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What happened to the "club atmosphere" of Audiogon?

Hi Goners!

After 12 years as a member hear i have developed some questions based on my observations of Audiogon in the last four to five years...

When i joined it was a fledgling group of "music lovers" who now brand themselves, quite often it seems, as "audiophiles"! [ whatever that REALLY is...:-)
The boards were helpful, very helpful and almost never negative but like a brother [be it older or younger] discussing the finer points of a product,company, design etc...

It was known that you could score wonderful, WELL MAINTAINED audio and video products sold at a fair price and with confidence that the person who sold you that item would stand behind it!!

It was the CULTURE of Audiogon that made it so very special to me, in fact it has been on my radar every day since i joined!

I have been a seller, buyer, trader, cartridge seller and have noticed disturbing trends:
Seems if anything is mark "USED", even 5 minuted old, it should, at best, garner only 50%
Lowball offering has become rampant here,trying to then add insult to injury by asking the seller to pay shipping!
Nasty,curt e-mails without any simple courtesy and professionalism...Now i am painting with a broad brush BUT all of these negatives , and more i will not go into from this vein, have reduced this site to a "virtual close out Wharehouse" of close out merchandise or find your ads not even getting a question about your ad!!

I for one enjoy the banter with long time posters, some of who have earned my respect with they're
 witty yet insightful comments...

Has anyone else felt Audiogon's best days have come and gone if we follow the present template?
Thanks and keep the responses civil and helpful please!

128x128azjake
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
+1 tboooe, I remember those days well Tommy!

The constant rotation of gear got me dizzy sometimes. I still recall a time, probably around +/- 10 years ago, when I had (4) high end preamplifiers in my home for a shoot out. List prices ranged from around $7K to $10K each, and I had bought them all and was using my patented Audiogon "Buy N' Try" methodology. I kept one, sold the other 3 within a month. Nothing like trying gear for your own ears, in your own room.

Crazy days when I look back on it. Sometimes I do miss it, but for the most part I'm happier settling down these days. I think the higher advertising prices, as well as the economy, has slowed down the market. It was easier flipping gear around when an ad was only $2.
tboooe's avatar
tboooe
1,009 posts
 
patented Audiogon "Buy N’ Try" methodology

HA HA HA! So I owe all of this to you! I must admit that at times back then I felt like I was single handedly supporting the audiophile industry with all my purchases.  Those were the good ol’ days for sure John! If I am honest with myself, half (if not more) the fun for me is trying out new gear. I am a total gear nerd so when my system gets a bit stable I lose interest so I am constantly trying to find ways to keep my system fresh by learning about new technologies. The phrase "just enjoy the music" does not really apply to me. LOL! Unfortunately, the scope and scale of my "upgrades" are now more in the sub $1000 range versus what it used to be where I would spend upwards to $15k without even thinking about it. This new world order for me has as much to do with my audiophile maturity as it does having growing kids and a retirement account that is nowhere near where it needs to be!

Practically speaking this method allowed me to try out lots of different gear in my home with very little downside. Many times, I was able to sell my gear for at least what I paid for it. At one point I had the MBL, ARC, and BAT preamps in my home. Whats even more nuts was that I also had the Ayre MX-R and Pass Lab XA-160 monoblocks as well. I think I had over $40K committed to gear but I was not concerned at all about being able to sell everything. I recall the person who bought my Pass XA-160 amps were actually a janitor at a local high school! No idea how he was able to afford those amps.

mitch2
4,042 posts
 
I am so tired of reading how someone got offended by a low-ball offer.
  +1 rockadanny

John and Tommy, I too miss the free-wheelin days of buying and selling.  Probably lost a little money overall but I had about 25 preamps through here before finding "the perfect fit."  I am in the middle of a little buy and try with amplifiers now but thank goodness I am better able to afford it because the resale is not a sure thing, even with very good gear.

As to the forums, things may be a bit different now but I sense similar changes at A-Asylum too so that may be more attributable to changing times than to changes in administration of this site.  With the advent of i-everything, folks seem to communicate a little differently.....e-communication is no longer new and fresh.  
gbmcleod
477 posts
 
I agree with the original poster, although it's always subjective as to how far "downward" the site has drifted. Some would say a little bit, some would say a lot.
I do know that before 2007, I had never had anyone scam me, but it has happened 3 times in the past 7 years. Is that a little or a lot? A perspective of the people who were here 14 or 15 years ago adds insight to the original question. How long have the posters been on this site? I've been here almost 14 years. I like the site, but am still not a fan of the change several years back when it was more of a "gentleman's site" but was then clearly changed to "corporate mentality" in that say, a buyer is FORCED to use Paypal for buying, and cannot send a check, which means the site has an mutually beneficial arrangement with Paypal. (Does anyone wish to dispute that?) THAT part of it feels like cattle being herded.
Manners are certainly less in evidence than 13  years ago,  but that's been evident since technology has risen. People are just more curt, period. 
I wholeheartedly agree about people's buying habits when you are the seller: they do seem to want to buy something right off the bat $100 less than you are advertising for. In that case, I use the Nancy Reagan mantra: I just say "no."

salectric
755 posts
 
Lots of good observations in this thread.  Yes, the old sense of community at Audiogon has changed, and not for the better.  Yes, the hobbyist orientation of the Audiogon ads has changed so that today a high percentage are dealers.  Yes, there are more scammers today among the Audiogon buyers and sellers.  But then similar changes have occurred at other audio sites as well so the change in Audiogon ownership is not solely responsible.  The bottom line for me is that the Audiogon forums are still useful (even if the quality of posts is not what it once was) and the ads are still a good place for buying used equipment.  

However, for selling items, Audiogon is no longer my first place to run an ad due to the fees and restrictive policies of the new management.  For me the Audio Asylum classifieds are now the first place for trying to sell.  They don't have as many views and it may take longer to sell something, but so far I have been able to sell the items I have listed and each experience has been a positive one.  There are other alternative sites as well.  

So while things have changed, there is no benefit in complaining about how the old days were so much better.  Embrace the present.  Appreciate Audiogon for what it has to offer, but at the same time explore other options for both ads and forums.  This is not the only game in town.
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