Got the paddles out for this thread. I was going to chime in on the tariff thread, but it got a bit heated and was shut down.
I’ve been buying and selling gear for nearly 30 years—more than most, but probably modest compared to some here. Early on, I was on the merry-go-round like many: maybe 12 speakers, 15 amps, a few DACs, tons of cables. Sometimes I’d just eat the shipping cost, other times I made a decent flip—once even $5k on a speaker pair. Nearly pulled the trigger yesterday on a favorite I could’ve made $1k on, but… trading speakers, ugh.
Looking at the used market now, it feels a bit stale. Tons of listings—2,000+ speakers, 600+ integrateds—some of it exciting. Back during COVID, I remember only about 100 integrateds for sale.
Is the market oversaturated? Are sellers asking too much? Or is there a broader economic anxiety driving it? I’ve traded far less in the past 5 years, partly because of life (kid in college), but also because I’ve hit a kind of audio nirvana. Still riding that wave—for now—until I get bit.