advertisement


££ Retro Bongo ££

TheDecameron

TheDecameron

Unicorns fart glitter.
Its interesting, that with age, you see old budget stuff recycled, venerated, overpriced and offered for your delectation. S- shaped tone arms with bearings you could pass a copy HiFiNews between come particularly to mind. If it was a turnip then, it's still one today- a rotten one.
 
Some stuff is overvalued for sure, though I'd also argue there are still some real bargains (e.g. big IMF speakers, certain LP12 competitors etc). If you are referring specifically to the Linn LVV I think the reason those have eventually found some favour is they are apparently fairly easy to fit to a Lenco. The general trend is certainly upwards though, fairly common stuff (e.g. Ditton 15s, A60s, Quad electronics etc) have all seen significant rises over the past couple of years. It's an interesting marketplace. The thing that seems weird to me is the price vs. condition ratio with obviously tatty examples of some kit making way too much money. I'd expect it to be like vinyl where M/M is worth shedloads and a G/G is pretty much valueless. I just tend to keep looking until a close to mint example of whatever I'm after turns up.
 
The intriguing thing is that some stuff is unchanged from 15 years ago, while others have really taken off.

The stickers: Thorens 150 - £75 back then, same now.
Quad ESL57s - £400/pair then, unchanged.
Troughline - £75 then, same now.

The huge sellers: Garrard 401, was £100, now £500.
SME 3009 - I picked up a few at under £50, these days they sell at £150+
Linn LP12 - probably doubled across the range.
Naim - all way up.
Leak valve amps, Quad IIs.

Others are just jogging along. Lenco are just now waking up. I've not seen Quad 33-303s move for years, maybe a few quid here and there.
 
Someone got £980 for a Quad serviced wood sleeved 33/FM3/303 the other day (link)! I suspect that will be a record for some time, but prices do look to be edging up to me with even rather tatty examples selling.
 
This site contains affiliate links for which pink fish media may be compensated.
Wow, that's mad. At the same time there are unsleeved 33/303 at £150 with a couple of hours to go, maybe they will hit £200. They were £100-150 15 years ago.

What I can't understand is why some stuff languishes and other gear which is no better (and certainly no different to what it was 15 years ago) goes for a fortune. Cars are the same - Datsun 240Z/260Z were great cars but little regarded and cheap 20 years ago, now silly money. Same with Fulvias and Alfas. Meanwhile 70s Spitfires and Midgets are just bumping along. Why?
 
The ls3/5a is the exemplar, with barrow boys now looking for thier next bubble. You have to laugh at some of the prices asked for anything with a Rogers sticker on it or anything with the approximate dimensions of a 3/5a from a British manufacturer.
 
Wish I'd got a mint boxed pair sitting around though. Another opportunity missed. Most LS3/5As hitting eBay of late look remarkably tatty to me.
 
I think I must have read a review of some retro British stuff in one of this months mags before starting this thread. I borrowed one of the reviewed items in question while my own preamp was getting serviced many years ago and it was shockingly bad. Imagine buying a knackered 25 year old one today.
 
As I recently mentioned in another thread I've had to pretty much give up on finding a tatty, non functioning 303 going for V cheap for me to experiment on....
Working ones in decent (but not mint condition) seem to go for about £170 (140 - 200) but even non working ones with scratches all over them are still fetching £90 - £120! I aint paying more than £50 for a non working tatty one! Which means I probably will remain Quad less....
 
stevec67 said:
The intriguing thing is that some stuff is unchanged from 15 years ago, while others have really taken off.

The stickers: Thorens 150 - £75 back then, same now.
Quad ESL57s - £400/pair then, unchanged.
Troughline - £75 then, same now.

The huge sellers: Garrard 401, was £100, now £500.
SME 3009 - I picked up a few at under £50, these days they sell at £150+
Linn LP12 - probably doubled across the range.
Naim - all way up.
Leak valve amps, Quad IIs.

Others are just jogging along. Lenco are just now waking up. I've not seen Quad 33-303s move for years, maybe a few quid here and there.
Click to expand...

They used to go for a fiver for many, many years and then HIFI World said they were the best tuner ever made (bollocks! They aint even particularly good) and for a while they were going for £300!! I suppose they are worth £75 as a piece of hifi history though. I wish they would go back up to £300 as I've got around a dozen of the blighter's!
 
Agree wholeheartedly with Dec on this, particularly with respect to tonearms. LV-Vs, ADCs, RB 200s are now apparently the dogs' bollocks!

I never thought of my loft collection of Ortofon AS-212, 2 X A&R A60s, Ariston RD11E, 2 X RB 200, Lenco GL 75 and a redundant pair of IBLs as investments.
But it now seems they are doing better than my ISAs!
 
When I moved out of my parents in around 1999 I sold all my turntables and just kept one LP12, here are some memory's from back then:

I struggled to sell Thorens TD150 in fantastic plinth my dad made for it which was an exact copy of the top Rega P25 turntable in oak, with complete SME 3009 and K9. I eventually got £75 for it. I wish I'd kept it now as it was excellent.

Bare Rega RB200 I think got chucked as no-one wanted it even for free!

My boxed LP12 1985 with Valhalla, basik plus, K18, mint condition struggled to fetch £300 on fledgling eBay as couldn't sell it any other way!

I was offered a Roksan Tabriz tonearm for free, I didn't bother with it as couldn't think of a use for it!

I bought two Rega Planer 3 turntables, boxed, with Rb300 tonearms, from car boot sales, both for £10 each (my dad still has one of these)

I didn't bother buying a Rega Planet with RB200 at a car boot sale as I thought it looked old and weird! I'd love one now - anyone got one for sale?
 
Arkless Repairs said:
They used to go for a fiver for many, many years and then HIFI World said they were the best tuner ever made (bollocks! They aint even particularly good) and for a while they were going for £300!! I suppose they are worth £75 as a piece of hifi history though. I wish they would go back up to £300 as I've got around a dozen of the blighter's!
Click to expand...
Tuners are going cheap these days compared to amplifiers
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top