Scams on Audiogon (McIntosh Amps)

When you are dealing with high dollar purchases on here, the only thing to do is read the seller’s feedback and insist on an escrow service. I haven’t used one, but I suspect that the escrow fees are probably similar to the fees that PayPal charges anyway.  Even good feedback does not guarantee that the seller has fallen on hard times and you are the first one to be scammed.  It is the sad reality of these times.

Common sense trumps all!

Too good to be true..... 

There are "knockoffs" of McIntosh gear made in China...They look Exactly like genuine Mac gear. On Mac's website they name the dealers that are NOT authorized Mac dealers. Always check there before any Mac purchase.

Yes this is endemic everywhere.

Those who consider becoming scammers calculate the deal on a risk/reward basis.  The risk is that of being caught multiplied by the penalty.  These are in inverse ratio.

There is a very low probability of being caught.  Ergo to deter, the punishment needs to be very severe, 

Currently the punishment is not severe.  Ergo there is a lot of scamming.

It's in our hands to solve this.  No point in whinging here.

Likely the scammer doesn't care what the Audiogon cost is because he's using a stolen credit card number to fund his scam ad. 

Yep and the guy who comes here on agon and uses his PayPal or CC to pay for a scam ad...is also related to the guy who writes a note that he is robbing a bank on the back of his own deposit slip. 

Not real smart.

I wouldn't say that. There was a tribe of thieves operating on some county roads that spanned a half dozen jurisdictions. When caught, individuals said they were making low six figures and the year or two in prison was well worth the risk. Criminals often do the ROI calculations.

@stereo5 LOL not at all just it is unusual for a scammer to put a dime into his or her con.

The seller and ad was suspended. 

@jerryg123,

you want Audiogon to refund money to the scammer?

If it’s too good to believe, don’t believe it! I had an unpleasant experience buying the cheapest NAD C 368 out there for a secondary system. When it came, the remote was defective & the seller completely uncooperative. PayPay eventually refunded me, but it was months of -- something none of us wants to go through. Caveat Emptor -- and always use a credit card with good customer service!

If the ad is here on Agon the scammer has paid to have that ad posted.

Not saying it is right but Agon got theirs.

The world is now scam and ripoff  city BEWARE!!

It will show up in a week, about 5 bucks cheaper 😉

Well the ad has been suspended. I guess someone thought it was suspicious enough.

Well the ad has been suspended. I guess someone thought it was suspicious enough.

@roxy54 that’s what I thought too but these ads show up with the same price point (he dropped it 10 bucks now) and then gets removed a few hours later. This is the 5 or 6th time I’m seeing this show up. Even the description is very generic (copy pasted from the McIntosh website). 

... and free shipping too, for something that weighs 110 pounds! Perhaps they decided that wasn't such a great thing to offer....

Maybe he's just selling it cheap because he's in a hurry for money, or he ight have realized it was too cheap and removed the ad.