Boutique Cabinet Resale

[JutMitch]

It's possible that the sole reason you mention then is also everyone else's sole reason.

Very possible

 

[Peteyboy]

Very possible

Full disclosure: I've been drooling over those cabs in the classifieds that you mentioned, but I have more than enough gear for my current needs.

 

[carsonchilders]

I've always viewed cabinets as an extremely risky purchase because of the variety of taste there is out there. It's extremely heavy, expensive, etc to buy. And when you want to sell it, it's extremely heavy, expensive, etc a second time. I think buying cabs is a bigger risk than buying a bass sight unseen and I try not to do that even these days.

 

[micguy]

I bought something recently that, while I needed it, the shipping was as much as the thing itself. But I needed it, so.....bought it anyway. When it turned out that it wasn't as described (it was useless, it was...awkward at best. The place selling to to me didn't want to eat the cost of shipping it back (that was more than it would cost to get one from the manufacturer), and if I shipped it back for a refund, they didn't want to reimburse me the shipping, and wanted to charge me a re-stock fee - it would cost me more to ship it back than the refund. In the end, the place refunded my money for the item (but not the original shipping), and I didn't have to ship it back. Nobody was happy.

Bass guitar cabinets are like this. If you have a truck bringing a bunch of stuff to your store, the shipping is....tolerable. Shipping even a new unit one at a time is a large chunk of the cost of the thing that lands on your doorstep. If it's used, the value is less, so shipping starts to become prohibitive, and....speakers break during shipment, even if well packed - they are fairly fragile items. Speakers also degrade if they are misused - buying used is often not a good deal. Do I want you "gently used" speaker? Frankly, No - I can't confirm that it's "gently used", and there is a lot of risk that it won't arrive in good shape. I can afford a new speaker much easier than I can afford to mess with one in questionable shape - if I was even in the market for one (I'm not, as all my gigs are ampless).

 

[klokker]

I just assume that if I buy gear it's mine forever. Resale value has nothing to do with it, to my way of thinking I'm investing in something that will help me be reasonably successful and marketable, get gigs etc. The gear I have has paid for itself many, many times over and gives me value in the band I am in. If it's not worth anything to resell it doesn't matter, I've made far, far more money with it than the loss I would take selling it.

 

[bigdaddybass12]

Now days weight is the important factor. Most older boutique cabs are heavy. People will sacrifice a little sound for a lightweight cab. We are all getting older!

 

[jTrolt]

I just assume that if I buy gear it's mine forever. Resale value has nothing to do with it, to my way of thinking I'm investing in something that will help me be reasonably successful and marketable, get gigs etc. The gear I have has paid for itself many, many times over and gives me value in the band I am in. If it's not worth anything to resell it doesn't matter, I've made far, far more money with it than the loss I would take selling it.

^ My view as well ^

Current guitarist just dumped his amp for a Helix system (why yes, it is divine!). Drummer wrapped his kit in plexiglass. Now I sit with a 12" floor wedge and a 500 watt TC head as the loudest obnox on stage. I'm probably going to leave the amp at home sooner than later, and don't feel I'd miss much anyway, given our use of IEM's. Plus, we have one of those famous 80Db limit contracted bar shows coming up in a few weeks. No matter how much GAS inspiring things I read, I just cannot work up enough to consider a better amp head at the rate things are going.

I love the sound of these awesome modern amps, but the days of amps on stage are certainly numbered, methinks.

 

[JutMitch]

I'd say overall economic factors have really softened the used gear market. I've had no problem selling cheaper stuff ($100-300) but any higher ticket items just don't seem to be moving anywhere.

I like checking a number of used gear sites(including TB) and things are all hanging around much longer than I've ever seen. It's getting rough out there!

Yea, I just feel like over the last year or so the used boutique market was thriving pretty good. At least it felt like audiokinesis,greenboy and barefaced was sold almost immediately. Maybe accugroove, Schroeder and other took a little more time but I’ve even noticed gear on TB that I would think would be gone immediately still hanging around.

True, honestly I’m not sure I’ve ever met a bass player that recognized audiokinesis, barefaced,Schroeder,Greenboy or Accugroove (or whatever I used for that specific show). At least that I’ve met in person at a show or a sound tech. I usually know I’m going to take a hit when selling but just looking at some of these items sitting for great prices makes me a little nervous about getting anything else.

Full disclosure: I've been drooling over those cabs in the classifieds that you mentioned, but I have more than enough gear for my current

I bought something recently that, while I needed it, the shipping was as much as the thing itself. But I needed it, so.....bought it anyway. When it turned out that it wasn't as described (it was useless, it was...awkward at best. The place selling to to me didn't want to eat the cost of shipping it back (that was more than it would cost to get one from the manufacturer), and if I shipped it back for a refund, they didn't want to reimburse me the shipping, and wanted to charge me a re-stock fee - it would cost me more to ship it back than the refund. In the end, the place refunded my money for the item (but not the original shipping), and I didn't have to ship it back. Nobody was happy.

Bass guitar cabinets are like this. If you have a truck bringing a bunch of stuff to your store, the shipping is....tolerable. Shipping even a new unit one at a time is a large chunk of the cost of the thing that lands on your doorstep. If it's used, the value is less, so shipping starts to become prohibitive, and....speakers break during shipment, even if well packed - they are fairly fragile items. Speakers also degrade if they are misused - buying used is often not a good deal. Do I want you "gently used" speaker? Frankly, No - I can't confirm that it's "gently used", and there is a lot of risk that it won't arrive in good shape. I can afford a new speaker much easier than I can afford to mess with one in questionable shape - if I was even in the market for one (I'm not, as all my gigs are ampless).

You have a good point. That being said I’ve bought more cabinets than I’d like to admit and I’ve never had one issue with anything. I’ve had an Aguilar ToneHammer head go out on me but that’s it. I tend to think the boutique cab owners might be quite a bit more fussy about keeping gear premium condition. I know my gear is kept at 45% and always heated/cooled room.
But I agree that some of these cabinets more run of the mill equipment that is 10-15 years old people just don’t want the hassle. I also think Talkbass as a community is relatively tight knit when it comes to buying and selling so I think there is some trust that’s been earned among members. Now reverb eBay….good luck.

 

[JutMitch]

^ My view as well ^

Current guitarist just dumped his amp for a Helix system (why yes, it is divine!). Drummer wrapped his kit in plexiglass. Now I sit with a 12" floor wedge and a 500 watt TC head as the loudest obnox on stage. I'm probably going to leave the amp at home sooner than later, and don't feel I'd miss much anyway, given our use of IEM's. Plus, we have one of those famous 80Db limit contracted bar shows coming up in a few weeks. No matter how much GAS inspiring things I read, I just cannot work up enough to consider a better amp head at the rate things are going.

I love the sound of these awesome modern amps, but the days of amps on stage are certainly numbered, methinks.

The way my ears feel these days, IEM and a silent stage is looking pretty good.

 

[mikecd1]

While helping my daughter sell decorative water bottles this summer I discovered Pirateship.com and will say that at the moment I've saved a bundle on shipping basses, cabs and yes, water bottles through them (UPS or USPS only). Shipping has gotten WAY too expensive so although I was skeptical they did save me about 30-40% on shipping which was great. I shipped a bass for about$65 that reverb was charging me $110 so that really helped. I always buy used speaker cabs and sadly have been forced to go through GC from their selection, but at least you can return the cab even if you lose the shipping cost which can be substantial.

 

[ole Jason]

Most people have no clue about bass gear and just want the cheapest thing they can find. I've had a Phil Jones C2 for sale locally at a low price for awhile and constantly get questions asking if it's a 2x12 or 2x10 lol.

 

[SJan3]

Recently I’ve been noticing a trend of what I consider to be premium cabinets hanging around for sale for quite some time with no takers.

I’ve personally had more issues unloading Mesa, Audiokinesis and barefaced gear than I ever thought possible and I still have and accugroove and greenboy cab that been on Marketplace for quite some time.

Is this a trend locally or has anyone been having issues on TB?

I really hate selling and shipping items without someone coming to my house and testing it and making sure they 100% like it but I’m left with little choice anymore.

I am also looking into a pristine accugroove tri 115 that has been on marketplace and reverb for several months for $400 obo. This cab has peaked my interest but I don’t want to buy a paperweight that can’t be unloaded if I’m not feeling it. I just can’t believe no one has picked this cab up for say $300-350 which I think is a steal.

That leads me into my second part of the question which is has some of these brands lost so much of their mystique that there really isn’t a market for them anymore? I do enjoy my accugroove cabinets but honestly the complete lack of perceived resale has me baffled.

Things to consider: weight of cabinet and are you asking too much for them?

 

[JutMitch]

Most people have no clue about bass gear and just want the cheapest thing they can find. I've had a Phil Jones C2 for sale locally at a low price for awhile and constantly get questions asking if it's a 2x12 or 2x10 lol.

Yea, honestly i feel like i assume everyone at least knows of those companies like Phil Jones. I'm stunned that some of my bass player friends that have large collections of high-end basses literally have zero clue about brands like Barefaced. I think just being on here and how much praise these cabinets one could assume that would spill over to most bassists out in the wild but apparently not.

 

[JutMitch]

If the price isn’t 1/2 or less than 1/2 of what a new one costs, I don’t even consider it.

That's typically what i stick to. The higher end gear does typically command more, but in recent cases i'm seeing some premium stuff at 25% of the original price not moving. Sometimes i think Marketplace is ruined by the saturation of people that are selling way high. 60-80% of original purchase price. That stuff just sits forever.

 

[monsterthompson]

I haven’t been in the market for a cab in a while, but I’ve considered selling my Barefaced BB2 pair, since I’m not gigging anymore (and not for the foreseeable future). I haven’t listed them for a few reasons and the high shipping costs and soft market has definitely been considered.

Basses have been impacted too. I follow a few boutique brands on Reverb and noticed new basses sitting unsold for longer than I’m used to seeing.

There’s definitely a combo of factors. Shipping and the economy as mentioned. I think TB users saw a flurry of interest in boutique items a few years ago and that bubble has burst. Users got a chance to try the hard to find items and the market went from scarce to saturated. It was exciting to be around when the Greenboy designs had everyone chasing light and loud. However, there’s been a noticeable shift to IEM recently (as others have mentioned) and even the lightest cab can’t compare to a DI and IEM. Let’s also consider the age of many TB users. Maybe I missed it when I first joined, but I’m seeing more threads about retirement and aging out than I recall a few years ago.

 

[JutMitch]

Things to consider: weight of cabinet and are you asking too much for them?

Between 60-70% off the price of new and all lightweight cabs in actual pristine condition.

Not running into many problems with myself as i haven't really sold much or even tried to sell much recently. I'm just observing some listings, especially local listings of very clean, premium gear and bottom shelf prices and no one has jumped on them. It puts me in a bad position because i want to snatch up some of this gear as the gas hits harder as the price drops

 

[JutMitch]

I haven’t been in the market for a cab in a while, but I’ve considered selling my Barefaced BB2 pair, since I’m not gigging anymore (and not for the foreseeable future). I haven’t listed them for a few reasons and the high shipping costs and soft market has definitely been considered.

Basses have been impacted too. I follow a few boutique brands on Reverb and noticed new basses sitting unsold for longer than I’m used to seeing.

There’s definitely a combo of factors. Shipping and the economy as mentioned. I think TB users saw a flurry of interest in boutique items a few years ago and that bubble has burst. Users got a chance to try the hard to find items and the market went from scarce to saturated. It was exciting to be around when the Greenboy designs had everyone chasing light and loud. However, there’s been a noticeable shift to IEM recently (as others have mentioned) and even the lightest cab can’t compare to a DI and IEM. Let’s also consider the age of many TB users. Maybe I missed it when I first joined, but I’m seeing more threads about retirement and aging out than I recall a few years ago.

Pretty sure some of your reviews/posts are responsible for me going off the rails with barefaced and audiokinesis gear. All of which i love by the way.

 

[Obese Chess]

I've had issues moving my Bergantino cabinets, they just sit in the corner gathering dust.

As to why, it's pretty simple: my rent today is twice what it cost when I bought those cabinets new. Groceries are at least 50% more expensive than they were the last time I took that rig out on a gig. So, it's understandable that less people have money to buy fancy toys or flip boutique gear.

Whatcha got?

I think everyone pretty much covered it between trying economic times, general poor brand recognition and resale value for boutique gear, and the difficulty of shipping big items like cabinets, but I will also echo @CascadeBass's sentiment since I am also in PDX: whatcha got?

 

[JonathanPDX]

I think everyone pretty much covered it between trying economic times, general poor brand recognition and resale value for boutique gear, and the difficulty of shipping big items like cabinets, but I will also echo @CascadeBass's sentiment since I am also in PDX: whatcha got?

Whatcha got?

I don't want to break any rules for advertising in the wrong place but you're welcome to DM me for more info. I have a pair of matched Berg 1x12 cabs. I also have a very hot-rodded old Dean 5-string tuned EADGC. I listed this stuff on the local FB Marketplace several times without any interest, maybe it's time to try it again.

 

[matti777]

Try selling classic car parts. Its taken me 2 years to sell some parts that are only $20 - $100. Its the economy.