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Buy a pair of ten year old $40,000 speakers for $4,000 or new ones at that price point?

Hi. There are bargains to be had on really high-end components that are more than a few years old. DACs change too much and we need the newer technology. How about speakers? I know it can depend on the specific model but in general is a 10 year old speaker system that was $40,000 in 2009 and now sells for $4,000 a better value than a new system that sells for $4,000 in 2019?  How much has speaker and crossover technology evolved in the past decade or so? (I posted a similar questions about amps in that forum). Thanks for all the input and wisdom.
mcmanus
kenjit
1,771 posts
 
it depends what you mean by bargain. Some speakers are so overpriced to begin with that even if it was a fraction of the price it would still be overpriced.

snapsc
661 posts
 
From my perspective, there we very good loudspeakers made 10 years ago that easily compete with loudspeakers made today....BUT...how much risk are you willing to take.....


Its likely that someone who bought a $40k speaker 10 years ago and is selling it now took pretty good care of it.  But its unlikely that the price has dropped 90% unless there is an issue... Nevertheless, the question remains how much deterioration has occurred over 10 years to the loudspeaker's surrounds and internal electronic components...and if there is a problem, can they be easily and cost effectively repaired or has the company gone out of business and/or shipping would cost a small fortune.
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