Also, I would meet him at a place far from your home. (Library, etc.)
Selling?
I just had an unsolicited offer to buy my CJ 350. He wanted to drive down from the East Coast and pay cash. No price was mentioned. The next day he ask and I told him $6500. I thought this was quite low but I am getting old and have moved into an apt. He was shocked and said that he had seen many for $4000 and one for $3800. Now I have been in audio since 1960 and have a good idea what things are worth. I did not believe this for a minute. Looking on the net I found only one and it was $8724. So if you don't know yourself check with the bluebook before you sell. I told him to buy one of the cheap ones he talked about. So beware of lowballs.
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That's good advice if you are willing to sit on your item for a long time. If you want to move the item, price it to the market. It all depends on your objective. In this case, the OP is not in a hurry to sell something and it is a relatively scarce item so he can wait until someone shows up who is willing to pay his price. It might not be this year, maybe next, maybe the year after. As a buyer, I'm a patient buyer. I know how much I'm willing to pay for an item and wait until there is a seller who is willing to sell his item at the price I'm willing to pay. |
Also set a reasonable price and stick to it. Don't get into a biding war with a mystery unit. Someone said that they got one for $350! Fine, if the buyer expects to get one for that price tell him to go get one. I told the guy I was dealing with that. If he knows where to get one at that price go to it! I learned this in the 60s A dealer I knew had a unit selling for $500. Someone came in and said that another place for $400. Fine, go get it! Oh, he does not have any! When I do not have one my price is $200. |
I have been out of the hobby for a few years due to health issues. I didn't really want to sell it but recently bought a Gamut amp and since I am using Gamut speakers I didn't think I needed both. I also have 3 pairs of mono amps from my dealer days and a lot of other things. My other advice is to make sure you are getting the best out of what you are using now. Often a minor tweak is all you need. Read one of the set up books and experiment with placement. I once sold a pair of 801s and the buyer called in desperation that they didn't sound the same. I took the 30 miles to where he lived and he had one on a solid wall and the other on a glass wall. I told him to swap them and of course the sound switched sides. But then I am an honest dealer; I have known some that were not. Most are just ignorant, have been selling refrighters or something. I went in to show a friend an amp I didn't carry and they didn't have it. I went back and there it was on the shelf. |
I regularly keep an eye on prices. I have been a home dealer for many high end products over the years. Quad. Krell, B&W .VPI And a lot of others. I just thought he was low balling me and so did my other experienced friends. I can"t remember getting an unsilisted offer and I go back to 1962. He couldn't fool me but I am experienced. He wanted to come down from Vermont before we even discussed price. The ordinary process is to bargain a little before the sale. I just bought an amp; I offered him $ 200 [10%] lessunselistedas asking and he took it and we were both happy. |
I’m in the this-seems-like-an-odd-situation camp. stanwal does not have his amp up for sale. Someone calls him out of the blue and makes arrangements to come to his house and pick the amp up without discussing the price. I’d be a little hesitant about the situation. You know those deals where something just doesn’t seem right? Often times something isn’t right. Thanks for the report stanwal. |
I like to check Audiogon listings for fun and maybe a purchase or three, but when I see someone who has valued their item badly--overvauled--I do chuckle, good luck with that! I think pricing items correctly helps everyone. Yes, the offer was unsolicited but the buyer probably didn't expect a massive premium over current value. |
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Look, I don’t want to argue about this, but stanwal isn’t asking for help in determining what price to sell his CJ350. If you re-read his post, you’ll see that he is simply cautioning sellers not to accept an unsolicited lowball offer, especially if you are out of touch with the market price of the item you are selling. He wants $6500, and is not selling below that price regardless of the unsolicited buyer’s "shocked" response. He recommends using the bluebook, or some other means, to help you price your item. That’s all! |
Well There's always discrepancy between 'asking' and sold for. I can ask for my Sunfire amp also $8k, but it does not mean I'm going to sell it at that price. To get better idea I'd look for more than just one source the 'sold for' statistics. Even if the units aren't around for the price described there may be the time that they will be listed. For example: http://audioconsultants.com/equipment-Conrad-Johnson-Premier-350SA-5264 |
@tonykay - I think that is the point of my post and that of Grannyring, trying to give the OP an idea of what someone will pay for it. So he had 3 people say what they were willing to pay, which is only to give the OP an idea of what the market will bear for his amp. He of course doesn't have to accept that amount, the final selling price is always a matter of what a buyer or a seller see as the worth of an item. |
An item is only worth what someone will pay for it. Remember, this was an unsolicited offer! The seller has a right to ask whatever he wants for the CJ 350. If the buyer doesn’t see the value, for whatever reason, no one is going to force him to buy it. Arguing about the current market price doesn’t apply here. |
I completely agree with Grannyring. I have thought about getting one over the years to try and missed a mint one about a year back because I didn't think it was worth what the seller was asking, which was about $5,500.00 I agree, due to age, my top price would be $4,500.00 also. It isn't worth $8,724.00, just too many other options at that price. |
Hello Stanwal. Wonderful amp you have! The amp is now over 10 years old and has an original retail price of $9500. They have sold for as little as $3800 and as much as $5200 - $6000 several years ago. As I see it an asking price of $4500-$4800 is reasonable and fair. $4500 is certainly not a low ball offer in late 2016 to be honest. $6500 is too high based on my experience, but you can certainly try and sell it for that. I have always desired to own one and would pay no more than $4500.....tops. |
