hifi as investment?

I suspected vinyl. I have no experience there, but the I've seen that the 80s LP12s and the like are still commanding a lot of respect.

IMHO audio would be a terrible investment, or alternate currency, compared to mutual funds, the stock market, real estate, or investing in classes or an advanced degree to further yourself in your chosen profession. Most of us are in this because we like the music, and occasionally (or even frequently) have a jones to improve our systems to approach whatever "the absolute sound" means to us. You have been fortunate to break even or make a profit on your transactions, and I am sure some here are in it for that reason. However, in my experience, when you throw in your time to pack and ship, shipping and insurance charges, the time to deal with sellers and buyers, the time to search the web for the best deals, and the risk (nothing is risk free) of being defrauded or losing on shipping damage, you would likely do better in any number of "businesses." I feel I have been fortunate to do ok at this by buying only components I wanted to upgrade my system, sticking to items in good condition, being patient when both buying or selling, getting to know the sellers I am buying from, and walking if things do not sound right. Even so, I have had 3 deals where I felt the item was not in the condition advertised, and 2 deals with shipping damage. The shipping damage deals turned out alright (after significant time involvement) and one of the disputed condition items turned out alright after I e-mailed pictures to the seller (who had been selling for a relative and had not seen the item). On the other 2 deals, I took a loss on resale since I described the item honestly and accurately. Believe me, you will do better to simply have fun with this, enjoy your successes, take your disappointments with a grain of salt, and find a better way to make money.

as if not outright then by receiving an item which is not in the condition advertised

I learned a valueable lesson from a shrewd business man years ago He told me you don't make money when you sell something you make money when you buy something it took a while but it finally sunk in the profit or loss is determined when you buy it " buy low sell hi-fi" just a thought you should consider the investment in the pleasure that good music brings you anything else is icing on a very sweet cake

Wheeler: As a case in point regarding the Marantz gear, i recently traded my original Marantz 8 ( serial number just above 1000 ) that was in very good shape for some test equipment. While the Marantz 8 is an item that seems to be in less demand than the 8B, an 8 in good shape would draw somewhere between $800 - $1200 on the used market with the 8B drawing several hundred dollars more. Due to the condition of the 8 that i had, a local collector had been interested in this unit ever since seeing it. When all was said and done, he ended trading me some test gear that would sell for over $2000 in current condition. Since i had paid considerably less for this unit, the "investment" that i made in this piece did pay off.

Having said that, this is a rare case of planning ahead and finding a good deal when i initially purchased this unit. As Jdevine stated above, if you can buy low and sell high, you'll do okay. I've been involved in quite a few transactions and never really been "stung" without everything working out okay in the long run. Just take into account that there are bound to be mishaps in shipping, items that are misrepresented, etc... On top of this, you may end up with a less than satisfying system musically as products that may hold their value individually may not work together as a system synergistically. Then again, we all have different priorities and ideas as to what "sounds good", so have at it. So long as it makes you happy ( one way or the other ), that's all that counts. Sean
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I always consider the "deal" when purchasing used equipment. I certainly don't plan to make money if I later sell the piece of equipment, however, I do intend to cut my potential loses on each piece.

My plan is to always buy "desirable" components with original packaging and only if it is fairly priced. I have bought several pieces like this that just didn't work well in my room. I re-sold them for little or no loss. For me, this is a great way to try lots of different equipment.

If this is a goal for you, I would highly suggest keeping an eye on what products regularly get recommended in their respective catagories and learn what the "real world" prices are for these pieces.

As an example, I bought a pair of perfect Reference 3A MM DeCapos when saw them listed for $1000. For me, this was a no brainer. I had wanted to hear a pair in my room and I knew I could re-sell them for a profit or at least with zero loss. Anyway, they are still in my system. I consider them a great investment.

Enjoy,

TIC