Do you buy new, used or new or used gear?

both. i prefer used gear, buying at resale value. sometimes its economics, sometimes its because what i want was manufacured decades ago, and sometimes its the bargain. in addition, i dont always wnt to keep something so much as experience using it. much of the fun is trying something new to me, be it records or a phono state or whatever. 

this can be time consuming. asking prices are often nowhere close to value, so it requires a lot of patience or a lot of acquaintances who actually want to sell something. 

ive bought a few things new--rega turntable, van alstine phono stage, tavish phono amp, but most of what ive bought new is kits. 

My system is based on a refurb amplifier from the manufacturer, new speakers bought at a discount on ebay and a purchased new 26 year old sub, I tend to buy used source equipment but am not willing to buy used amplification or speakers older than 10 years.

I would buy new, used, even demonstrators as long as they worked correctly, and cosmetically they dont' have scratches.

Electronics don't wear out like a car.

@cey 

this can be time consuming. asking prices are often nowhere close to value, so it requires a lot of patience or a lot of acquaintances who actually want to sell something

Yes, absolutely.  Stereo gear is like a car... it loses a lot of it's value when you open the box.  If you bought an amp for $10K, use it a year, to me, that's worth about $4K as long as everything is in order and it comes with the original box (primarily because I won't have a warranty).  But when I look online, guys want 80% of the original cost, for something that's still being made, which is unserious.

I prefer to buy equipment new or used based on how fast the technology is changing. Amps and dynamic speakers tend to be pretty mature tech so buying used works for me. Digital, power conditioners and cables are all evolving pretty rapidly and I am too impatient to wait for used gear. It is in these areas where I lose money (have to add new money to the hobby).