I've had buyers drive from 400 to 900 miles to pick up a pair of used speakers and I've driven as much as 350 to buy a pair. Again, paypal is 4%, Agon is 4% shipping on a pair of floorstanding speakers on a pallet and insured will be expensive. Suppose we're shopping $20k speakers that we can find for $10k used, we're already at $800 in fees and say $1000 shipping curbside lift truck insured...now we're at $11800 or $8200 and still have to decide to trust the buyer/seller. If I want it I have a bank check drawn up and make the drive. If I'm not willing to make the drive I don't want it that bad or 1 of my local dealers comes down enough in price on the same product to get er done.
What to ask when buying used speakers?
I have purchased used components in the past and I can do this with confidence their functionality is well defined and easily verified. I am starting to look for a new set of speakers and will consider buying used. Assuming that I am doing this over distance and will not be able to inspect or demo the speakers in person, what are some good questions to ask to determine the real state of the speakers? Any red flags? Can used speakers have incurred subtle damages or wear that will affect the sound? For the sake of discussion, let's assume that they are less than five years old so we can rule out decaying surrounds and old caps, etc.
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Just an update here, I did end up purchasing a used pair of KEF Reference 1's from TMR. The feedback here was very helpful and allowed me to proceed with confidence. Granted it was pretty low risk as they were certified pre-owned and backed up by their guarantees. I have had them in place for four days now and they are a great upgrade from my LS50's. Having been a KEF listener for some time now, I was confident that I would like the sound. I have a list of speaker brands that I still want to hear and will be attending a show, likely AXPONA, in the spring to get an idea of other house sounds. The deal and the time were right with these speakers, and I am very happy with the results. Thanks again for all the feedback! |
@yyzsantabarbara The chain is a custom Pi/Allo streamer -> Schiit Gumby -> Benchmark LA4 -> Coda #8. I am now looking at upgrades for the streamer and the DAC is probably due. |
@zlone That is similar to what I use. I had the LA4 and #8. I now use the LA4 and #16. My DAC is the Schitt Yggi+ Less Is More. We have a very similar setup. I have had 3 fibre based streamers in the house and all 3 are an easy recommendation:
I think the Yggi+ is the best sounding DAC I have had but the Lumin X1 is a great all-round choice for streamer, DAC, and maybe even preamp. The Leedh volume control is almost as good as the volume on the LA4.
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