|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
65.126.156.162
I have bought and sold many components on Augiogon over the years, so I didn't think it would be a stretch to sell a high-end music server PC I built recently. But this week I posted ads on Audiogon, AVSforum, and eBay, and so far have not received a single inquiry.Is the computer-audio community really this small? Building a quiet, high-performance music PC ain't easy, so I'm surprised no one is biting. Thoughts?
Follow Ups:
Well, the cost of the hardware and licensed software (I really did pay for it) is over $2k if purchased today on Newegg. The 400gb HD is brand new, and the other parts are not obsolete if you are going for low noise/low heat.But you guys are correct: I have not received a single offer.
Also, I have sold one other PC this way before, and the buyer nagged me for days for tech support, even though I'd had done a clean install of the OS. So any "mid-fi" buyer would probably need serious help. God knows it took me quite a while to get everything configured to my liking.
I put the Silverstone up for auction on eBay, so we'll see what happens. If I don't get the reserve, I'll sell the components individually. The irony is that I could do pretty well breaking the the PC up this way.
Perhaps this is why the high-end audio companies have not dabbled in this market. Quite scary.
Buddy,Heck you can buy a hush for like $800 now. A MacBook and an external firewire drive is like what $1200. A mac mini, 20" lcd matching hard drive, palm pilot etc less than what $1400.
If you are spending $2000 then somethings wrong. I can put together a great looking pc with os and linear supply for about $600-$800 with a 400Gb sata drive.
But really why would anyone buy it? They can go mailorder and get something cheaper and it works just the same.
If you are targeting high-end audiophiles, you're targeting a group of technical people who very likely already have built their own PC units. My guess is that your target will be mid-fi soccer-dads who want the latest audio stuff but don't know how to build it themselves. Be careful though, because you'll be competing with Apple and Microsoft.
Kind of like trying to sell DIY amps or speakers. If they can't read a review about it they don't want it or won't pay much for it.You are asking almost 80% of retail for a used piece that nobody knows much of anything about or have any idea if it works as promised. Your price is way too high, especially since most people aren't familiar with what you are offering or have any idea what it would cost to put it together. You didn't bother to list the retail price of each part so how does anybody know if retail is really that high?
A person knowledgeable about such devices will assume you listed the total of the retail prices of each component but you bought them for much less, especially the computer parts since they almost always sell for much less than retail. My server has eight 300 gig drives that retail for $150, but I was patient and bought them on sale for less than $100. I paid about 70% of retail for the whole box brand new. You want more than that used.
BTW excellent job of drawing attention to your ad on Audiogon.
DIY stuff may be fantastic, but it is rough on resale pricing. I'd figure no more than half of the legitimate street price (not list) of the components.
...further reduced by a technology obsolesence factor and likely the fact that someone who is into building their own would rather build their own and everyone else want a name brand.I think this is going to be a real tough sell even at 1/3 of what you are asking.
On the plus side you are only selling one of them.
nt
My hunch is that those who are insterestd in this are just doing it themselves.Others are buying from more reputable companies like VRS or Olive or Cambridge.
I would have serious reservations about buying something like this off of Agon since the biggest hiccup is software config. Who is going to be around to help?
I'm not surprised. Think of it as a used PC without the mouse, keyboard, monitor and speakers. Not trying to be coarse, but it has never been easy to sell used PC's.
> but it has never been easy to sell used PC's.Actually, not true. It is quite easy to sell them used. Tons of 'em sold on eBay every day. The catch is price. Nobody pays a premium for used computers.
True. Actually, you'll get more satisfaction donating them to needy friends or to your church. I build myself a new computer every February and usually spend about $1500. I end up giving them to friends for services rendered. I could sell it in EBay but it's just not worth the aggravation. Even if you build a state of the art computer, in about a year it’s considered main stream. In two years it’s considered entry level. In three years it’s a door stop. Used computers hold their value about as good as used underwear.
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: