their gear is worth? That is crazy! I believe in rules but sometimes the rules are stretch toooooo far. Rock79: you have to think that the 1c studios are about 300-400 virgin in decent shape. Now, 200 on rdo 194 minus 2 that are busted. As far as crossovers go anywhere from 200 to 300 depending on type of caps and so on. In my opinion you should be able to asked fairly for 600+...........just my 2 cents

shack

cayovelez wrote:

Are you kidding me that someone can't ask how much their gear is worth? That is crazy! I believe in rules but sometimes the rules are stretch toooooo far. Rock79: you have to think that the 1c studios are about 300-400 virgin in decent shape. Now, 200 on rdo 194 minus 2 that are busted. As far as crossovers go anywhere from 200 to 300 depending on type of caps and so on. In my opinion you should be able to asked fairly for 600+...........just my 2 cents

No way they worth anywhere near $600. A nice set of wood capped 1Cs rarely go for more than $350 in excellent shape. Mods add very little to the value unless one is personally familiar with the work. Even if the mods are done very well, they add little or nothing to the resale value.

rock79

I don't want to get anyone in trouble. I am going to replace the tweeters and take it from there. Thank You so much.
Best Regards,

Alan

cayovelez

I am only going by what others have sold theirs here for, and the cost of the upgrades. Don't mean any disrespect.

rock79

I looked up some past sales...Cay seems correct. Nice upgraded ones $550 low-$700 high.
Should have searched the past threads before posting.

Alan

Toolfan66

I,m not saying he can't ask the value but "In my opinion" stating where he,and said speakers are located is the dead give away, and he is just advertising!!!

This guy has done all the standard upgrades that can be done and he has no idea of value?? give me a break!!

george daniel

Good luck,, having owned a few sets of 1C's,,non-studio versions,,and having upgraded all of them,,I would be lucky to get 500 for a pair,,that includes the sonicaps and rdo's,,I paid 350 for mine,and they were mint condition original owner.

Oh-- to answer your question--250-275 like the man said.
Good luck,,and welcome to Club Polk.

rock79

Why are you so upset? I was describing the condition so a value can be established by those who are knowledgeble enough to comment. This is not a sale board, it's an info board. If I want to sell them I would ask where to post.

Thank You.

george daniel

I'm not upset.

cayovelez

I was in the 600 range. That is a fair price.

cayovelez

Why is everyone in this forum so defensive? Lets all have fun!

george daniel

cayovelez wrote: »

I was in the 600 range. That is a fair price.

I have a pair of 1C's,,with sonicap/mills/rdo's/vampire bp/Larry's rings/no rez--and I ain't gonna get 600 for them.$250-275.00 for a mint pair of studios is a very fair price.Seriously.

george daniel

cayovelez wrote: »

Why is everyone in this forum so defensive? Lets all have fun!

LOL,, we're out of our meds.

cayovelez

I was just trying to give the man an idea on what his speakers should be worth. I am so sorry I put my 2 cents. Did not mean to offend anyone, nor to cause a lively post. Alan, sorry to have brought this to your post.

george daniel

My speakers,,and I'm sure his are too,,are worth more to each of us individually,than they would be on the open market.I probabally have about 700-800 in mine,,but I doubt that I could get that for them,,I have never made a dime on any piece of gear that I've modded,,if you factor in the cost of parts/time etc.

Bikerduck

After checking the average price on Ebay for 2 years on the 1C's it came to 480 excluding shipping, in very good condition. On Craigslist, depending where you live, I have seen them anywhere fron 220 to 600. I was looking into them fo a while and still have a pair of 2A's but now, I am going to buy a new pair of Vandersteens........:biggrin:

nspindel

I disagree that mods aren't held in high value in resale. I have sold a pair of 2B's and got back the better part of my investment, and I bought a pair of CRS+'s with Sonicaps and RDO-198's, and paid $550 for them.

I think it depends more on where you're located. I'm fortunate to be in the NYC area. There are a good amount of Polkies around here. If you have a good concentration of people who understand the value of the mods living in a drivable radius of one another, then you can probably do very well selling a pair of mint 1C's. At least I hope so, because I'm going to be selling the 1C's one day and hope to do well with them, considering how great they sound with all the mods. My line of thinking is that if I paid $550 for CRS+'s (and the mods aren't even finished yet, the speakers aren't in working condition yet) then my 1C's ought to be worth around $700.

shack

The problem with anything "modded" is that you really don't know what you are getting...whether it be speakers, electronics, automotive etc. Just because someone says it was modified with "this" or "that" doesn't mean it was done well. Simple things like upgraded tweeters is one thing...modification to electronic or mechanicals is something totally different...and totally dependent on the quality of the work to a greater extent than even the sum of the parts.

With "stock"...even well worn items...you have a reasonably good idea of exactly what you are getting. I have no desire to purchase anything "modded" unless I commissioned the work and was able to inspect the quality of the work and parts used. Even then I would have the expectation that the value to the next person down the line would most likely be greatly diminished...maybe even below the value of a stock item.

I believe this is true with audio...I KNOW it is true with autos, bikes, boats etc...

nspindel

That's not true - there are plenty of times when you can know exactly what you're getting. People here are not just doing mods, they're documenting every detail in the threads on this forum. The two sets of speakers I've modded each have a thread with photos, descriptions, etc., and commentary from the forum about the work. The person who bought my 2B's knew exactly what he was getting for his money, and knew that I had done the mods he'd only end up doing himself if he purchased a stock pair. When I do sell my 1C's, the lucky buyer will know the quality of what he's getting. Hopefully he'll pick them up from me in person, so he can get a listen to them kicking **** before he spends a dime.

george daniel

shack wrote: »

No way they worth anywhere near $600. A nice set of wood capped 1Cs rarely go for more than $350 in excellent shape. Mods add very little to the value unless one is personally familiar with the work. Even if the mods are done very well, they add little or nothing to the resale value.

+1 Thats been my experience as well.Most folks around here are not gonna pay 700 dollars or so for a pair of modded/tweaked 1C's,,I'm sure there is the occasional exception.Given the current economy,,a nice pair of minty SDA 2 studios's sold for 200 dollars,,local. I suppose it's all dependent on what the buyer is willing to pay eh?

nspindel

If what you're saying is true, then the CRS+'s that I bought from Sal in April were a rip off. Except for one thing. They weren't. Sal and I did a great deal. If I'm out to buy a pair of CRS+'s so I can do the usual suite of mods, and I know what those cost, why wouldn't I be willing to pay Sal a fair price? I paid Sal a lot more than you're saying modded 1C's are worth, and I'm perfectly happy with that. No buyer's remorse here.

george daniel

not saying you got ripped off--you paid what you were willing to pay.

cnh

I believe there is some confusion above and two issues that need to be separated.

There are 'many' threads here that document the mods made to SDAs so well that almost 'no one' would have any problem paying for those. Those individuals making the mods also happen to be the 'core' members of the inner circle at the Club who all the old timers trust implicitly. I've seen prices on those wonderfully refurbed and updated SDAs that are certainly above what is being suggested above. They've also sold, as nspindel, points out at those higher prices to knowledgeable and well-respected members here--people around A LOT longer than yours truly.

On the other hand, someone just showing up who no one knows and listing a set of mods, that's another story. And the responses by our venerable members above are completely appropriate in this case.

Somehow we got off on a tangent that we shouldn't have here.

New guy posting, asking about prices! Ok...leave it at that, but let's not rewrite the history of what has actually transpired on this very site in the process.

cnh

shack

If buying modified speakers from someone adds value for you…fine. I would not pay you for the modifications you did as I don't know your skills or the quality of your work. Again IMO...modifications generally do not add value to a piece of gear. There may be cases (like among members of a forum) where between two individuals who know each other's work, there is perceived added value. That is the exception...not the rule.

A great example was Matt Anker of SACDmods. He was well known and his work was highly respected among the audio forums for modifying Sony and Denon SACD CDPs. He used high quality parts and his modifications were almost universally lauded for the performance improvements...even the audio mags ran articles about them. His prices often exceed the cost of the CDP two-fold. When his items go up for sale on audiogon or similar sites...one rarely gets the market value of the stock CDP...much less the value of the modifications. And they were highly sought after…so much so that folks would wait for months to get the work done.

We can discuss this topic ad nauseum. I have my first hand experiences and opinions...other may vary. The OP asked for opinions...I have given mine.

nspindel

Right, and I'm certain that there are others who feel the same way as I do, because I've sold modded equipment and felt like it was good deal for both of us. I'm not saying that I got back every penny I put into my 2B's, but I walked away feeling like I was fairly paid, and the buyer loved the speakers and was thankful that he had no work to do.

Let's put it this way - I could part out my 1C's and probably get $350 for the drivers and 194's, $100 for the two PR's, pull out the Cardas binding posts, and then sell the Sonicap'ed crossovers as completed units, I'm sure someone would be happy to snag them.

nspindel

Of course I'm not looking to do that to a pair of speakers that have been beautifully restored. But if the best I could do would be to get back less than half of what I invested, then I'd certainly be thinking about it.

I agree, though, that as far as this thread is concerned, it's a tough sell for him. Longtime membership in Club Polk has it's privileges

rock79

Actually,

In defense of my skills and ability to remove a circuit board and desolder and replace a few caps and resistors, I have to mention that I am a professional RF technician certified by manufacturers such as Motorola and Kenwood.

No offense, but compared to what I do daily, certifying and troubleshooting/repairing public safety and commercial radio gear this is childs play. I was building Heathkit equipment at 11 years old. I have been working in radio and communications electronics since I'm 13 and am now 50 (gulp) years old.

Having said all that, It's great to see folks passionate about their equipment enough to take on their crossover revamp tasks themselves in an effort to gain better sound and learn a bit in the process.

Alan