Best Bargains You ever found

[agidol]

I'm no audiophile but I love to search for bargains like everyone else. Recently, I've had these two successes and want to know your successes as well.

1. Bought used Polk RT2000i fronts, CS400i center, FX300i rears and Velodyne CHT 15 sub for mere $550. Found these on a local Craig's list and the owner was kind enough to throw in Bello Audio Rack ($500 value), 2 pairs of solid looking speaker stands, and 100 ft 14 AWG Monster cable and 2 Monster sub cables all free. He paid close to $4000 for everything so I gotta think these were sweetest deals I've ever landed on.

2. Bought Paradigm Studio 60 V2, Studio Center V2, Titans V2, and Velodyne VA1012 sub for $700 on eBay. Could have had for $500 if it wasn't for another bidder who raised another $200 with 1 second to go. The seller was kind enough to deliver all these speakers to my home at no charge (he lived 40 miles and $20 toll away).

I'm sure there were even better deals out there, let me hear them!

[2325fan]

a very large heavy set of cerwin vega special edition pd-9"

[Blue Meanie]

A near mint pair of Pioneer HPM-100s from a co-worker for $125. They go for $250-$400+ a pair on Ebay. Not a smokin' deal, but still a very good price.

Jeff

[Feanor]

I'm no audiophile but I love to search for bargains like everyone else. Recently, I've had these two successes and want to know your successes as well.
...

I'm sure there were even better deals out there, let me hear them!

A few months ago I got a nice PSB Subsonic 5 subwoofer for US$125. I got it on eBay from a local guy who wanted local pick-up.

[spf]

Before I got into the whole 5.1 home theatre craze (so like 10-12 years ago), I came across a discontinued Kenwood Mini-system. It had 260 (130 x 2) watts RMS, a 3 disc changer, double cassette drives , tuner and a 5 band equalizer. It use a simple three way design with a 6 1/2" woofer, a 2 inch mid cone and a 0.75" tweeter. At the time I thought it sounded like gold (and to be truthful, it still sounds nice for its price) The list on it was $499 and I got it out the door for $75. The reason? It had a scratch across the plastic cassette doors that someone made with a key or something. I touched it up with some epoxy 2 weeks after I got it and it's hard to tell at 2 feet where the scratch was. Ahhh, those were the good old days ....... hehehehe

Shane

[Worf101]

A couple in Manhattan were leaving their apartment and had to get rid of their current speakers as they were too big to take. They put them up for auction on the bay and they sat there and sat there and sat there. Why? Because the auction was "local pick up only". I'd always loved Platinum Audio soooo I got a set of Platinum Audio Studio 3's for $300 bucks. Plus a set of "top of the line" biamp cables to boot. They replaced my Ohm Walsh F's and I haven't been happier.

Da Worfster

[kexodusc]

2 bargains:

NAD 3140 integrated, sitting in the back of a pawn shop all covered in dust. It needed a push button on switch to work. $12. I have 2 of these now, I used the knobs off this one on the one I inherited from my dad.

AudioSource Amp One - Think I paid $80 cdn for it. It'll never win first prize in a high end sound quality contest, but it isn't out of place beside my Adcom and Rotel amps, and the price was right. It does sound good consdidering, and is a great alternative to people using receivers to power speakers. You can find these things real cheap if you look hard enough.

[Feanor]

A couple in Manhattan were leaving their apartment and had to get rid of their current speakers as they were too big to take. They put them up for auction on the bay and they sat there and sat there and sat there. Why? Because the auction was "local pick up only". I'd always loved Platinum Audio soooo I got a set of Platinum Audio Studio 3's for $300 bucks. Plus a set of "top of the line" biamp cables to boot. They replaced my Ohm Walsh F's and I haven't been happier.

Da Worfster

I'm kinda sad you sold replaced your Ohm F's, Worf. I owned Ohm F's back in the late '70s. But I sold them about in about '81 to buy B&W DM7's. The DM7's never had the soundstage or excitement of the Ohm F's; eventually I realized the the DM7's were extremely lacking in dynamics even driven by 250 w/ch. I became sorrier and sorrier that I hadn't kept the Ohms.

[BC Dave]

My best buddy picked up a boatload of stuff for $100 CDN. from a woman who was going through a divorce. He offered to pay her $300 but she wouldn't take more than $100. Can't remember everything that he got but it included a Linn pre-power amp, a 125-watt-per-channel B&K poweramp (stereo), a very nice Marantz tuner and a Classe CD player. I think there were some very expensive cables and speaker wires in the mix too. He had the Linn running as a preamp with the B and K poweramp and the Classe CD player, powering a set of Martin Logan Aeries i speaker with a Velodyne sub. The CD was Fly Between Falls by the Animal Liberation Orchestra. The sound was pure magic. I think we spent more than $100 that night on beer and steaks.

[jocko_nc]

Let's see...

H/K Citation-22: $18.00
Carver C-2: $18.00
Klipsch Heresy: $16.00
Adcom 454II: Free
AudioControl 12-band EQ: $7.00
H/K 330C: $10.00

[dunatic69]

pioneer vsx84tsxi for 375$, at a local pawnshop no box, no manual, but it has both remotes. cost me 75.00 to get the firmware upgrades and it sounds great.

[dingus]

Let's see...

H/K Citation-22: $18.00
Carver C-2: $18.00
Klipsch Heresy: $16.00
Adcom 454II: Free
AudioControl 12-band EQ: $7.00
H/K 330C: $10.00

thats our winner so far. i cant compete with that but i've done ok:

AR-9 - $400
AR-9Lsi - $100
AR-91 - $40
Advent 5002 - $15
ADS L-810 - $160
ADS L-810 - $200
Yamaha CR-2020 - free!

[nightflier]

Several years ago, a local home installer was changing locations. They had crates full of used cables that they just put out by the dumpster. I almost missed them too, as I was driving by. After digging through layers of lesser cables I found a set of scuffed, but intact Nordost Red Dawn speaker cables, lots of Audioquest cables, including Diamonds and Vipers, MIT cables, and some other stuff.

Unfortunately, at the time I was of the opinion that cables didn't matter so I just saw dollars and sold most of them on eBay. I only kept the ones that looked pristine or sounded cool (when you don't know anything, it's all about appearances) and I still use the Vipers. But if you consider that I got them all for free and sold them to buy a fair number of awesome components (essentially giving me a start in this hobby), it wasn't all a loss.

[kelsci]

Hmm, trying to remember. Once got a pair of two way 8 inchers from Rat Shack fr $10 a piece. I do not rememvber model number, I think they were Nova somethings. They ended up getting a good review in consomers reports, particulaly that the bass response was clean on these according to CU. The bass was quite clean.

Minimus 7s on sales years ago. A good hobbyist speaker to play with. Good prices on sale. They make a acceptable satellite speaker for home theater receivers with clean sound. But I did run into problems with them with burned out tweeters and woofers at times.

Mirage Omnistat; these were being sold out recently at Vanns. A great satellite speaker to build a home theater on at $80 a piece.

[RoyY51]

I was browsing at a yard sale about 10 years ago and came across a complete Bang and Olafson stereo system. The guy was asking $100 for it. When I told him I was only interested in the speakers, and only had $30, he told me to take the whole thing for the $30. I then listed the system in the Recycler newspaper for $300 obo. I ended up selling it to a B&O collector for $350. I used that to buy my first multi-channel receiver, which, of course, infected me with the disease that I still suffer from today. My wife still laments that if we had only gone to breakfast that morning, we'd probably have the house paid off by now.

When you look at it that way, maybe it wasn't such a good deal after all.

[PeruvianSkies]

A few months ago I got a nice PSB Subsonic 5 subwoofer for US$125. I got it on eBay from a local guy who wanted local pick-up.

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet! I am gonna get me one of those soon, hopefully.

[markl1712]

Living in Dubai 20 odd years ago, an American owned HiFi store closed down, but reopened with new (Indian) owners, who were desperate to clear the building so they could commence selling Sanyo and Sony micro hifi systems.

I got a pair of AR-9 and a pair of AR-90 for almost nothing ($14) as they were cluttering up their storeroom.

[Worf101]

I'm kinda sad you sold replaced your Ohm F's, Worf. I owned Ohm F's back in the late '70s. But I sold them about in about '81 to buy B&W DM7's. The DM7's never had the soundstage or excitement of the Ohm F's; eventually I realized the the DM7's were extremely lacking in dynamics even driven by 250 w/ch. I became sorrier and sorrier that I hadn't kept the Ohms.

Stupid I may be at times but CRAZY.... NOT. No the Ohm Walsh F's are in da basment packed away for the time where I might get a "dedicated 2 channel listening room" far away from her prying eyes.

Da Worfster

[dingus]

Living in Dubai 20 odd years ago, an American owned HiFi store closed down, but reopened with new (Indian) owners, who were desperate to clear the building so they could commence selling Sanyo and Sony micro hifi systems.

I got a pair of AR-9 and a pair of AR-90 for almost nothing ($14) as they were cluttering up their storeroom.

... we have a winner!

[jocko_nc]

Add to the list a nice vintage Sony STR 6120 for $12.50... Muhahaha.

[jocko_nc]

This week there was a fella at AK who turned down Vandersteen 3A's for $200.00.........

[dingus]

This week there was a fella at AK who turned down Vandersteen 3A's for $200.00.........

i would be sick if i had to pass on that deal.