There has been a lot of talk about sellers egos but a low ball offer suggests one of several things to me.
1. That buyer is a Low Baller Phenotype(there system has $100,000 worth of retail goods they got for under $10,000). They almost don’t care what they are buying as long as it’s at a fire sale price. They enjoy showing pictures of their system and regaling stories of their incredible deals to anyone that will give them a pulpit.
2. That buyer is a Win at all Cost Phenotype. Their goal is to beat you in negotiation. They aren’t interested in a fair price. They want to win and want you to lose in the negotiation...great ego boost and they can continue to look at that piece of audio gear daily reminding them of their conquest.
3. Haven’t taken the time to investigate recent prices of what that item sold for. Their mindset is some fraction of the retail price regardless of other market forces like scarcity, age etc...
Bottom line is that I don’t want to deal with any of them. My prices are always firm, based on current trends, and typically slightly below market value. There are enough fantastic buyers out there that someone realizes it quickly and rarely do I have something for sale more than a few days. I want the buyer to "win" knowing they got a good deal. I win by securing a sale before the ad goes stale.