Any regrets in selling gear?

The only piece of equipment I regret selling is a Thorens TD-320 turntable back in 1993. I turned away from albums over to digital but I still wish I had that one?!?

Sometimes you change equipment for the sake of change……this mindset can lead to regret selling.  Be happy with what you have.

@testpilot Great point! 

The only thing I wish I had held on to was a Bryston BHA-1 headphone amp. It wasn’t my only headphone amp so between the one I kept and the Bryston, I sold the Bryston. 

Fortunately none…but the list of regret purchases is another story.

I guess it depends on your approach.
 

My approach is very deliberate and careful. Each purchase is intended to be a significant step forward and is preceded by lots of research and often auditioning. Over the years I developed rules like never invest less than 2x or more for the next component, and work towards a new system at an optimized higher level… so no weak links. Then I stay there for many years. With this strategy, what I leave behind is always far inferior to its predecessor. 
 

There are many other approaches like just swapping around… checking out different stuff. Etc. My objective is to get the best possible system I can afford… moving in a straight line towards it.

Selling my pair of Quad 57’s after 19 years of daily use. After twenty years I now have two pairs! The Quad 57’s are not the perfect speakers but what they do they do perfectly well!

I just remembered another item I regret selling- a mint Nakamichi BX-300 that had been serviced and had a factory update done. 

Sure, however it opened opportunities to try others. As some have indicated here, after they cycle through a bunch of stuff over the years or decades - sometimes , they go back and repurchase that lost piece of gear to tray again to see if its as good as they recalled the first go-around. Sometimes it is, and other times it might not be.

A few items that are pricy to replace now (some would require refurbishing).

Roger's LS3/5a's purchased in 1978 for $500 + the cost ($130 ?) of a 1-way plane ticket from London to LAX for an X-Girlfriend.

Nakamichi 700ZXE that I paid $75 for in perfect condition and sold 20 years ago for $600, or so, as we recently unearthed two large boxes of my wife's cassette tapes.

I do miss my  vintage Dynaco and Mac tube gear, but much prefer DH/SET to them (mainly miss the PAS preamps when running tape/line through them - phono was so-so).

DeKay

Oh yeah. Bought and sold lots; some I re-bought later. Many components I regret selling; others I sold off and never really desired again (learning experiences). Then a few times I bought/sold the same damn component 3 times (or more) - that’s generally a good indication I like many things it does, but can’t live with it long term. The audiophile equivalent of a toxic relationship lol.

Many components only shine when used in conjunction with the right partners and right system. I’ve had huge swings in opinion on a piece due to this. So that’s my justification to keep a few (or several) of each component on hand at a given time lol. And also in being hesitant to let go, in general. 

Some components get harder to find as time goes on - as interest wanes it becomes forgotten and drops out of general trade (they’ll probably hit circulation again when the last owner dies and it hits estate sales in the next 10 - 20 years). But generally, most lose value in the long run. The exception to this was some of the really esoteric headphones in the 2000s. I definitely regret selling many of these for "too low" prices back then. I mean like Sony MDR-R10, Sony Qualia 010, Audio Technica ATH-L3000, Grado HP-2...

I sold my Conrad Johnson MF2550SE amp because I had new CJ tube amps.  Make no mistake, the tube amps are superb, but I have wished over and over that I didn't sell the solid state amp.  It was spectacular.

I was thrilled to get rid of my Musical Fidelity CD, which everybody loved, other than me.  But, it doesn't make up for selling the CJ amp.

@dekay "...but much prefer DH/SET to them (mainly miss the PAS preamps when running tape/line through them - phono was so-so)."

I still have one DH preamp and let go of all of my higher power DH/Cary and lower power DH/Inspire amps. Came close to Dennis building  me a pair of KT88/6550 monos but the build-deal fell apart.  Which DH/SET do you still have?

Yes some cars,some speakers,some amps.no cabels.enjoy the music and stay healthy

I sold a PrimaLuna HP Dialogue integrated amp with 8 KT-150’s. Had read so much praise for Hegel that I now have an H390 that pales compared to that PL…at least in my room. Nice feature set but the PL was absolutely holographic by comparison.

68 z28.

+1 on the z28 was a wicked car in my time always wanted one like the burmister amps

(1) Mint pair of Avalon Eidolons in maple finish. 

(2) Siltech Emperor speaker cables

Only reason I sold the gear was that I bought a new house / was moving, so cleared out the whole system.   The gear I have now i objectively better, but I still miss that pairing.

Oh, sure...had rationale at the time...but sellers' remorse just grays your day.

Decooney:

I have  Bottlehead Paramours  paired with vintage Elac S517 wide band drivers in Acousticraft cabinets.

DeKay

@tksteingraber 

the list of regret purchases is another story.

That would be an interesting thread.

Regret getting rid of my Sony 707 ref cd player and my proton d 1200 amp. But can’t turn back time 

My B&W 702 S2.  I love the tweeter on top look in the rosewood trim.  They were too sibilant for my old guy ears but I still stop when I see a pair for sale.  My new speakers sound much better but they’re eye candy to me.  It’s kind of like thinking about an old girlfriend.  You moved on for the right reasons but there’s still a bit of nostalgia.  

I bought a Sony TA-4650 V FET Amp for $27 and sold it for $150. I needed the money at the time, but what an amazing sounding amp.

Sure! As an incurable audio nut, I'm always searching for the next "holy grail." Selling my all McIntosh system was painful and regretful but fell victim to a divorce along with my Ranger Bass boat. Took it on the chin in that deal and haven't forgotten it 20+ years later....

I miss my PSB M2 Platinum.     Great speakers that i made the mistake of selling while looking for it's replacement.  I sold them and bought Revel M106, a nice speaker but those PSB were better.   They were the last PSBs to be made in Canada.     Probably one of the few things I'd buy again.  

Just sold Klipsch rc64 center and replaced it with a much smaller and older rc62…older rf82s too…happy buyers, no regrets at all…have TOO MUCH STUFF…need to sell more

Quad 57’s. 27 years ago, my (then new) wife encouraged me to “get rid of those room heater looking things”.

We are still happily married but I regret daily, the loss of my beloved (non-WAF) Quads.

I have, on occasion, sold something that turned out to be more engaging than the thing that replaced it. It usually takes me a while before I notice whether I’m present with the music or drifting away, or wanting to read a magazine. 
 

I think my path has been zig zag, with some good choices and some choices that were not so hot. But I think I’m in a good spot, with equipment that makes me focus on the music and how it makes me feel. And I have no doubt that I’ll replace some of it down the line with something that doesn’t work as well on my heart. It’s okay - I mostly like the journey.

After 26 years I still kick myself daily for selling: Roksan Xerxes/Rega/Grado/bluepoint, most of my vinyl collection, YBA electronics, Original Totem One, and Martian Logan Sequel. I'm still traumatized.

I bought a Rega P10 turntable last year. A beautiful demo from the merchant . As soon as I plugged it in, I knew that it was not for me. My old Heybrook TT2 upgraded with an Alphason HRS-100 sounded better overall .

Luckily I was able to sell it back within a month without loosing money since I had such a good price on it. Was able to find a used fully upgraded LP12 since and I have no regrets. A bit more expensive but much better. 
Learned a lesson . Always important to listen in your environment with your system. Lol 

Audio Note, Meishu Line... Good God, what was I thinking!? 

Yes, I regretted selling my LP12 turntable five years ago. It wasn’t too much of problem because I was able to buy another better one for not a massive amount more money. The bad part of it was that I also sold my records. I wish I could buy them back for the same amount as replacing them would cost many times what I got for them. 

"@dekay Decooney: I have Bottlehead Paramours paired with vintage Elac S517 wide band drivers in Acousticraft cabinets."

Nice, that Paramour kit looks like fun to build. By chance did you get a chance to directly compare them to Dennis’ recent 45/2A3 amp then? My buddy has the 45 amp with horn speakers, likes it quite a bit. However he's on to other amps now as well craving just a tad more drive. Boy those Elac 517s are rare these days and bet that sounds nice paired up with your Paramours. Keepers for sure! :)

I sold my ARC SP3a-1 Van Alstine when I bought the SP11 MkII. I love the 11, don't get me wrong. It's so much better in so many ways. No buyer's remorse.

But some days I miss the beautiful euphonic sound of the SP3.

Happy listening.

@bgross Audio Note, Meishu Line... Good God, what was I thinking!?

Ouch, can truly relate. It’s a work of art inside too. I listen to the Mieshu integrated at a friends place every few months, and compare sound to more expensive amps further up the AN line. For my own use, I still have that one on my list to own one day. Not sure my existing speakers would match well but its a future goal :)

Decooney:

I've only used an Audion Silver Night 300B DH/SET, an Audion single ended EL34 amp, and early Decware single ended amp  and a few vintage single ended EL84 amps @ home.

I keep planning to go with a simple SS setup with more traditional speakers, but doing so keeps getting put on the back burner.

DeKay

@dekay funny you say that, re:

"I keep planning to go with a simple SS setup with more traditional speakers, but doing so keeps getting put on the back burner."

Last year I had a friend who worked at Threshold for Nelson upgrade a Pass/Forte’ true Class A 50w SS amp for me recently, having the same simplicity ideas. Matching F44 preamp too. Super nice for what it is. One small aspect is missing. I listened to it over the summer for like 90 days straight leaving it in place. Swapped the all-tube system back in, and quickly realized I’m not getting rid of my tube system for simplicity any time soon if I can help myself. The layering is just unmatched with my all-tube setup, likely same as yours. Maybe a simple smaller SS integrated to swap in once in a while. Won’t be doing any serious listening with that though, maybe for background music just to have it on,  LOL.

I had a Yamaha A-S3000 four amps ago. It was the silver face model. IMO that amp was the most beautiful solid state integrated amp out there. It sounded great with my Infinity RS4b speakers. 

It wasn't a good match for the speakers I upgraded to after the RS4b's so I sold it. I have a 2nd rig now that uses the RS4b's and that's where I miss the A-S3000. 

BGW 250C, McIntosh 275, Hafler DH 101

Just landed on Audiogon today. Hope everyone is well. Great thread. Just talking about this. Not sure if it's regret - more had to because of kid safety ha. Actually regret yes. 

1st gen Quad ESL 57's - not restored (they were incredible) AKA as totally not safe 

2 Marantz 8B's rolled -- no cages 

Sonic Frontiers preamp rolled - cage-less  

Mod'ed Eico HF81 driven blocks - totally unsafe and shocked myself more that once

Merrill Heirloom rig with a DP6/Koetsu - could barely lift this 

All sold in a week 20+ years ago due to kids invading the bat cave. The thought of them grabbing a tube or having any of this even near them scared the heck out of me - especially if their friends whizzed around ran into any of it and the lawsuits started rolling in - lethal. My wife felt the same way - no lock on the door allowed for their well being (?) Not sure what that was all about. 

Of all of it, the Merrill rig is what I regret selling the most, There really was no reason to other than I wanted to buy an exotic camera lens. 

Gene Rubin set me up a LFD Mistral LE, Apollo CD Player (I think), Spendor S3/5's and an RP3 tt - and that is what I still am using decades later. It's decent mid-fi, however John Coltrane is not standing in front of me any longer. 

I wish I still had all of my Hafler amps including a pair of DH-500's.  I also find myself missing my pair of DefTech BP7000SC's and Polk Audio SDA SRS's.  All sold to move out of California.

I can't get rid of tubes. I just stop listening over time. Need an 18inch sub.

REGRETS:

Pioneer RT-909.  During recordings, if I switched the output back and forth between source and tape monitor, could never hear a difference.

Proac D-15.  Luscious sound, could listen for days straight with no fatigue.  But my OTL tube amp at the time simply did not have the watts to drive the bass with the  control I wanted.

I’ve probably sold more gear than the average person here. But I do miss my Class A A/B Plinius amp. They don’t make them like that anymore. 

Regrets: Selling a pair of Sony SS-M9 and some Levinson amps

Close Runner up: My first "hifi" speaker...the great Pioneer HPM-150. It was in great shape too when i sold it. If i still had it, i would have attempted the GR mod and brought it up to speed a bit.

Audionics BA-150 Self Biasing Tube Amp with selectable feedback settings.  It was a marvelous listen.

well I guess I must be the first one on here not to have any regrets selling past gear because I've always upgraded to something better and I've gotten fair prices on my used gear so no regrets for me.