Buying used.

Belcon

I see more and more people buying used equipment. I know there is a value to it and your money has more purchasing "power",but aren't you tempting the fates and hoping for good luck?

No warranties or guarantees, but you will save alot of money. Your credit card company can't offer you protection with charge backs.

My question is, how do you ensure that you are getting exactly what you are paying for and the transaction goes smoothly.

The reason I am asking this is...I want to buy equipment that will power a set of LSI9's, but don't know if I shoould buy a used pre amp and amp or do I play it safe and buy an integrated like a NAD c325 BEE?

It's got me swinging...:eek:

venomclan

Welcome Bel,
There are always risks in buying used, it is best to test the track record of an item to see if it is worth it. Most people here tend to take great care of their stuff, and that helps when it is a hobby of interest, rather than just an equipment fipper. NAD is usually good stuff, if the owner took care of it, go for it.
V

Belcon

Sorry. I meant by used amp and pre amp or buy a new NAD integrated. They may be close in price, but I guess I want to see what others have experienced so I can use it before I leap.

AndyGwis

I love buying used. You typically get items for 40-50% of their MSRP, so as long as half of them work out well, you're in the black.

Honestly, I buy all of my equipment used these days. If you buy from a reputable seller off Agon or here, you'll be fine. If you buy from ebay, you might have more mixed results, but I've got 30+ audio buys on ebay and only one mildly bad experience there.

Most sellers will offer some type of refund, especially if it's not working as it should. Also, used audio isn't too hard to fix in many cases, and manufacturers will often fix products for reasonable costs should a problem arise.

bikerboy

Hi,
I have been buying used for the past 5 years. I have been lucky or bought from people who didnt burn me. I look at it this way, if I can save 50% on a purchase by buying used that pays for a lot more or better gear. If one thing goes wrong I would still have saved money in the long run. With all the help this forum gives I find it a lot easier to buy used. And even better if you can buy from one of our members. A big plus! Just do some research and dont buy from slezbay and you should be ok. Good luck.

heiney9

It does take a little time and experience to spot potential problems sellers on E-bay. There is some risk involved, but IMO the reward is worth a little bit of risk. Ask many questions and if it seems to good to be true in many cases it is. If something doesn't sound right, feel right or look right walk away. Or if the seller isnt that interested in communicating with you walk away. In the past I was very interested in a piece or two but the sellers had poor communication and just didn't want to be bothered with my inquries so I moved on.

The only other thing with buying used is you have to have some patience and really know what you want and it helps a lot to know about said item ahead of time. Don't always rely on the seller to know what he or she is selling. They are selling it, so it's the best one avail, best sounding, best looking, nothing else like it, one of kind, etc, etc, etc.

H9

engtaz

Almost all my audio gear is used. Best value and better equipment can be had for less money.

JimBRICK

I've learned lately that I only buy off on the FM on here

MSALLA

My gear is also mostly used. I have not been burnt (Knock on wood) by any sellers and everything has been in as new condition. E-bay tends to have the highest risk but you can spot most scams by reading carefully. I also like to ask members on here about products I am looking at to make sure it is relly what I'm looking for. The people selling the higher end gear are people who could afford to buy this stuff new and they tend to take care of thier equipment.


P.S. welcome to the fourm.

Belcon

So the theme I am seeing is based on the law of averages, things will work out in my favor and for the most part, stay away from ebay.

All in all, everyone seems to recommend buying used over buying brand new because you get more for your money even without warranties.

Serendipity

The first thing I ever bought used was my Definitive BP10Bs from Sid on this forum. I was very happy with the purchase since he took great care of the speakers.

If you are going to buy used, make sure you can check out the item before you buy it. I took a 12 hour trip to NC from NY in order to check out the speakers.

Belcon

With kids and a busy life, physically checking things out is difficult. I live in "upstate" ny and to be honest, I think the fan base of decent audio equipment is weak at best.

I can't begin to tell you how many people I know that own HTiB over piecing together a decent system that can cost less than the HTiB.

Serendipity

Belcon wrote: »

With kids and a busy life, physically checking things out is difficult. I live in "upstate" ny and to be honest, I think the fan base of decent audio equipment is weak at best.

I can't begin to tell you how many people I know that own HTiB over piecing together a decent system that can cost less than the HTiB.

Where in upstate NY?

Belcon

I live in East Greenbush across the river from the capital.

Serendipity

There are a few shops up in Albany. Also, if you ever are in NYC, I'd recommend a visit to Audio Breakthroughs and Park Avenue Audio.

I'm lucky that I live 20min. away from Manhattan and there are HiFi shops everywhere.

Belcon

They are slowly diminishing. I got lucky and landed a pair of in box LSI 9's Ebony for $400 and change because Tweeter was going out of business. I can't complain for what I paid, but I don't have the right equipment to power them. Or should I say I am just putting them into a 2 chnl system and the rec'r I have doesn't do them justice.

George Grand

You hang around here for a few more posts. Get yourself eligible to buy and sell on the Polk Audio Forum Flea Market. You'll eventually find exactly the equipment you want, probably at a great price, and you'll feel a lot more comfortable about who you're mailing your hard earned dollars to. It's that simple.

cfrizz

Welcome Belcon.

Nine times out of ten, you will never have to have something repaired within the warranty! Are there lemons? Sure, but most times you get other gear because of changes in technology, not because the piece of gear broke.

WilliamM2

I have only bought audio items off e-bay twice, and got burnt both times. I have also bought few items here, and from the AVS forum, and everything went flawlessly, except once. That was an item claimed as new, but it wasn't. I still sold it for the same price I purchased it for, no loss.

So I would say you are OK if you buy here, but avoid e-bay.

I must admit though, I prefer to buy everything new, as I am very picky about the items in my rack, they must be mint.

madmax

The flea market here is fairly safe. AudioGon seems good too. 200+ ebay transactions have treated me well.

Its a nightmare in safety though. You have to do all the things you know not to do. For example, you send payment which is non-protected to someone you have never heard of before and hope they send you the item they say they have to sell. Then you just wait two weeks to see if they actually had the item to start with, if it worked, if it was damaged (either before or during shipment)... Horible.

The good side: 99.9% of the people out there WANT to treat you fairly and are being at least 75% truthful. Numbers I've pulled out from nowhere but you get my drift.

So, what happens that one time you send someone a few $K's and they screw you? Well, hopefully you have done it enough to be able to mark it off as education.

madmax

engtaz

I don't mind amp,AVR, and others but Ebay is a risk on shipping speakers. Local pick up not a problem.

John in MA

I've never bought a new audio component, unless you count a switchbox from Radio Shack when I was 14.