Resale value of modded CD players?

I disagree,

I think it comes down to who mod's the unit. For example Dan Wright, Stan Warren, Underwood, etc.; They have proven that their mods can bring "underachieving" or good players up quite a few notches, provide quality workmanship as well as excellent service. They just don't go willy-nilly and do a mod for the sake of modding, they think it through and do evaluations for results.

Now, if some Audiogon member did a mod, an extensive one and not just something simple like a cap upgrade, I would be hesitant.

Regards,

I have sold two moded units thus far. I think that 50% is unduly low. On average these two got about 65% of new price. Much is going to depend on demand, of course.

That pretty much sums it up: some people don't want to even begin to deal with mods. Others are cautiously interested, depending on whether the mod was done by a "name" (Mitch Sugarman comes to mind for me), or whether the mod was very simple and obviously a benefit.

Also there are certain components that are very frequently modified and the nature of the mods has become fairly well known. I purchased a modified EAR 834 phono stage, compared it to my unmodified one, and was frankly blown away at how much better the modified one was (even that I loved the stock model). HOWEVER, the price I paid for the modified one probably had a premium of maybe one quarter or less the likely cost of the mod (getting around to your actual question!).

Art

Traditionally, mods don't recoup much of the investment on resale. I've been on both ends of it, selling units I had modified and buying units modified by someone else.
First, who performs the mod is critical. For instance, a Steve McCormack mod of a McCormack amp will bring back more of the money invested than a mod by just a mod company. I've been invloved with deals involving units modded by EAD, Mod Squad, and GNSC, in each case the resale recovered about 20-40% of the money invested in the mod. Not a particularly good investment.

I do feel the mods make a sonic improvement, but I won't eat the cost of having the mod performed, any more than I will pay full list price on new. It's just not a good investment. I will buy used equipment that has been modded by a professional that I respect. I wouldn't look twice at an amateur mod though.

Cheers,
John