Buying Used Equipment on the Internet


Hello all, 

Had a question for the more experienced hi-fi enthusiasts here. I'm new to this hobby and currently still trying out new gear to see what I like. I was looking into trying out the Parasound Halo Hint 6 amplifier and found a used one through AudioMart. 

My question is: what advice would people have for buying used equipment online? The pricing is attractive but there's also no option for returns once the transaction goes through. What's to stop someone from offloading a lemon on to an unsuspecting buyer?

 

Thanks!

aamiransari

Showing 1 response by ccogopher

Problem with eBay is that many sellers pick stuff up at estate sales or storage spaces etc. they have no idea how to test things and probably don’t care to. Unfortunately you have to accept the risk involved and be willing to repair it either by yourself or through a technician. Sadly this has happened to me quite a bit but I’ve also purchased numerous items. Someone earlier mentioned red flag words or statements to the effect of “works” “turns on”. Every time I’ve read “works well, but due to the age of this item I cannot guarantee it will be in working order upon receipt” -nearly every one of those has turned out to be non operable. Still, I don’t buy something vintage unless it’s special enough to fight for, otherwise I buy new from a company I trust.