Rogue Audio hard to resell, has it fallen out of favor ?


I've had a Rogue Sphinx 3 listed for a month at what sure looks to be a great price- $899. A few half hearted inquiries who then go dark. The unit is $1600 new. I haven't even gotten any low ball offers- which usually happens with any item I post, its part of the process. Meanwhile I've sold a Pass 250.8, An ARC REF150SE, and two other expensive amps with little trouble. 

 

Is the low end of the market suffering? Is Rogue falling out of favor ? My listing is at least $100 lower than a similar one and I think they're both priced fairly. I'll keep it rather than list for any lower. 

 

Any idea of what's going on ? 

 

thanks

speedthrills

Traditionally Rogue’s lower price-tier true tube amps & preamps have held relatively good value. Their Class D hybrids are tougher on resale, as is their TOTL gear. It’s just market demands at play.

And if you take ASR seriously, then you should simply NEVR buy anything with a tube in it, EVER. There’s no overlap in those 2 audiences.

I’ve got I special Rogue two-tube VT99 preamp that I will probably never sell. I think in the case of the Sphynx (being a hybrid tube/class-D design), it has to compete in a rapidly changing and improving segment with saucy new technologies (GANFet). That said, I pair my Rogue preamp with older Ice Power Class-D mono’s, and I also own GANFet monos (driven directly by a streamer), and honestly I initially couldn’t pick one over the other, they each have their strengths and weaknesses.. both are great, but I chose the Rogue Pre paired with my older Ice Powers as my daily listeners because I like to roll, and with the right tubes the top end is more detailed.. yet organic. Some slight noise might be a small issue given a sensitive speaker, but not in my case. It’s very quiet from where I sit.

I think many buyer’s might worry about older class-D products.. whether it be Hypex or Ice Power. Also, selling audio gear in the months leading up to Xmas is a bit challenging given the potential buyer’s wife may not like seeing a present showing up for them right before.. I think many may hold off a couple mos. However, I’d also bet there are people out there somewhere pining for an affordable Sphynx. Some people just want a reasonably priced vessel to roll what has now become a particularly expensive NOS tube inventory.

@speedthrills asks a good question, which I honestly don't have a good answer for.

But I will say this, I sold a very old AR turntable in rough condition a year or two back, I did put a low price on it, but was still surprised it sold quickly. I think it's just luck. You have to have what someone is looking for at the right moment at the right price. 

In my experience with the preamp I had and the amplifier I had from Rog audio didn't impress me at all that maybe why you can't get rid of this stupid thing in my opinion they sound pretty crappy

Rogue attempts to appeal to the more cost conscious hi end consumer, but unfortunately this customer base has also been the most affected by inflation eroding their discretionary spending.