You can never know for certain about what the manufacturer has done. If it is sold as new, it means it is backed by their warranty. I don’t see why it would matter much if it is a returned item being resold. Not much life could be taken out of something that should last many decades. If anything, parts subject to very early failure due to manufacturing defect might have been detected and corrected, and other parts that improve with burn in will have been burned in making the unit sound better from the start.
New pre-amplifier?
I ordered a new new pre-amplifier from a dealer and they’re going to send it to me directly from the manufacturer which is fine.
However, how do I know this isn’t a used component that was sent back to the factory for recertification and a technical review or even a repair on a defective return by a previous customer and then sent out as a new product. The dealer has title to the product I believe so the manufacturer is just accommodating and working very closely with the dealer. I know that used products are often sold with a full warranty if done through a dealer and represented as such, which is fine. I assume these types of things are not like a car that has a master repair history connected to it? If I buy a new product how am I assured it's a new product?
Dealers tend to use manufacturing sites to warehouse products waiting for shipment to a customer at times. It can be mysterious. one manufacturer was willing to send me new equipment without involvement of a dealer, which is fine with me but certainly the dealers would have a problem with this.