Buying used vs. New

For me it is still ok to buy used cables and poewer amp.I have great reservations buying used preamp and digital gears though,they are too sensitive and you might end out losing more;penny wise pound foolish as the saying goes

Tvad initiated an interesting thread regarding a third party warranty option some months ago. It seemed there was a generaly negative concensus regarding the idea though....

I've bought (and sold) a lot of used gear here and have been extremely lucky. But stuff can and does get damaged in shipping and sometimes gear fails before you are ready to get rid of it! These are the risks we take, and like someone said, most things can be repaired. I bought a set of Quad II Classic amps here that looked perfect when they arrived but one emitted smoke and stopped working when I plugged it in. I took it to a local Quad dealer who agreed to arrange for repair for me. He knew the amp was bought used and not even from his shop. When Quad learned of the problem they said they would fix the amp for free! It needed a new transformer (from the UK) so repairing this would not have been cheap at all. Why they decided to repair this unit gratis I have no idea but I will be everlastingly grateful to Quad and Deja Vu Audio for acting as the intermediary in this transaction. i love the amps and they have worked perfectly since the initial mishap--undoubtedly related to bumps and drops experienced in shipping.

I purchase only used equipment made by the relatively few remaining independent manufacturers that are highly supportive of buyers of used equipment. These are operations where you can talk to the principals. Atma-Sphere, Merlin, and BAT are a few examples. Also, I've been patient enough to buy locally and to audition first and carry home.