I try to get as much information about the type of pet hair all over it, and what tobacco was smoked in the presence of the unit in question. Purebreeds and Cohiba smoke are an added bonus I'll pay a premium for. If the seller can provide a receipt from the thrift store where he found it for less than 400x what he's asking, I'll even shell out for the paypal fees and shipping costs. Cheers.
Previous Ownership...does it matter to you?
I'm curious as to how others feel about knowing the previous ownership history when purchasing used audio equipment. Not necessarily who specifically owned as that's usually not possible but how many owners.
It might give you a glimpse into whether the item has been shipped back and forth from coast to coast in the US, Canada, or another country and if there's something not as advertised with the item since it continues to change hands too frequently.
I recently exchanged messages with a seller of a previous set of very nice speakers I previously owned. I knew the complete history, the buyer listed himself as the third owner when in fact he was the fifth owner. When I shared the details, his response was "could care less about ownership and how many times it's changed hands....".
I was surprised by the response. The obvious reason to understand ownership it's one of the listing rules from both Audiogon and US Audiomart in regards to the rating scale. Both Audiogon and US Audiomart are specific that anything a 9 or above must be single owner. In the case I reference above, the seller lists as a 9 even knowing he's the fifth owner.
What is your approach to knowing ownership history? Does it matter or not to you?