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Merason dac MK1 on audio mart

Well, all good things must come to an end. I got conned on a recent audio mart listing on the Merason dac MK1, which I’ve been wanting, and jumped on it when I saw it. Turns out it’s a multi-person fraud ring. Be warned as the seller had good feedback, which I realize now anyone can do, especially if it’s organized. Just spoke with pay pal and they let me know there is already a flag on this seller from someone else and they are investigating.

Once the payment went through, all of a sudden, the communication completely changed to awkward old english with misspellings and a claim that the seller was out of the country and coming in a week. With so many red flags I immediately knew what must be happening and asked for a refund, which was refused. And then the seller said he sent me several emails saying he was out of the country, which isn’t true and isn’t even in the thread that we had, which proves it.

Hope this helps, as I don’t want anyone else to have this happen to them.

chason678
dz13
249 posts
 

@chason678  Thanks for the heads up. It was something I was potentially thinking about. Have you flagged his ad on USAudioMart?

lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,531 posts
 

Sorry this happened to you. 200 plus new ads each day on USAM, not all of them are crooks. You gotta do your due diligence when buying used stuff and this does not limit to audio. 

lak's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
lak
4,642 posts
 

Sellers moniker?

northman
251 posts
 

Grrr. OP, it sounds like you communicated with the seller and reviewed his feedback. I'm glad that PayPal is on the case. I think the real lesson is that no one should use PayPal F&F unless you know the seller. 

ddafoe
246 posts
 

If someone has good feedback and the initial communication feels legit (e.g. they can answer questions on the product and seem to understand audio gear and the general jargon), what are the other forms of "due diligence"?    I've used phone calls a few times to get a better feeling about the risk involved, but that is no guarantee either.

The sad part is more and more sellers are refusing to accept PayPal G&S which makes purchasing big ticket items a lot more riskier.  I get it, I don't like the 1099-K forms either or the possibility a buyer makes a bogus claim to void the deal after the fact, but it definitely limits what sale ads I'll consider making a purchase on.  Personally, I've started to accept the fact that paying a bit more for a used item from a dealer or valid re-seller is maybe worth it in certain cases...

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