Oh yeah? Where you gonna sell it? I saw it on ebay for $$$$$$$$ so I will sell it on the “bay.” It’s true, ebay is about the only online show in town where you can sell Hi Fi, Mid Fi equipment. There are some snooty patooty sites where you can sell the higher end stuff but most of the time it just sits there listed for an unrealistic price.
We are in a different era, sorta like the changing of the guard. The ebay of 2019 is Nothing like the ebay of 15 years ago. 1st Major Problem is the powers that be removed two way feedback. That evened the playing field and kept both sellers and buyers honest for the most part. Now it’s only one way feedback. Sellers can’t give buyers negative feedback anymore. So….every buyer has 100% positive feedback. That means there are NO bad buyers, lol. Does that make sense? Well to ebay it does, they want every buyer to be happy even if they are dishonest and game the system. 2nd problem is fee’s on everything even shipping. If your not selling things for $100.00 plus your really not making money. Initial cost for the item,(traveling, fixing, cleaning, etc.) Shipping, you many times lose money because it has gone up in price and it seems it always cost a little more then you charge. Packing takes time, energy and you have to many times pay for packing supplies. Traveling to drop off, or paying for pick-up of the item at your home. And third, the real killer…180 day paypal money back guarantee and ebay 30 day money back guarantee. That’s right, you can state “as is” until the cows come home and ebay doesn’t care. It’s guaranteed for money back regardless of what you state. If you refuse, they yank the money from your credit card or bank account which you agree to give them access to when signing up to be a seller. So you see…it’s very difficult to make money selling audio equipment even if you buy it for next to nothing. Everything that is forty – sixty + years old needs service and if it’s not broken it will soon remember its age and malfunction or break. That includes mechanical, electronic, biological(you and I), etc. Ebay doesn’t acknowledge this and forces you into a money back situation.
Feedback extortion is out of control on ebay. And buyers know not to threaten you. One might state: if you do this and that and do what I say I will give you positive feedback. Hahahahahaha, ok what if as a seller I don’t? Follow me? They extort you in a nice way so ebay doesn’t punish them for extorton.
Partial refund is the newest of the ebay scams. Every week I get ebay mail and item not as described notices for things such as a pin head nick or a burnt out lamp. That’s right, both the new generation and old generation expect a fifty year old receiver to be as new. They have been trained that way. Millennials shop in Costco and Kohl’s where you can return anything and everything for any reason. People return window air conditioners at the end of the summer and even trade in pots and pans every year for a new set. Anyway, the good old partial refund trick. You said every lamp illuminates and that the unit was in very good condition. One lamp is out and there is a spec of dust behind the dial glass. That’s right, lamps burn out after 50 years for no apparent reason. Now they want a partial refund. Many use this “Partial Refund” as a way to game the system and get back money on their purchase. Please send me back 30 bucks, I have to have a technician replace the burnt out lamp on this forty year old receiver. I will give you good feedback, lol. They could be lying or telling the truth, does it matter? The thing is forty years old. Ebay does nothing, you either send him back 30 bucks for a fifty cent lamp or he gives you negative feedback which shows on your account for one year. This is why there is rarely anything good up for auction anymore on ebay. It’s a totally unlevel playing field where the sellers are prey and the buyers are predators along with ebay behind them.
In truth, maybe new age people are smarter then us older folk. It’s a throw away society. Something stops working, out it goes. Where are you gonna get that old stereo fixed? I am on Staten Island and I don’t believe there is even one TV/Radio repair shop left. If it’s old it needs repair and if it works it will eventually need repair sooner then later. What ever you do it’s going to cost more in money, time, and stress to get repaired then its worth.
I still buy equipment both working and non-working. For me it’s more of a hobby then a money making endeavor. I’m retired, it gives me something to do. I enjoy bringing old equipment back to life. Some of it I sell, but as stated above it’s a totally corrupt system with an uneven playing field for the seller. I keep plugging along because I enjoy vintage electronics.
To sell your old stereo equipment, please contact us at cashforstereos.com, or call 718 698-2428.
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