Used vs. new


I am struggling with the decision of buying B&W 804 D4 or an older model like the 802 /803 D3 . I have the same issue with automobiles too.but  for now we can stick to the issue of speakers.

geosims1

If buying used nothing too old under 10 years old unless fully rebuilt,

and check for condition minimum ,Excellent to Mint, and quality of brand counts 

they typically use better parts quality  ibought some very good Dynaudio  contour 

loudspeakers like new and totally rewired and rebuilt the Xovers ,it  is at least equal to any $10 speaker for a  $5k investment.

with digital I would not. For Digital has progressed many times in the last 5 years. 

"it’s a tricky situation since I have no way of listening to either one to see what I like better."

you can buy and keep them for 30 or 60 days and then return them with full refund.

once you narrow down what would match your space, amp, sources, preferences, budget, musical genre, you would be looking at about 5 brands and 10-15 models. You can stick with B&W to compare everything to, but you’d be happy to learn and appreciate what else you can get. There are high quality bookshelves that are better value than B&W, but again it all depends on everything else and the dirty S word - synergy

I bought L,C,R, Paradigm signature speakers from a vendor on the opposite side of the states. Each of the speakers had an issue with the tweeter and the center with one of the mid driver.  Before the purchase the seller sent pics of the speakers before I purchased them.  The seller paid for all new replacement drivers, tweeters.  So, buying used is challenging , but can have big rewards.

Was a big B&W fan before switching to Focal's.  In my experience if you are running musical sub(s), like Rel's, along with the mains the 803 or 4's would be great.  If they are standalone, it will be hard to beat the 802's.

I've had good luck buying used.  Most of my system since deciding to get into this hobby has been used, and in great shape.  It's allowed me to jump in at a much higher lever than I would have been able to afford.  My Hegel H390 was a good deal to start, 2 pairs of Maggies, Heresy IV, and Harbeth Super HL5, all great deals.