Are Sales Down

My Tannoy dual gold concentric paid 300 bucks in 1975 sold now used around 3,500 dollars... Not bad... But i sold them  many years ago because they were too big after 40 years ,1,000 dollars each pair... I had two pair , in case... 😊

Hi-end audio has ***ALWAYS*** been a lousy market.  It has never sold well.  It's never going to get any better either as the lower priced gear continues to improve and the higher priced stuff today is really all about demonstrating to people that yours is bigger than theirs.

Certain products will hold their value and the savvy buyer will know what they are.  Used gear is already depreciated, so it is much more likely to hold value.

Today's $6000 wonder DAC is tomorrow's $3000 white elephant.

If my recent experience is any indication, I'd say sales are indeed down.  I've had an ARC tube pre listed for 5 months now.  Really, all I've had is low-ballers.  ARC gear usually goes pretty quickly and for decent prices as far as I've seen over the years.  But, the recent shake-up at ARC might have something to do with this.  It would be great to pass it on to someone who will enjoy it more than I.  But, I'm not looking to get killed on the sale either.  We'll see.

I have seen audio manufacturing prices go double digit on some gear that is new over the last three years. The nearest Ford, Dodge, GM  dealers think 80k pickups are normal after their market adjustment of another 10k fee. Madness!! You can raise the price as much as you think the market can bear. But, I as a consumer can not purchase it.So, Yea, I am now strictly used, maybe demo. But I am  just a middle class working man. But when the price  goes twice, then in a few years three times on the original, I just wont buy because of price,value consideration. Is the 3 percent better sound worth a lot more investment than it was three years ago? Probably not for me. But other might feel different. The economy is going to get worse till the election year shakeout.Some consumers on here dont care about this because they just have the ability to pass it on to someone else. But I punch a clock so, the inflation really hurts. So, hopefully, the inflation will ease.

Seems like the consensus is things have slowed down. I did manage to sell some of my gear, but it wasn't on here. Some of it was because I gave a couple younger guys breaks and sold it to them dirt cheap. Still have the big amp, I may just box it and and bury it in a closet until Fall and we'll see if things are picking up at all...

The Editorial in the current issue of Stereophile discusses a slow down for the entire industry 

During Covid, I was able to sell a lot of components and cables very quickly.  In the last year, I have had no luck selling anything, even with really good equipment.  For example, I have had an Inakustic 3500P Power Conditioner on multiple sights, including USAudio, without success.

Combine that with the people who make you an offer and you accept it and then they go silent prior to making the payment.  Why do people bother making an offer if they are not going to buy?  Frustrating!!!!!

Overall, trends seem away from large home systems, fewer big floorstander speakers, more small standmounts with or without subwoofer reinforcement, fewer multi-box amplification installations and more integrated products that are room-friendly. Generally, there is less interest in high-dollar audio shrine construction with multiple plinths for speakers and amplifiers. People have less room they want to devote to the hobby. Apartment-dwellers settle for headphones and small installations that don't disturb the neighbors. Buyers want gear that delivers good sound they can live with without having it dominate their living spaces. The dedicated hobbyist that seeks esoteric products and designs is sadly become a distant outlier. (I think of the talented and dedicated English gentleman living and working at his farmhouse in France, meticulously reproducing Western Electric horns in solid wood.)

Look at the age of attendees at the Hi Fi audio shows......alot of gray hairs, not alot of people under 50.

There seem to be sales on ebay that move, where pricing is reasonable. At brick-and-mortar shops, my take is that they are down. Just looking at the market, even among the survivors of the long term decline in the numbers of audio shops, the market trend seems to be toward servicing whole-home automation installations and less of the traditional audiophile market which seems to be shrinking. The online market seems to be hot, but those aren't the traditional audiophile buyers, many more focused on new entrants to the market buying headphone and desktop component systems. I would like to be optimistic that some of those will gravitate toward  the higher end market in time as their earnings and resources allow, but who knows. The independents near me have a smattering of audiophile gear, Rega integrateds, Prima Luna, and a Krell here and there. but most can't afford to floorplan beyond a few brands.

One would think the summer is a seasonally weak time for demand & the holidays are prime time.  Remember the old stock market adage, "There is a price for every trade."

People still spooked from talk about pending recession. Not going to make significant purchase if you think you may be unemployed soon.

A product sale depends on the demand (or interest) for a specific product and its asking price. For example. my MSB Premier DAC sold in 2 hours after it was posted for its asking price

And, yes, I have one item that has been listed for 5+ months. I substantially lowered the price and still no sale. It is listed for a third of its asking price and still has not sold. Obviously, no demand for this product meaning no sale.

Markets likely returning to norm post Covid 

@jasonbourne71 just use the view count on ads for a portion of hard data. I was just talking about this with a friend who has only had 300 views in a month on an ad for an amp. And was recalling the days when there would be 300 views in a short number of days. But maybe that was like 10 years ago… 

Speaking of prices, I note that ATC speaker prices are down significantly, like 25%, according to the latest Absolute Sound loudspeaker issue. Music Direct shows these lower prices as well. Really good price/performance now!

Okay, I'm not a real tech guy and I can't figure out how to respond to specific individuals on here.

Thanks everyone for the info...sales do seem to be slow.

For Curiousjim, I'm selling a Sherbourn PA 7-350 and a Marantz 8802A on here. I also have a Rotel RMB1075, a 150" Elunevision roll down screen, and few odds and ends. For the home theater side of my media room I'm getting away from the separates and just going to a Sony Processor. Reducing the clutter...

The stock market dropped about 18 months ago and slowly folks have emerged from the pandemic. So, indoors audio, which had skyrocketed during the pandemic has cooled. I am good friends with a dealer… he confirms.
 

These are just anecdotal responses! Let's have some hard data from Audiogon, USAM, EBay ... that's the only way to tell.

In an instant of insanity I put my monoblocks up for sale...luckily no one bought them. Yeah, I think it is slow.

@liv2teach 

Just curious, what are you selling?

All the best for quick sales.

Thanks...I'm going to head over and do that...

Since you are selling home theater gear maybe also try using AVSForum; possibly it will lend itself to more views.  Below is a link to its marketplace

https://www.avsforum.com/marketplace/

Sales are always down during summer months. 

Yeah, being I want rid of said equipment, I'll probably start dropping prices every two days until I get a sale.

It will sell when the price is low enough for the market to react.