Inflated prices in audio

What about inflation in the second hand market? A guy in Rijeka ,Croatia is selling a Shun Mook quartett. He couldn`t sell it for 1500Eur, so he raised the price to 2000 and now above. 

cakyol, if we are to take at face value the announcement, "I am developing..." I wish to inform you that farting will not improve the sound quality of your system. ;) 

The December 2019 edition of Hi-Fi News carries an old review of the SME V by Martin Colloms from June 1986, the price of  the arm was £1188, not exactly inexpenive at the time. Mine cost £2300 in April 2010 albeit for the "VD" model with detachable headshell. High retail prices in audio must reflect the fewer people now interested and buying hi-fi generally. Looking back one forgets what good value some kit was back in the day - my Michell Gyro Dec was priced at a "mere" £659 back in 1992 and it serves me well to this day. The SME VD will be/is my final upgrade though !!!. Steve M

Consumer beware. It is always that way. Human's are extremely dangerous animals. How many friends do you REALLY trust with your wallet, your car, your kids or your wife. 
Having said that many high end manufacturers have very ethical business models. They make their living on their least expensive models
not their signature pieces. They do not sell very many ultra expensive models and have to amortize the cost of development over sometimes as few as two or three units. The benefit of doing this is to use the technology down the line in less expensive units and get a few very rich fan boys to pay for the development. Pass labs is now using XS circuitry even in their least expensive units. 

I THINK the 3009II--might be wrong on that model number as it was 45 years ago--was $135.00--when I sold them.

They were considered "middle of the road" for sound quality back then--1974.  Better arms--not sure of the names these days--were put on the best tables at the time.  Linn Sondek and the new "direct drive" tables from Technics were big back then.  Thornes was considered the "old guy." 

The MOST FUN table, that did not in any way work, was the Michell Transcriptor.  We had one on display with an SME arm, as I remember--could be wrong--but it was a real showpiece.  Didn't actually play any records, but darn nice to watch turn around.  Expensive, too, and pretty hard to assemble as I remember.

Funny to see SME arms at such a high price.  Should have bought another dozen from Shure back then, I guess...

Cheers!