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Best place to sell my basses.

gimmeagig

gimmeagig

Feb 25, 2004
2,891
1,198
Coeur D'Alene,Idaho
#1
I finally decided to buy a Xotic bass. Nothing sounds quite as good to me as those. Now I need to come up with the money. I have not sold a bass online yet. I know there is Reverb, Ebay, Talkbass.
I suppose i should only have one listing at a time, right? So that there won't be any bidding conflicts? What is the best site to list my basses on? What are your experiences?
 
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#3
It's always nice to sell on Craigs List because you don't have to pack/box, ship, pay 8% commission. But, mostly "bottom feeders" on C. List. People looking for something for nothing.

When I sell on eBay or Reverb and TalkBass, I have to mark up the price to cover shipping and PayPal fees. On C. List, I can offer the lowest price.

Be patient with C. List. I've sold a couple of basses and it took around 6 weeks for a buyer.

Keep in mind that no matter how good "they" tell us the economy is..............Folks are broke!

There is also a glut of used musical instruments up for sale.

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#6
gimmeagig said:
Craigs list is out because I live in an area where Atelier Z and Moon are completely unknown.
Click to expand...
Don't completely give up on CL. Since you are near the I-90, you might consider listing in the Seattle CL. There are people willing to drive a little to make the deal. FYI, I sold a Zon to a Tber in Spokane. The key to a quicker sale is to make it available on sites like Reverb, Talkbass, CL, etc. to increase exposure. Good luck!
 
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#8
gimmeagig said:
I finally decided to buy a Xotic bass. Nothing sounds quite as good to me as those. Now I need to come up with the money. I have a Moon and an Atelier Z which will have to find new homes. I have not sold a bass online yet. I know there is Reverb, Ebay, Talkbass. Craigs list is out because I live in an area where Atelier Z and Moon are completely unknown.
I suppose i should only have one listing at a time, right? So that there won't be any bidding conflicts? What is the best site to list my basses on? What are your experiences?
Click to expand...
I've bought 4 basses through CL in areas where I don't live. Seller shipped to me all with great results.
Even used 'cash app' for one of the transactions
 
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#9
gimmeagig said:
Craigs list is out because I live in an area where Atelier Z and Moon are completely unknown.
Click to expand...
You only need ONE person that knows what they are, and is in the market to buy of course. I had never heard of Bossa basses until I saw one advertised, did my research and wound up buying one. Don't prejudge your market; especially when a Craigslist ad is free.
 
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#17
alembicguy said:
Reverb.
Selling basses on here isn't what it used to be in my experience.
Click to expand...
Unless you're selling at great price, this is all too true. Some people think they're going to get top dollar for their gear here. Unless it's something highly desirable, you really should just let it go for cheap.
 
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#18
It depends on what you're selling, but Talkbass is great if you're open to trades and lesser known basses may get more respect here. Reverb tends to be a better place to sell because the customer base isn't used to getting free shipping. TB buyers tend to want $200 bucks off and free shipping. If you're selling effects, especially if it's something that can be used on guitar, sell on Reverb. You'll get a much better price and won't have to eat shipping costs.
 
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#19
Talkbass has been the best place for me personally, so far.
I also list on reverb, simultaneously- but at a price that reflects the extra cost of doing so.
TB folks get a better deal.
There's no conflict due to TB being purely DM based. I just monitor what I'm doing. I guess there could be a few seconds where I strike a deal on TB before halting the Reverb ad, but it's never happened yet, and I'm a gear junkie.
 
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#20
gimmeagig said:
I finally decided to buy a Xotic bass. Nothing sounds quite as good to me as those. Now I need to come up with the money. I have a Moon and an Atelier Z which will have to find new homes. I have not sold a bass online yet. I know there is Reverb, Ebay, Talkbass. Craigs list is out because I live in an area where Atelier Z and Moon are completely unknown.
I suppose i should only have one listing at a time, right? So that there won't be any bidding conflicts? What is the best site to list my basses on? What are your experiences?
Click to expand...

Fender, Gibson, etc. will sell online, no problem, because they are highly desired. Yours are not mainstream brand names, so I would consign them to a music shop. If they are players, they will sell once someone gets them in their hands and can love their feel, tone, etc. You may even be able to break even or make money on the sale, like I did on my boutique bass. Good luck.
 
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