How to dispose of your system?

I consider myself a realist (some would say a pessimist, I'm sure)...

Assuming that those of us thinking about this issue / asking the question still have another 20 -25 years of life in them, and are not contemplating selling out in the very near future...

There's a 75% probability (IMO, and just a figure off the top of my head) that it's all going to either go to the landfill or be sold as a lot for pennies on the dollar.

Why? Because TODAY the pool of hobbyists / interested buyers & sellers of high end audio equipment is already half of what it was 20 years ago... 20 - 25 years from now, it will be 10% of what it is TODAY. The market will simply dwindle down to almost nothing, like it or not.

Next factor, the overwhelming majority of people left in 20+ years with any interest at all will be in 3 categories:

1) the remaining old fogeys like us who grew up with this equipment but who, for the most part, will be too old / too poor to be in a position to spend exorbitant sums of money on purchasing your estate equipment. They will be too busy clinging to their own hoard, all the while proclaiming "I don't care what anyone says - I won't selling for less than I paid for it - and if I can't get my price, I ain't selling!;

2) Wealthy individuals of any age who - if they have any interest at all - will be much more likely to simply purchase new, and have little to no interest in what will be seen as antiquated equipment by then;

3) A very small slice of younger people who might have interest in 'vintage audio' the way some of us do today. A further negative will be that the pool of people with the ability or qualifications and equipment needed to REPAIR / RESTORE electronics will be even smaller than it is today... again, probably by a factor of 5 - 10.

My personal opinion  / advice for those who got into this at least in part as an "investment / for retirement"...

Start planning for a sale within the next few years, max. The longer you hold out the less you will get for your gear; and the greater a chance that it may literally just be thrown away.

The silver lining? You will be dead - and will not know, or care, by then...

@carlso63 ”The longer you hold out the less you will get for your”…..

Has anyone thought about the hardware you play on your gear?
The now true value of your many years of gathering the music you love?

As an experienced example, l believe that with the type of diverse music in my collectible CD and LP library, it has in real terms carried on depreciating in value each year. Those same like minded buyers/collectors out there are all dying off too. The value of music in the resale market is collapsing along with the audiophile base. Less suitable buyers equals diminishing returns.

Spot on carlso63

Well I submitted a list of my equipment to TMR.

They offered me $6500 for a system I paid about 35K for.  That includes coming to my home and removing all pieces.  I think that may be the best solution for the problem when it comes time to sell, even though they’ll be making quite a profit.

@mylogic  -

Yes, and that is a problem that many hobbyists in many genres are simply blind to.

Speaking for myself, I have always tried to keep the mentality that I am involved in a hobby for the interest I have and for the pleasure it brings me... and that any financial gain that MAY come about (flipping equipment, etc.) is to be looked at as temporary, individual transactions that turned out in my favor... and NOT as part of some "investment strategy"...

I just see many, many of us out there who think their stash of audio equipment (or that rusted out 1960s car under the tarp in their driveway, as another example) is the literal equivalent of bars of gold - and it is a given that their "gold" will always be in demand, and always appreciate in value. And, furthermore, anyone expressing ANY other opinion is simply someone who is "just trying to steal my precious..." (say that in your head in the voice of Gollum to get the full effect, LOL).  

While I acknowledge that TODAY your equipment definitely has at least some value... the notion that A) it will still have value tomorrow and B) that value will be greater than it is today... is nothing more than a gamble. To believe otherwise is just stubbornness; and (to an extent) greed.

And the expectation that any heirs you ahve are going to curry up the same level of interest or enthusiasm is simply ludicrous.

@rvpiano The other option you have with TMR which likely produces a better return is to consign the equipment for TMR to sell. They take a healthy commission-maybe 35%-but still quite a bit better than an outright sale to TMR. If the gear is in good shape and in reasonable demand, its likely to sell in a few weeks. TMR will test the equipment, put it on the website, and deal with buyers both before and after the sale. That's really important to me-I don't want my daughters burdened with dealing with an unhappy or unscrupulous buyer.

I have no rooting interest in TMR, but I think it offers a good service in turning surplus equipment into cash.