VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Bruce

I've gotten the feeling here over the years that most people have had good experiences, by and large, buying used pro audio gear through EBay. Maybe it's time to do an update. Would you care to share a quick glimpse of your experience? Maybe a rough estimate of how many things you've bought and how many were as good or better than expected and how many were bad?

I bought two things years ago, a fancy phone patch and a 416 shotgun mic and both still work well.

B
_________________
VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

captain54 · Lucky 700 Joined: 30 Jan 2006 Posts: 744 Location: chicago

my experience has been about 50/50....I purchase thru Pay Pal buyer Credit, which has saved my butt many a time

todd ellis · Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 9:44 am Post subject:

i have bought a LOT of gear on ebay - being a fairly early adopter in 1997. here are the rules i give folks who ask. (i know you didn't - but here they are anyway).

1. make sure you ABSOLUTELY know the shipping fees
2. read feedback on the seller
3. ask about their return policy
4. maintain good communication

i have only been hosed twice - and out of that the ebay mediation process helped me handle one of them.
_________________
"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

ronharpervoice · Club 300 Joined: 23 Jan 2007 Posts: 347 Location: Ohio

I bought a lot a few years ago: my Symetrix, a DAT and reel to reel machine Pretty good experiences overall. I might also add while you're doing your homework on the seller to take a look at what they have bought and sold in the past I think you can do that for the past 90 days. That sometimes gives you an insight into the seller. Once I found a piece of gear I wanted, and looked back to discover he had purchased it from someone else within a month and was trying to turn it around. He wasn't familiar with the piece, and I didn't want to buy someone else's problems.
_________________
"When I was your age, we had to dial to get online"
===============
www.ronharper.com
www.ronharper.com/blog
www.videosonyourwebsite.com

chuckweis · Contributor IV Joined: 27 Feb 2008 Posts: 136

Have bought several pieces of gear on E-bay (private party used, and dealer new.) Never have had an issue, except one tiny thing where a guy sent me the wrong shock mount, then promptly took care of it for me. I've especially enjoyed the savings of new items from dealers on there (on mics and pres.) Make sure they don't charge some ridiculous percentage for "restocking" fees though.

Mike Sommer · Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 11:33 pm Post subject:

I've bought lots of great used gear on Ebay, and have had only one or two issues, but the sellers were more than accommodating.

If a seller claims that they have no way of testing an item, then take that as a warning, and be prepared.

Ask lost of questions, ask for audio samples.

I try to buy from sellers that specialize in audio or electronics. Look through there ratings, and the other items that they are selling; you'll understand quickly if you are buying from someone who is just selling STUFF, or is an audio person.

Don't get cough up in the heat of the moment, and if seems to good of a deal, then maybe it is. Read the fine print.

Happy hunting.
_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

Steve Knight · Posted: Sun May 15, 2011 8:08 am Post subject:

No issues for me either...although I no longer use the dbx-286 I bought...anyone interested?

Diane Maggipinto · Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 2:30 pm Post subject:

i got my dbx 586 on eBay a long time ago. it was without (much) strife. i used it, now i don't, i may again.

if you ever have any questions and need to ring for help, the eBay and paypal ivr systems (in the u.s.) are ME ... but that doesn't mean i can help you or really know what i'm talking about since i don't use eBay much at all.
_________________
sitting at #8, though not as present as I'd like to be. Hello!

www.d3voiceworks.com

Eddie Eagle · M&M Joined: 23 Apr 2008 Posts: 2393

Bought 2 mics there. no probs at all. Of course I was once a powerseller too with 5k+ transactions and 100%positive feedback so I know how to work the system.

Diane Maggipinto · Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 3:37 pm Post subject:

flyboy, you deserve 100% positive feedback
_________________
sitting at #8, though not as present as I'd like to be. Hello!

www.d3voiceworks.com

Eddie Eagle · M&M Joined: 23 Apr 2008 Posts: 2393

The Magic Pinto has SPOKEN!

thank you dear.

anthonyVO · 14th Avenue Joined: 09 Aug 2005 Posts: 1470 Location: NYC

Bob,

I bought my ISDN box, Telos Zephyr (and some other gear I no longer use - like synth modules, midi keyboard controllers, etc.,) on eBay. I made sure I looked at the rating and reviews (aiming for or close to 100%.) I also checked to make sure the seller's other listings were predominantly pro-audio gear.

'Never had any issues whatsoever. It's been mentioned before, but it's worth repeating - double check/calculate your shipping costs and shipper. That can ruin a "good buy."

-Anthony

scottreyns · Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2011 5:47 pm Post subject:

Mandatory full disclosure, firstly: My wife and various professional colleagues have previously worked for eBay.

OK, that said...

I buy gear on eBay all the time, and I tend to favor new gear unless it's something that's old enough to not be available as such anywhere anymore.

I do however scrutinize each listing I'm thinking about potentially bidding on very carefully before I do. I ask questions first if/as I have them too. I look for stuff like this:

Clear, comprehensive and detailed photos (e.g. showing serials, circuitry etc.)
Well-written descriptions, low on sales fluff and high on articulation.
Detailed specs and history if/as the kit is used.
Seller responsiveness and clarity of communication.
Original documentation - reg cards, warranty, receipt etc.
Original, unopened or barely-opened packaging if/as kit's new.
Sellers who insist Buyers have little or no negative feedback.
Sellers who insist buyers have confirmed / verified PayPal.
Sellers who have been on eBay for awhile.

Lastly half the money I spend if not more, it's on gear I buy there as it can rarely be found any other way. Sometimes it's pretty specialized i.e. modified / modification of whatever. Or it's just rare and niche-market, which could mean there's lots of competition for it or maybe very little at all because only so many people would care (but those who would, they would a lot). So all that tends to help too; sticking to stuff where Sellers of such items will likely know all that context hence err toward being professional and trustworthy.

I do buy things on eBay that are smaller purchases where I don't scrutinize as much, but in those cases I still stick to just buying new gear and from Sellers that have overwhelmingly good feedback and are moving lots of product all the time over eBay and/or amazon. Simple small stuff, often just via my phone, when I need to get it ordered and get it done. So that's like maintenance gear as opposed to investment gear.

So overall I've been pretty happy with it. Just always really careful. In 10+ years only been burned once, on some pitch/time editing software, which I did eventually get sorted out (though it was painful).
_________________
Scott Reyns, voice talent serving major metros (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York) and beyond

mediaking · Posted: Wed Jun 29, 2011 2:31 pm Post subject:

First piece of pro audio gear bought on eBay...Symmetric 528e processor. In 2007. Still works too.
_________________
www.jclsound.com
Hear It Right. Now.

BenWils · Posted: Thu Jul 07, 2011 8:10 am Post subject:

I bought my Xstream several years ago on ebay. That is about all I have ventured into the world of online auctions to buy for my studio. The rest was new stuff.

I know at least one person who had a (from what I could hear) a bad 416 that was purchased used. But I think Sennheiser ended up backing the product from what I was told and either fixed it or gave the person a new 416. I am not sure they would always do this. YMMV.
_________________
Ben

"To be really good at voiceover, you need to improve your footwork and hip snap."