Refuse to buy used: Are my fears justified?

[Holme]

Depends on what you're after really-

On one hand you're always going to get a nearly new,mint amp that someone bought blindly & wish they hadn't - or are just plain skint!

It's when you get onto the vintage gear I'd be ALOT more cautious!

 

[mountain2012]

I think going in, you should expect to put around $300 minimum into a used amp, having it retubed & inspected & up to spec.

That should be figured into the price you're willing to pay.

THREE HUNDRED? Really? That seems like a lot!

On the other hand there are many of us who know exactly what we are purchasing when buying used, and will often times purchase used items just for one particular part.

Have you ever purchased an amp for the part, taken that part out, replaced it with another part, then sold it to someone after letting them know you replaced it? Have you ever sold it without telling them you replaced it?

 

[Silverburst]

95% of my gear is used stuff. And most of that looks like brand spanking new. There's a lot of people out there that have too much money, change their mind every 3 months or so and put stuff for sale that has seen less daylight than a demo gear in a shop.

For vintage stuff it is a bit different, always a bit of a guess. And some sellers are just plain clumsy and do mods like frankenstein or I don't know what, but somehow you can spot that most of the time I even had plenty of amps and guitars, expensive ones shipped over from US and UK. 1/10 I had a problem but the rest was top notch, never been ripped. Or I am naive and incredibly lucky, or I feel what kind of person I'm dealing with

the 1/10 just for fun: A 6100LM, only wrapped in bubble plastic, NOTHING else, came across from UK. It took a few bumps yes, didn't see that one coming, what an ultra dumb seller. mygawd. luckily it was sold cheap so I had it completely refinished like new, full retube, and completely checked by a tech as a restoration project. Learned ä "few" things and luckily didn't loose that much money on it. (the lessons I learned were MORE valuable for this one time case)

 

[duncan11]

Depends on what you're after really-

On one hand you're always going to get a nearly new,mint amp that someone bought blindly & wish they hadn't - or are just plain skint!

It's when you get onto the vintage gear I'd be ALOT more cautious!

Yes. I've bought used, and generally i don't but I snagged a good deal on a used 4x12 (it had a blown speaker which I found out 2 days later...) and played thru some very nice sounding used amps in my day. My rule of thumb, if it sounds good and there are no major issues with it I'll take the chance. I've also seen a lot of shite being pushed off as 'excellent condition' when it clearly has issues. All depends on the seller.

And yes on the bold part. If you're going for that type, school yourself up massively on what you are after. I was gunnin for a 58 strat about a month ago, I deduced it had a refret and dead mid pu, which the seller refused to acknowledge. They were hard up not to lose any $$ by dropping the price as they priced it at what an all original one would be. When I proved to them the things that were wrong, they were so arrogant they didn't want to sell, so screw them, they lost the sale. They will NEVER get their 20,500 they have in it, not in present condition. I offered them between 15-17K and they refused. Well their lies about someone else wanting it were BS, as it's back on their sale site. They could have had the sale but their arrogance got the better of them, screw them then, their loss. They've gotten enough $$ from me lately anyway.

 

[Frankie]

Someone has to buy these amps new so that the rest of us can get killer deals on the used market. Don't talk him out of it!

 

[Esc]

I would guess over half the people who buy and sell amps only do so with amps in excellent condition. Fear not my man, if it looks and sounds taken care of then its likely ready for its next 20 years of fun.

 

[Frankie]

If buying used and vintage (where it matters if the amp is stock) just have the amp looked over by a tech. If the seller isn't willing to let you take it to a tech before purchase, well, he's probably shady and then you shouldn't buy said amp on principle. When dealing with vintage Marshalls we're talking about a decent chunk of money. Anybody willing to sell something worth that much should be willing to let you have it checked out by a tech. You wouldn't buy a used car without letting a mechanic eyeball it, right?

 

[GIBSON67]

I've never bought a new amp in my life...who can afford those prices?

 

[Frankie]

I actually did get to enjoy the purchase of a new amp once in my life, and it was my AC30. Best Buy made a huge error on the prices on those, so I snagged one up before they noticed. I will say, after years of buying/selling used amps it was kinda nice to open the box and unwrap a brand new amp from the plastic. Otherwise I never buy new. Why would I pay $1299.99 for a DSL 100 when I can pick up a used one, completely stock and in perfect condition, for $600?

 

[meridiansystem]

Buying used is the way forward. I walk into any guitar shop and the first place I go... is to the back.

And like others have mentioned, I can't buy the stuff I look for new anymore. (Unless it's been sitting on a shelf for the last 35 years).

Give me your vintage, your road-worn, your bent,
Give me your mildewed, all covered with dents.

 

[Coronado]

I agree with SpiritDave - not only would most owners not know they could mod an amp, most may not know they just bought a modded amp.

Also agree with Frankie - thanks to all those who buy new amps so we can pick up good deals when they offload them!

 

[Heritage Softail]

I buy 80% used in great shape at 60% of new price usually. I spend most of my online time on Rig Talk and have bought many guitars, amps, and pedals.

The main thing is to buy from long term members with a good rep, get pics of anything you are concerned about.

 

[Dogs of Doom]

I think going in, you should expect to put around $300 minimum into a used amp, having it retubed & inspected & up to spec.

That should be figured into the price you're willing to pay.

THREE HUNDRED? Really? That seems like a lot!

While it may seem like a lot, you really need to factor that in to the price. If you're buying a head, paying $500-800 then being prepared to put around $300 into it gives you the real price.

Now, if I was buying an amp from Sigi, & he said that it was like brand new, new tubes, etc., I wouldn't be thinking about dropping cash into it immediately, but I do know that tubes can go at any time. How much does a matching quad of power tubes go? What about 4-5 NOS tubes by Telefunken, Raytheon, Mullard or Genalex go for? What does it cost to have a tech give it a good look over & bring to spec?

I'd rather do what's necessary at the time of purchase, than taking my chances & blowing something to make my $500+ purchase a paperweight & cost considerably more to fix.

By factoring that in, it prompts you to look for better deals on more pristine equipment, rather than just paying a seller's premium on subpar stuff...

 

[mountain2012]

If you have to put $300 into a used amp, then it doesn't seem worth it unless the used amp model sells for $1000 plus new.

Would you say that $300 estimate is liberal or conservative?

How much would you say a re-tubing, bias adjustment, tune up, and look over would cost from a tech (no other repairs), minus the cost of the tubes?

 

[Dogs of Doom]

My estimate tubes are included & I stated $300+.

Point is, if you don't have to, then the deal is just that much sweeter, but how many people will lie & tell you they just got it retubed, just to sell it off?

It's like buying a used car. Always change the oil, sparkplugs, etc.

That way you know it's been done, not relying on someone hard up for your money's word.

If the amp costs only $300 more for a new one, w/ warranty & assurance everything is brand new, IMO, it's a no brainier - buy the new...

 

[Adrian R]

My estimate tubes are included & I stated $300+.

Point is, if you don't have to, then the deal is just that much sweeter, but how many people will lie & tell you they just got it retubed, just to sell it off?

It's like buying a used car. Always change the oil, sparkplugs, etc.

That way you know it's been done, not relying on someone hard up for your money's word.

If the amp costs only $300 more for a new one, w/ warranty & assurance everything is brand new, IMO, it's a no brainier - buy the new...

All I can say is that I bought probably bought 12 used heads or so since 2003..and I put no where NEAR $300.00 into them..maybe $100.00 max ($45.00 on average always replacing tubes)...all of these heads were purchased in the $4-700.00 range...all were great experiences and most of them were sold of for a profit or at least a 'break-even' scenario! Just use a bit of common sense and you should be okay... Besides a 'used' head is NEW TO ME man..this is key..

 

[Dogs of Doom]

.maybe $100.00 max ($45.00 on average always replacing tubes)...

must buy cheap tubes...

4-5 12AX7s + 4 EL34s, you're spending less than $8/ea, even for power tubes...

 

[lucidspoon]

I wanted my first tube amp to be new just because I wouldn't have known enough about if it was my fault if something went wrong.

Now that I have a solid set of amps that I'm the first owner of, I'd have no problem buying used. Even if I get a lemon, at least I have my reliable ones that I know nobody else has touched.

 

[chinesexrocks]

In my opinion, buy new online, buy used in person, I've bought tons of used stuff online, and it ALWAYS has to be sent back because of damage I didn't know about, or it just wasn't what I expected, an I've wasted a lot of money in shipping by doing this. But, to each his own, I know there are a lot of great used offers out there, and I still to this day look on ebay for old vintage pedals and guitars that I might want, still haven't seem anything that I can't live without though. If you can't try it out in person, you'll never know what you're going to get, and typically anything that's new, you can usually find it at a retailer and try it out.

 

[custom53]

I purchased every one of my amps used.. And I have had no problems what so ever.. With the exception of tube changes (after quite a few years of playing thru the ones I did change out)..

Just my 2 cents..