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One's trash is someone else's treasure

I would be interested to find out what “treasures” you people have come across in your journey to audio nirvana on the used market. For me, it was in 1993 (I don’t remember if the internet was already at its early stages of development – I don’t think so), and I came across an ad in our local newspaper for a Linn LP-12. The second I read the ad, I immediately called the seller who happens to be this older fellow who obviously didn’t have the slightest clue what he’s about to relinquish. I drove to his apartment and there it was, a Linn LP-12 complete with an LVX tone arm, a K9 cartridge and the smoke dustcover – all in excellent condition. The asking price? $100!!!! While I was in his apartment checking the table out, the seller received about three phone calls regarding the LP-12 too bad for those prospective buyers but first come, first serve. Talk about someone’s trash being someone else’s treasure!!!! About three years later, I sold the table for $900! It was about this time when the digital front end was really taking off with the transport and outboard DAC options. Now, I’m back into vinyl (just recently got back actually) and have a VPI Scout Aries with JMW 9 arm and a Dynavector 10x5 cartridge. This time, my analog set up is a keeper!!!! What treasures have you come across??????
gemini

Showing 2 responses by michaela

michaela
314 posts
 
In defense of Gemini:

The worth of an item can only be measured in the hands of the person holding it. To the elderly gentleman, the TT was only worth the $100.00 he asked for it. He could have offered it to his elderly next door neighbor to whom it may have only been worth $50.00. That's what it's worth would have been. To the person Gemini sold it to, it had a worth of $900.00. Maybe at the time Gemini resold it, he thought it had a worth of $1,500.00 but it was only worth $900.00 to the person who bought it. The worth of any item is only measured by the person who is willing to buy it or to the person holding it for the worth he is willing to part with it for. To say that Gemini should have offered the gentleman a measure of worth more than the gentleman was asking is to impart Gemini's sense of worth of the object to it, not the gentleman's measure. To the elderly gentleman, he was happy to get $100.00, he received the full measure of what he perceived to be its worth. Keep in mind also that this was 1993, well before there was any established mediums to sell used equipment and before there was a sense of established prices for used equipment. The elderly gentleman might have had absolutely no access to market to sell the TT thus it's value was hardly established in any measureable way and it was the beginning of CD's and everyone was dumping their TT's. For all the trouble the gentleman may have had trying to sell it using any other means or markets that were available then, the gentleman was very happy to sell it for the price he received. I think both Gemini and the elderly gentleman made great deals.

Mike
michaela
314 posts
 
Punkawalla,

Let's not confuse the matter with the concept of fair market value. Fair market value is the collective perception of all individuals having in interest in the item as to is value or worth. Between Gemini and the elderly gentleman, the concept of fair market value was not in play. One paid the other what the other expected or asked for the TT, and each person's perception of its value is what controlled the transaction. The problem that most folks are doing here is, like you, adding the concept of fair market value into the transaction as a measure of whether or not it was a good deal for each participant in the transaction.
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