are we are own worst enemies?

Jazz_nut - that's the point, though - if a local dealer has a trade-in and is asking $6500 for that same amp, why would somebody buy it from an individual over the internet at the same price? There's a lot of things that can go wrong, which are offset by getting a VERY good price. You mitigate the risk by buying from somebody you know and paying a bit more.

I know what you're getting at - I have bought some mint pieces from individuals that could have been fairly priced higher, knowing what I came to know after the purchase. But I've seen other things that sounded as good in the ads that didn't turn out to be as good, so you have to average it all out. If you have a truly mint piece, you can probably get a bit more by following the marketing advice given earlier in the thread - go out of your way to make contact with a potential buyer and be sure they know "mint" means MINT. -Kirk

jazz_nut: a couple of points. first, you've got a greedy dealer if you get a discount of only 10%. you should expect 20-25%; if you don't get it, shop elsewhere. second, in reply to other posts, the typical highend dealer price is 60 points, meaning a $10,000 MSRP product costs the dealer $6,000 + shipping. as already correctly noted, wire is sold at 40-50 points to the dealer. so, if you trade with a decent dealer and pay $7,500 for a $10,000 product, do you REALLY think it's worth $6,000-6,500 used? i don't, especially if its outmoded by a newer model. -kelly

Cornfedboy, where do you get 25% off? I will soon be in the market for an audio reseasrch vt200mk2 and a reference 2mk2. Can you get me 25 or 30% off retail?

Thank-you Cornfed for stating my responce in the right way. The numbers I was trying to state are the same as Kelly's, I think my lingo is wrong. I agree with the statement that if you can't get 20-25% off than look elsewhere, once you learn to buy at an acceptable price the used prices will make sense too.

If you are buying audio gear to resell in a few months or so, then buy well-known, well-reviewed gear (i.e. Krell, Mark Levinson, Wilson Audio, etc.) -or a hot ticket or hard to get items (i.e. latest technology, raved by reviewers, etc.). In this case, it doesn't have to sound the best, it just has to be in demand.

On the other hand, if you are buying audio gear to put together a system that you plan to keep for a number of years, then you will get your money's worth out of it from extensive use, and you will wait (and perhaps even turn down a few reasonable offers) until someone wants to buy it from you for a price that you are willing to sell it for -because you had just as soon keep your system because it gives you a satisfying musical experience. In this case it doesn't have to be the most popular (due to minimal advertising campaigns), it just sounds good to you.