Ebay gamble.......

X300

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I saw a Sugden A21A amp on ebay yesterday and im about to raid my bank to purchase............but i have never spent this kind of money on ebay.
Do you think i should go ahead and buy or wait until i can have a demo with a sugden and then splash the cash..............
 
Just as long as you know that you are buying an A21AL and not the A21A as listed by the seller and yourself?? What the difference is in price i dont know but the seller has good feedback both as a seller and a buyer so id say go for it.

Payment via paypal will give you extra security too.
 
No problemo.

I take it you dont live near the seller so you can collect or at least view the item before hand?
 
No im not close..............shame
Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.....................Lisa
 
Yay, good old Sugden.

Just make sure you don't bid too much for it. If you don't buy this one, you can always buy the next that comes along at the right price. That's the nature of eBay. If you miss this bus another will be along soon.

My entire system was bought via eBay, apart from my passive pre-amp which I bought direct from the Australian manufacturer. I demo stuff at home, after I've bought it. If it's not better than what I've already got, I resell it.
 
I have been told the ebay sugden is a very good price, i am watching it very closely..................
What is your system made off ?????
 
I have been told the ebay sugden is a very good price, i am watching it very closely..................
What is your system made off ?????

Currently listening to:

EMT 950 record player with EMT TSD15 SFL cartridge, bought off German eBay for £2250. I collected during my summer holiday camping trip to Austria and Italy.

Lightspeed LDR passive pre-amp. £310 new from manufacturer.

Pioneer SF-700 active crossover. £180 off eBay from a seller who lives 6 miles from me.

Coincident Frankenstein prototype 300b SET monoblocks. £1200 off US eBay plus £450 shipping costs and import duty.

Avondale power amp. £650 from a hi-fi forum classified advert.

Bozak Symphony speakers. £500 off eBay. Collected them from London in my estate car.


For watching Blu Rays (and Freeview HD from 7th September) I've got:

Denon BD1800 Blu Ray player. £110 ex demo Richer Sounds.

Epson TW3200 projector. £950 new via online mail order dealer.

Creek CAS 4040 amp. £99 new from dealer in 1983.

EV Sentry III speakers. £415 off eBay plus £80 for new tweeter diaphragms and bass foam surrounds. Collected them from London in my estate car.

135" screen. £100 new off eBay.


When I've decorated the room downstairs I'll be using my newly bought EV Patrician 800 speakers. Bought for £5500 plus shipping costs and import duty from US eBay.

I've also got an EMT 930 turntable. £1929 off UK eBay.
 
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WOW.........................
I will never understand why i sold my record collection, i had 100's i must be mad.
Cd's will never have the sound and soul like a good old 33 1/3,45 or 78
Your system is very nice you are a luck guy
Thanks
Lisa
 
Thank-you for your very kind words Lisa.

When buying on eBay I've taken certain common sense precautions, such as avoiding people with no feedback, having a preference for cash on collection. So far, every item I've bought has been as described, or better than described. I think that most eBay hi-fi sellers are honest.

Let us know how you get on with the Sugden, if you successfully buy it.
 
this amp does not have a phono stage, it is a Sugden A21AL

you probably already know that but the listing has been edited and was incorrectly advertised as the A21A

also has a reserve, good luck!
 
Yeah i know there is no phono, the seller has said sorry about his mistake.
I asked what the reserve was and all he said was it started with a '3'.
Ebay is a good way of having a good hi fi and it is true what the Stig-08 said....................use your head and do a little home work............................
 
While you might pick up a good deal on eBay, I would certainly not buy blind. Demo as much as you can first, find what you like and then look for a bargain. Otherwise you may wind up with a very good bargain on something you don't particularly enjoy!

I spent nearly 2 years putting together my system - I demoed loads of components and eventually found the sound I wanted; I then had to find them for the right price! The time and effort were completely worth it though, I now have a system that I truly enjoy, and while I am tempted to change bits for the heck of it sometimes, I never have the feeling that I'm missing out.

Prices on ebay actually tend to be higher than on forums or sometimes from dealers (trade-ins or ex-demo). None of my kit was sourced on ebay, and I paid substantially less than the going rate there - in the case of my speakers nearly £1K less.

And of course there are the other questions - what sort of music do you enjoy, and what other components will you be pairing the amp with? How large is the room? Will it be a purely stereo system for music or would you like to integrate it into a home theater setup as well?
 
I enjoy a wide range of music from Ludwig van Beethoven to Motorhead with some jazz and blues inbetween.
Anything apart from chart and pop music,............................my room is 11ft sq with little furniture and my system is a Cymbol amp,sugden cd player and Ruark palidin speakers.
Purely a music stereo, not a home theater.
My very first hi fi many moons ago was a Technics, it sounded great until i heard my friends Denon and i have progressed from there.
 
Should have looked at your profile, sorry!

The Ruarks are nice speakers and an easy load, so you have your pick of amps really. I'm guessing from the Sugden that your budget is £3-500?

I've heard Denons and Sugdens and they're quite different; like many Japanese amps the Denons are quite bright and pacy, while the Sugdens I've heard are warmer and smooth. If you liked your friend's Denon you may be better off looking for something like Marantz, Arcam or even Naim. What was it about your friend's setup that you preferred over yours?
 
While you might pick up a good deal on eBay, I would certainly not buy blind...

Well that's what I've been doing.

Well not exactly buying blind. More like buying deaf. Not blind because I've done a lot Google homework on the kit that I've bought.

Also, in the case of the EMT 950, I already had an EMT 930 which I love and was looking out for a spare cartridge for it. When I saw the 950 for sale, put in a low bid and won it.

Similar thing with the EV Patricians. Already had EV Sentry's which are great speakers apart from them having a soft edged bass compared to my Bozaks. So I've been looking for a pair of Patricians which were their top of the range speakers.


Apart from the Creek amp, I didn't audition anything in my systems before I bought it. Why limit myself to kit that friends or local dealers have, when I can find much better kit by thinking globally and historically?


I do agree about dealers sometimes being cheaper than eBay. And as you quite rightly say, hi-fi forum classifieds can be great places to pick up bargains. That's why I always advise anyone on eBay not to get carried away with the bidding.

Putting cards in newsagents windows can also be a great way to get hi-fi kit / records / CD's.
 
lindsayt said:
Well that's what I've been doing.

And to each his own :)

Unfortunately I've read far too many glowing reviews of kit, and then had a demo which left me cold. I still experiment with some components but I would never buy a major piece of kit (particularly speakers) without hearing them first!
 
I never go by a Glowing review, i was told once by a independent hi fi store owner that some of these big manufactures have the hi fi mags by the balls..................if they spend 1/2 a million on advertising like Sony,Marantz etc and they introduce a new product in a very competitive market (a amp at £300) will the magazine really tell the truth if it is bad and risk losing a big sponsor ??? plus the reviewers keep some of the kit i know there is some back handers going on.
Brands like sugden spend very little on advertising and never let the reviewer keep the kit, so you dont see or hear alot about brands like sugden.
I saw another A21AL amp on ebay today starting price £900 !!!! it must be post 2007 because that is when the mark 2 came out, so this is priced really high, the guy could have not paid much more when new..........
 
Buying blind/deaf without hearing the kit can be a risk. Obviously there's an element of trust in that its functional and working as described. Then there's the matter of whether it suits your tastes. However, so long as you don't go mad and pay over the odds, should it not suit your tastes, you should be able to sell it on with little or no loss of money.

These Sugden's are well regarded and sought after, I doubt you'll have trouble selling on if necessary.
 
And to each his own :)

Unfortunately I've read far too many glowing reviews of kit, and then had a demo which left me cold. I still experiment with some components but I would never buy a major piece of kit (particularly speakers) without hearing them first!

I agree 100% with that.

When it comes to hi-fi magazine reviews there's Arthur Salvatore's Secret Rules of Audio Reviewing:

Audio Reviews


I've also read far too many glowing reviews from posters on internet forums of equipment that turned out to be disappointing when I heard them.


But there are some people writing on the internet who have heard a wide range if equipment, who do know what they're talking about and who will point out the limitations of equipment that they recommend. These are the sort of people whose advice I've followed.
 
Very true............................i like the Audio Review link............
 

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