Help on pricing for a CS400

Pycroft

Hi all...

This CL add is super close...10 minutes away. It's the center I''ve been looking for. He said 125 for the center alone, after some haggling. Not sure if that's a good price, or if I should try to get to down a bit more. Here's the add:

http://southjersey.craigslist.org/ele/1390753180.html

Please let me know if you think that's worth it.

THanks,

James

vc69

$125 is pretty good. Might do better but who knows. If it's in good shape, I say go for it and let us know how it sounds with RTA's.

danz1906

$125 seems to be a good price,see if he would go for $100 cash and carry.

Pycroft

Is it possible to see if it's good shape from the pics in the add? I saw them, and it looks okay,b ut I'm not sure what I'm looking at

Thanks

jtgranby

Will he hook it up for you to listen? Just make sure the tweeter is working since polk no longer sells replacement tri lams. I would not pass this up over $25 since it is local. Consider it shipping and you are the only one that can damage it in transit;) Good Luck.

Jim

kcoc321

+1 on the pretty good $$

danger boy

tell him.. you'll give him $100 and a bucket of KFC

$125 is a good deal.

Kex

danz1906 wrote: »

$125 seems to be a good price,see if he would go for $100 cash and carry.

Good Lord Almighty! :eek::eek::eek: Why not just say $50 and have done with it?!

In good condition, $125 is daylight robbery for a CS400. It's an excellent center IMO, one of the best, in fact.

- Check the cabinet for damage on the corners and scratching of the vinyl finish.
- Check the tweeter for function and cosmetic damage (pushed in).
- Check both drivers for function and free movement when gently pushed in.
- Check the terminals on the rear that they are not loose.
- Check the grille for plucks and tears.

If everything checks out, it's well worth $150-225 IMO. This seller is not being greedy by any means, so don't go kicking him in the groin by offering him less 'coz he'll probably send you packing, and you'll get bad karma to boot. Even with a damaged grille, I have a brand new, never used grille to replace it for $25 or thereabouts (IIRC).

In good working order, a CS400 is more than worthy of being brought into the CP ownership fold IMO, as are the venerable RT55, BTW. Don't let it get away for that price is my carefully considered advice. You'll easily sell it for as much or more in the FM. I would only offer as low as $100 if it is damaged in some way, and I don't mean just the grille (since that is cheap to fix, as mentioned above).

P.S. When checking the drivers, push them in gently to check for free movement, but do not push in the center dome. To check the tweeter, bring an empty kichen roll tube so that you can isolate the output from the main drivers.

Pycroft

THanks everyone, especially Kex for the detailed post. Is a pushed in tweeter a big problem, or can you just pop it back out somehow? Didn't see the speaker yet, just thinking ahead. Also, if there are scratches in the vinyl, etc. that won't affect the actual speakers function, just the look right?

Thanks again,

James

danger boy

a pushed in cap will not affect the sound.. and sometimes they can be popped out again. I think someone used masking tape to gently touch it and ease it back into the correct shape. but it dosen't affect the sound quality being pushed in.

scratches won't affect the sound eitehr.

Kex

Pycroft wrote: »

... Is a pushed in tweeter a big problem, or can you just pop it back out somehow? ... Also, if there are scratches in the vinyl, etc. that won't affect the actual speakers function, just the look right? ...

As far as the tweeter is conscerned, the dome is intended to disperse the sound, so a big dent in it is not considered a good thing. Sometimes it can be repaired by carefully sucking it back out with a vacuum cleaner. I'll explain how if it's needed. Also, there actually is an official replacement, if they're still available, but I think it's a silk dome, not tri-laminate, so it doesn't have the silver coloring. I'll give you $1,000 (imaginary) if you can tell the difference, when listening blind, between the two. They look good in the photo shown, so there probably is not any serious damage to the tweeter worthy of hesitation (as long as it emits that high pitched "tinny" sound, when tested as described above).

Yes, scratches on the finish will only diminish the look. The serial number tag is missing, but it was very common for these to come unstuck in that generation. If the cabinet has considerable damage, other than the underside, the $100 suggestion might be appropriate. If one of the main drivers is damaged, but everything else is in good condition, I would probably offer $75, or walk away, since I'm not sure what the replacement will cost (if still available).

Kex

danger boy wrote: »

... I think someone used masking tape to gently touch it and ease it back into the correct shape. ...

I don't think the masking tape trick works well with the tri-laminate tweeters: it sometimes leaves permanent "smudge" marks on them.

P.S. One more thing: visible tears on the tweeter or main drivers are not good!

Pycroft

On the back of the speaker is a felt looking square. What is the purpose fo that? Is there something behind it? Never seen it on a speaker. Check out the picture if you're confused.

Thanks to everyone.

hearingimpared

Pycroft wrote: »

On the back of the speaker is a felt looking square. What is the purpose fo that? Is there something behind it? Never seen it on a speaker. Check out the picture if you're confused.

Thanks to everyone.

Maybe it is covering a passive radiator.

POLKHT

That felt square is part of Polks Patented Power Port technology. I think it comes on most of the older RTXXXi and RTiXXX speaker lines.