• Please review our updated Terms and Rules here

Do you guys ever take a chance on ebay stuff working out?

U

Unknown_K

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2003
Messages
9,111
Location
Ohio/USA
I generally browse ebay for computer related stuff but every once in a while I check out older audio equipment.

Technics was my favorite brand for home stereo equipment (discontinued by Panasonic in 2001 or so) and once in a while I browse ebay to see what's for sale. My 5 CD disc changer gave up the ghost a couple years ago (think the laser went, just died in the middle of playing a disc and a cleaning didn't help, still have it) and since I snagged a Tascam CD + Tape unit at the local recycler (mint condition and free) I never bothered to replace the changer (plus I have been listening to MP3 compilations on my DVD player). But every once in a while I get the itch to get another Technics changer and I spotted a 110 + 1 Disc unit on ebay for $25 shipped. The few units I seen locally were totally trashed. There was no picture for the thing, condition was stated a spring was broken inside and he had a jammed CD inside, and the only picture was of a 60 cd unit box. Most times I stay away from broken stuff with no pictures that might be mislabeled but said what the hell (5 CD units are going for $30+ shipped with no remote, dam collectors). After emailing to see if it had a remote (he said yes) I bit and paid the $25 BIN. The unit came with a couple scratches on top and the play button recessed in the front (broken). It is the 110+1 cd unit, had the correct remote, and after a few hours of stripping the mechanism, replacing a bad rubber belt from an old CDROM drive, some strategic hotglue for the play button to hold it in place (can't tell it was ever broke), and putting it back together I have a mint looking and 100% functional cd changer. Kind of funny how it worked out in the end.
 
Ebay offers three possibilities:

1. You get exactly what you expected
2. You get the deal you never expected +++
3. You get bent over and well you know the rest.

:)
 
It still sits on that Apricot Portable I paid $300 for with full knowledge the system beeped, makes working-like sounds but the proprietary LCD screen was totally dead. Took a bet that it was just the display cable. Got lucky because it was.
Any other occasion though I would not of dared.
 
I sometimes take a chance if it's clear that either A. the item is in good shape and the seller just doesn't want to test it for fear something might be wrong with it and he'd lose plausible deniability, or B. the flaw listed is an easy fix and the seller clearly just doesn't know how/can't be assed. I got my Yamaha TX7 for fairly cheap because the seller didn't bother testing it; the only thing wrong with it was (predictably) a dead backup battery. Replaced that and it works like new.
 
Its one thing to go look at a bunch of pictures and make a decision, its another just going with your gut with little infor or conflicting info. Luckily I have had good luck with items the owner said were broken and some worked just fine (and they were worth much more then the cd changer I got) or that just needed a little work. Once in a while even I get burned, but not for much money.
 
I bought an IBM Portable 5155 on Ebay for $50.

The guy said it wouldn't work, so I took the risk of seeing what was wrong with it.
The HD was dead, that was it, the machine was in 8/10 shape.
 
It's not unusual for me to receive brand-new merchandise when advertised as "used" from eBay. The last item I recall, was a Sony DDS4 drive. Cost me all of $15 shipped and was brand-new in sealed factory packaging.
 
Its like any other "Market Place", there are good sellers, lazy sellers and plain rouges. Trying to decide if some on is just lazy or a rouge is the tick. Sometimes it pays off and you get nice stuff. At other times it doesn't.....
 
Rule of thumb: Expect any vintage hardware you buy from ebay to be non-functional, even if the seller thinks it is. If you don't think you or someone you know can fix it, don't buy it.

Plain and simple.
 
Just last night I 'won' a XFX 7970 Ghost video card for $309.00 on ebay (completes the CrossFire setup on my gamer). This item was advertised as a RMA replacement, so that sort of classifies it as new. What's stunning to me is how this one seemed to slip through the cracks, so to speak. I was the only bidder. I put a max bid of $339 on the thing and no one else even bid. This item retails for about $389.00 at Tiger Direct, a little more at Newegg, once in a while $30 mail-in rebate, and you may or may not pay shipping, depending on the vendor. So, it remains to be seen whether or not I get bent over the ole pickle barrel or not on this one.
 
Last edited:
With vintage computer stuff, I generally assume it will be broken/not completely functional and bid accordingly. I'm never disappointed when it's busted, and surprised when it just works!
 
Agent Orange said:
Just last night I 'won' a XFX 7970 Ghost video card for $309.00 on ebay (completes the CrossFire setup on my gamer). This item was advertised as a RMA replacement, so that sort of classifies it as new. What's stunning to me is how this one seemed to slip through the cracks, so to speak. I was the only bidder. I put a max bid of $339 on the thing and no one else even bid. This item retails for about $389.00 at Tiger Direct, a little more at Newegg, once in a while $30 mail-in rebate, and you may or may not pay shipping, depending on the vendor. So, it remains to be seen whether or not I get bent over the ole pickle barrel or not on this one.
Click to expand...

Slightly Bent over..
 
Agent Orange said:
So, it remains to be seen whether or not I get bent over the ole pickle barrel or not on this one.
Click to expand...

Still lol from that statement. I generally only buy stuff I'm comfortable with fixing or that's demonstrated with pictures to be in a state I'm happy with. Yes general rule of thumb is assume it will need to be fixed, but I've had mostly good luck with things arriving in the state they mention. I'm also fairly cautious buying though and only buy when the price and seller both seem right. I do follow some of the members here auctions for folks I consider trustworthy too which helps.
 
barythrin said:
Still lol from that statement. I generally only buy stuff I'm comfortable with fixing or that's demonstrated with pictures to be in a state I'm happy with. Yes general rule of thumb is assume it will need to be fixed, but I've had mostly good luck with things arriving in the state they mention. I'm also fairly cautious buying though and only buy when the price and seller both seem right. I do follow some of the members here auctions for folks I consider trustworthy too which helps.
Click to expand...

Well, the saving grace for this deal was that it's a RMA replacement item. When originally sold, that card had a lifetime warranty. XFX has a fairly liberal policy about warranties. A few years ago I sold a real nice 9800 video card on eBay and was allowed to transfer the warranty to the buyer. So, time will tell.
 
I snagged 2 Geforce 8800 GTS cards for a SLI setup for $25 sold as untested for parts, wonder if they will work. It seems buying old gamer video cards is a big gamble these days because of heat/solder issues.
 
Unknown_K said:
I snagged 2 Geforce 8800 GTS cards for a SLI setup for $25 sold as untested for parts, wonder if they will work. It seems buying old gamer video cards is a big gamble these days because of heat/solder issues.
Click to expand...

6 or 7 years ago the GeForce 8800's were where it was at. Some still think so - check this out: http://www.esaitech.com/evga-geforc...paign=ga-pla&gclid=CLDqiLD4jrgCFRBgMgodDgwA2A

I'd be willing to risk $25 for that setup - if it turns out that they work, you're going to be well pleased.
 
Last edited:
Gaming video cards I'd be more worried about since all the ones I've seen in the last .. maybe 10 years have the fan fail then overheat. It's not always obvious they have a problem until you're using it for a long period of time. I'm pretty sure I have an 8800 but that's just the last deal I went for during probably a black friday sale. I'd much rather have a better card but haven't found much justification yet.
 
Starting with the ATI 9700 is where video cards started failing with use, there are tons of 9700/9800 that have artifacts or are dead. Collecting those cards is a pain because of the high probability of getting a dead card (and people still buy them on ebay so there is competition for later AGP). Oddly enough I have been lucky getting later cards like the Geforce 8800 GS, 7800 GTX, ATI X1900 GT etc in working condition for little money. Since I won an AM2 SLI board (actually a server board with an Operton 1218 and 8 GB RAM DDR2 800) I wanted to try out an SLI setup, that means getting lucky finding a duplicate of what I have or buying 2 of the same card. Craigslist here seems to have people trying to flip items for 2x what they cost on ebay, and good luck getting a refund on dead items.

I don't really play new games but I do like setting up older rigs on the cheap and playing older games.
 
barythrin said:
Gaming video cards I'd be more worried about since all the ones I've seen in the last .. maybe 10 years have the fan fail then overheat. It's not always obvious they have a problem until you're using it for a long period of time. I'm pretty sure I have an 8800 but that's just the last deal I went for during probably a black friday sale. I'd much rather have a better card but haven't found much justification yet.
Click to expand...

Fans can be a problem. I have a glass hypodermic syringe, loaded with Singer sewing machine oil that I use to lubricate those tight little places. It seems to work once in a while, unless there's a bad bearing or other internal problems. Worth trying.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top