Audiogon question

[Azimuth911]

Hi all,

I’m relatively new to the whole home theater thing, but have my eyes on a speaker upgrade. I have never used an online auction source for a purchase this big (greater than 2 grand). Can people give their opinions of audio gear from online auctions in general and Audiogon in particular. What kind of percentage of retail is a good value (lightly used, non transferable warranty etc.). I’m not looking for responses specific to the other I’m looking at, this left it out of post.

Thanks for your opinions,
Jason

 

[slipperybidness]

Hi all,

I’m relatively new to the whole home theater thing, but have my eyes on a speaker upgrade. I have never used an online auction source for a purchase this big (greater than 2 grand). Can people give their opinions of audio gear from online auctions in general and Audiogon in particular. What kind of percentage of retail is a good value (lightly used, non transferable warranty etc.). I’m not looking for responses specific to the other I’m looking at, this left it out of post.

Thanks for your opinions,
Jason

Auctions can be hit or miss.

I've mostly had good results with eBay, but I read feedback and look at a vendors other items to get a feel for them. Is it a business? A pawn shop? A hobbyist looking to upgrade? How do they handle problems with purchases? Is it someone that picks up crap from garage sales?

I have never used Audiogon, but again it will be hit or miss.

There is a LOT of $ to be saved on the used market! But, there is also a lot more risk on the used market, it's always that tradeoff.

The bottom line is that you must be much more informed and ready to deal with problems when buying used, but you will spend at least 20% more for new gear.

And, that brings up the next point. In general, I would consider ~80% of the price of the new item as top $ for a used item. Work your way down from there.

 

[KEW]

Also, you can generally expect an expensive speaker with a excellent reputation (such as a Revel Studio or Salon) to bring a higher percentage of it's MSRP than a less expensive ubiquitous model such as a low-mid level Polk. A lot of that is supply and demand - not as many of the high dollar speakers on the market.
With an extremely popular product such as the Salk SoundTower, you would consider yourself lucky just to find a second-hand one on sale, so the seller doesn't have to take much of a hit!
And the best deals are the ones that are heavily discounted due to a visible "dent and scratch" which is located where you can hide it! No damage to the sound, but the seller has to take a big hit on pricing!
I believe eBay is usually less expensive, but no hard and fast rules can be applied.

 

[speakerman39]

Personally, I prefer AudioMart to Audiogon. Have bought and/or sold a lot of gear over at AudioMart. Most of the sellers on AudioMart seem to be very honest. Have had really good luck there. Highly recommend to the OP. Here is a link:


http://www.usaudiomart.com/



Cheers,

Phil

 

[Swerd]

Welcome to Audioholics!

What speakers are you interested in? I'm just curious, and I certainly don't want to interfere with any bid in progress. And I like discussing speakers .

I agree in general with what the others above have said about buying used audio gear on online bid sites. You have to do your homework, be patient, and be prepared to loose some bids before you win one. Don't fall in love with one item such that you eagerly pay a high price. There will be more speakers like the ones you are eyeing now.

I've used Audiogon successfully three times. Each was for electronic gear, two external amps, and one AVR, all from different sellers. I've had no problem with it. Speakers are somewhat more difficult to buy used than amps and receivers – it really helps to hear them.

As a general starting point, I like to see if I can pay lower than 50% of original retail price. But that varies greatly depending on supply & demand, brand name recognition, age, is the model up for bid being replaced by a new model, etc. I found it helped to set a no-higher-than price for myself as I searched.

 

[slipperybidness]

Oh yes, patience is key for a good price! As noted by @Swerd

I've gotten some excellent deals by being patient, but ready to pull the trigger immediately when the opportunity arrives. By the same token, I've wasted some $ because I needed/wanted the item NOW.

@Azimuth911
If you wanted to post some actual links to items you are considering, then we could provide our thoughts on that particular item and auction. Or send some PMs to members if you don't want to post the links to the forum.

 

[ATLAudio]

For speakers, I'd be more inclined towards Craigslist or local listings.

 

[KEW]

For speakers, I'd be more inclined towards Craigslist or local listings.

That is a good point!

Most people I have dealt with were honest and even exaggerated any blemishes so I was pleasantly surprised when I received them, but the opportunity to hear in person before buying eliminates a lot of risk (such as a blown tweeter, etc).
Also, shipping damage is a big concern!
If you are shipped two towers and one gets destroyed in shipping, you are stuck with a single speaker and the shipper (UPS, FedEx) will pay you 50% of what you paid for the pair. So now you have a single speaker, which is kind of worthless without it's mate. If the speaker is discontinued, you may not find a match!

Also consider the packaging. If they are SVS or Ascend speakers, the packaging should be designed for the rigors of UPS/FedEx. If something like Polk, Klipsch, or JBL, there is a good chance the packaging was designed with the idea it would be unitized/shrink-wrapped to a pallet, handled by forklift, and shipped out to distributors like BestBuy or Frys, not thrown around and dropped off the back of the truck by the UPS guy!

I am pretty comfortable having bookshelf speakers shipped, but not towers!

 

[Mikado463]

I've dealt with AudioGon for many years with 100% success. Now with that being said there some caveats......

Never and I mean never buy a turntable unless it comes with it's original packaging, local pick up being preferred since it's one of the more easily damaged pieces.

The same is to be said for speakers, again unless you deal with a local pick-up (preferred)

pricing........anything with a 8 out of ten (legitimate) rating or better and three to five years old should be priced around 50% of msrp. Older and in lessor condition obviously to be priced less.

 

[lovinthehd]

Just ignore most of the "knowledge" on audiogon as its mostly crap...might be some speakers worthy of shopping if price is low enuf but mostly I find the site a waste of time as most is over valued

 

[Mikado463]

Just ignore most of the "knowledge" on audiogon as its mostly crap...might be some speakers worthy of shopping if price is low enuf but mostly I find the site a waste of time as most is over valued

it's all about knowing how to shop lovin' !

 

[lovinthehd]

it's all about knowing how to shop lovin' !

The how isn't an issue for me, it's the choices at Audiogon that haven't been attractive altho I got sort of close with a pair of Revel speakers once upon a time but the price went too high. If you want to wade thru some silly esoteric cables or tube amps at silly prices, it's a great place. I think their catch phrase "built for audiophiles, by audiophiles" says a lot and I don't mean audiophile in the best way....

 

[Azimuth911]

Thank to everyone for the replies. In response to concerns about choosing the correct speakers, my needs (or desires) are very specific. All of the speakers in my current 5.1 system are the same family/version. This purchase would be an upgrade to the main speakers within this family. I have looked at Craigslist (over an extensive area), ebay, audiomart etc. without finding what I am looking for, but Audiogon currently has it (advertised as near mint) at a savings that at least makes it a consideration. As for shipping towers, I have verified original packaging and double boxing for protection. Worst case, if 1 were destroyed in shipping, I could still replace with new and only loss a bit of the savings. I think I’m going to place a bid and see how it goes. I will keep you all updated.

Thanks again

Jason

 

[Azimuth911]

I have just completed my first Audiogon experience, mostly very positive. I purchased a pair of Paradigm Prestige 85F towers in piano black to upgrade my HT. They were advertised as 9/10, like new, with about 40 hours use. They were shipped from Illinois to Washington. Many here advised not to ship towers (with good reason).

Final price including shipping and insurance, about 60% of retail (savings of about $700 including tax off the best negotiated price of new from my 2 dealers I have used). Communication with seller in this case was fantastic. Product was shipped in original shipping material then double boxed. Between outer and inner boxes was a very small amount of space allowing the inner to move around slightly. This decrease overall protection. For best protection these voids should have been filled with additional panels of cardboard cut to fit. According to the delivery person, they should have been labeled fragile on the outside but were not (maybe that would have helped). Both speakers were sent fedex ground leaving Illinois at the same time, but arrived 2 consecutive days. The second speaker arrived with an area of impact through the first box but only slightly damaging the second. The speaker itself had no damage. The first speaker was beat up a little more. A moderate area of damage through both boxes impacting the speaker. It ended with about a nickel sized impact mark into the finish (all cosmetic). Fortunately this damage is only on the back surface and will never be seen.

I am very satisfied overall, but had the damage occurred anyplace else (especially a driver) I might feel differently. Thanks again to everyone who provided responses to original questions.

Jason

 

[Mikado463]

glad your experience went fairly well. Good points on the packaging and as I've stated before there just some items that are better dealt with buying / selling locally .

enjoy the new speakers !