Selling a modified cab ?

[playerunk]

After reading the recent threads about internal bracing and lining [or lack of it] i am thinking of modifying my cabinets, a 410 and a 112 combo.

Since i am currently planning a fEarful 12/6 and the long term plan includes 2 of these and a powerful micro head the cabs i currently own will eventually be sold.

I know if i were to buy a cab i would frown upon any modifications [except maybe the exact ones i would do].

So in the real world..i modding a cab is it a no-go to bring it up to a buyer [seems a bit unfair] or you are up front and lose some cash in the process (even though the mods have made the cabinet better) ?

[RickenBoogie]

Honesty is ALWAYS best, no matter the circumstances. Anything else is plain dishonest, and evil.

[BassmanPaul]

As usual, great words of wisdom from Sir Rick. I fully endorse his statement.

Resale value is always compromised when you start interfering with consumer products. It doesn't matter whether the modifications are good or bad.

[Electricblue]

I think that it wouldn't be the mod itself, but more the vibe that it gives off.

For example, if you put a Fender headstock decal on a Squier, and still told the buyer that it was relabelled, it would still put them off...

Just would have a whiff of dodgyness about it.

[craig.p]

I heartily disagree with the view that mods compromise resale value. In some cases they can make the product superior to what the factory shoved onto the truck at the loading dock. The trick is to be able to make your case for it in the for-sale ad, and to be patient and wait for a buyer who's educated enough to recognize the added value in the mods you did. Also, pics of the professional job you did can help sell the mod. Example: There was a guy in the classifieds selling an Avatar B212 with the tweeter+crossover removed, the jack plate replaced with a plain one, and the baffle board carpeted. It was a first-rate job, and I would've been on that thing like a chicken on a june bug had I not already been the owner of a pair of "stock" B212s.

[rpsands]

Look at pedals. Most standard pedal mods increase the value.

For me, if someone braced and batted their cabinet it would increase the value because then I wouldn't have to do it

Adding bracing and lining is a pretty standard thing and should get moreso once more people start doing it. It's frigging criminal that these cab companies think they can squeak by not even lining the walls, much less skipping any bracing at all.

Bracing is not even just a sound thing. You set a totally unbraced cab down wrong and you could damage it structurally. Lame.

[punkrocko]

Originally Posted by craig.p

Example: There was a guy in the classifieds selling an Avatar B212 with the tweeter+crossover removed, the jack plate replaced with a plain one, and the baffle board carpeted. It was a first-rate job, and I would've been on that thing like a chicken on a june bug had I not already been the owner of a pair of "stock" B212s.

Hey Craig, that was my modified Avatar 212. Thanks for the compliment, I appreciate it. I was able to sell it locally for my asking price, but it was less than the going rate of a used B212. I was able to sell the original components not used in the mod, so it was probably a wash.

In my experience modified gear usually sells for less then unmodified, but it can also depend on how reversible the mods are. The big issue is your gear becomes an unknown commodity. Potential buyers are less likely to take a chance on it.

To the OP: ALWAYS disclose any mods. Otherwise it will come back to haunt you.