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f0rge
05-20-2008, 07:28 AM
what do you guys do with your old stuff when you upgrade to newer gear?

do you sell it? keep it in the basement/garage? give it away?

seems that finding buyers for higher end (expensive) stuff is really hard.

JohnMichael
05-20-2008, 09:54 AM
Right now another stereo system is under the bed and in the closet. I try to find someone I think might enjoy the components and give them away. I hate selling used equipment in case it stops working. Several friends and relatives have benefitted from hand me downs. The recipient is someone who is financially challenged but loves music.

Rich-n-Texas
05-20-2008, 10:05 AM
Whatchu talkin' 'bout JM... you ARE old gear! :biggrin5:

Groundbeef
05-20-2008, 10:16 AM
Right now another stereo system is under the bed and in the closet. I try to find someone I think might enjoy the components and give them away. I hate selling used equipment in case it stops working. Several friends and relatives have benefitted from hand me downs. The recipient is someone who is financially challenged but loves music.

Look at that. We have an audio enthusiest out of the closet, and his gear is IN the closet.

Now that's ironic.

Glen B
05-20-2008, 12:07 PM
what do you guys do with your old stuff when you upgrade to newer gear?

do you sell it? keep it in the basement/garage? give it away?

seems that finding buyers for higher end (expensive) stuff is really hard.

When I upgrade, I sell my old stuff on eBay or Audiogon, mostly the latter. On Audiogon I've usually found buyers within 1-2 days. To me it makes no economic sense to keep equipment I'm not using and probably never will again when I can get money for it and help offset the cost of the new purchase. Also, I don't have a lot of spare room to keep unused equipment. My basement already has its fair share of original boxes including the huge ones my speakers came in, just sitting there taking up space.

bfalls
05-20-2008, 12:10 PM
Some gear I hand down to my son. Most gets stacked away in a spare room, with less and less room to spare. I still have my second generation Sony CD player CDP-302, my Lexicon CP1+, my phase-coupled activator, several VCRs... I hate to trash them and they're worth more to me than anyone else. Who's going to give more than $50 for my $1300 Lexicon? The technology is outdated, so it doesn't matter how good the quality is. Amps, speakers and receivers are still useful, so I keep them around for alternate duty.

pixelthis
05-20-2008, 11:34 PM
I have a friend and we sell and trade gear back and forth.
He had my B&W speakers, and when I found my new Klipschs wanting, he bought them, and gave me my old beemers back.
Thats why my speakers are so old, they are still crankin fine, but I missed an ugrade
chance by buying the wrong speakers.
On the other hand he didnt like my Integra (too "much") and I got it back, mainly as a favor,

he bought an Onkyo, I set it up for him.
Its hard living in a small town, not much market for used gear, so I pretty much wear mine out.
Thats why my back speakers are floorstanders, my "upgrades" 602s2's are better even tho
bookshelves, nobody wanted the 305's so they are surrounds.
Looks weird but sounds great.
On the bright side people in this hobby tend to upgrade TOO much, gear lasts awhile, not
being able to get rid of it means you buy smarter off the bat, and upgrade only when its nessesary.
For instance my Integras video section is a tad obsolete, but the switching, proc, and other things are still great, as is the ultraquite preamp, so it will probably be the prepro in my first "seperates" system I HAVE BEEN PROMISING MYSELF FOREVER.:1:

f0rge
05-21-2008, 05:14 AM
it's hard to sell things in canada i find, there's a much bigger market in the states but not many people want to pay the duty.

BadAssJazz
05-21-2008, 12:01 PM
I try to sell it first (eBay or Audiogon), but if that fails, I hand it down to family.

Fortunately, I don't buy AV equipment as often as I buy computers. (I seem to buy a new computer once every 3 - 4 months.)

The good thing about being an AV enthusiast is that I don't feel pressured to pounce on some new advent the minute it hits the market. Even the old stuff can be golden. I guess that's why vinyl will never die. I would not advise anyone to try to surf the web or access an Adobe .pdf file using an old Commodore 64 computer, but you can still listen to Miles Davis using old world technology and love it just as much, if not more, than any state of the art digital player today.

bobsticks
05-21-2008, 01:47 PM
I try to find someone I think might enjoy the components and give them away. I hate selling used equipment in case it stops working. Several friends and relatives have benefitted from hand me downs. The recipient is someone who is financially challenged but loves music.

Amen brother. Pass it on down the line. I try and give everything away unless it's being used as part of a trade-in deal. Gotta create the next generation of audiophools...

...plus it's good joss, and I don't have karma to burn.

kexodusc
05-21-2008, 02:42 PM
I get good mileage out of most of my gear. If the price is right and I can sell my old one, I will upgrade my receiver/processor about every 2-3 years. Speakers I get at least 5 years out of on average and longer really cause I'm an audio packrat and just relegate things to secondary systems.

Mom and dad get a lot of my hand-me-downs. Not my brother though, he's got a nice enough system and a way nicer house, so screw him. Little sister still pawns stuff I give her so until she stabilizes a bit she won't get any...maybe in a year or two...

I have an amp that I've owned (well, my Dad owned) since I was in kindergarten...it's staying with me until one of us dies.

pixelthis
05-21-2008, 11:25 PM
I get good mileage out of most of my gear. If the price is right and I can sell my old one, I will upgrade my receiver/processor about every 2-3 years. Speakers I get at least 5 years out of on average and longer really cause I'm an audio packrat and just relegate things to secondary systems.

Mom and dad get a lot of my hand-me-downs. Not my brother though, he's got a nice enough system and a way nicer house, so screw him. Little sister still pawns stuff I give her so until she stabilizes a bit she won't get any...maybe in a year or two...

I have an amp that I've owned (well, my Dad owned) since I was in kindergarten...it's staying with me until one of us dies.

I let my brother have my first "serious" receiver, a yamaha 35wpc beauty
with aluminum face and a cool green sliderule dial, not the blackout kind but a solid piece of aluminum that had numbers that lit up when you turned it on.
And a real wood vaneer case, they literally dont make em like that anymore
I tried to get it back, but he claimed that some kids stole it, I AM SURE HE SOLD IT.
Wish I still had it.
I mean, just because he gave me money for it doesnt mean he could SELL it!:1:

Worf101
05-22-2008, 04:36 AM
Now I've 2.5 HT systems in the house. It kinda goes like this.

1. Upgrade the main system in the Living Room first.

2. That gear goes to the upstairs bedroom HT system.

3. That gear goes to my computer room system.

4 Computer room system goes in closet or out to friends.

I've never EVER put working gear into the trash bin.

Da Worfster

f0rge
05-23-2008, 01:52 PM
well i just sold my trusty Adcom GFA-555, on craigslist of all places.

i guess you just have to be patient.