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The Sad State of eBay
- Thread starter alembicbones
- Start date
I have to disagree with most of you guys on here.
Research, wait, find, and buy.
I have gotten some great deals on eBay over the years. For instance my most recent high dollar purchase this year was a brand new Fender Bassman Pro w/warranty shipped for $1200. Usually go for $1799
Last April I bought a brand new Fender Japan Classic Series 70s Jazz bass for $700 shipped from Japan and received it here in Chicago in 2 days. Usually sell north of $1100!
Maybe I am lucky, so I stick with eBay.
I do agree years ago it was more a garage type thing with regular people selling their stuff at reasonable prices.
About 10 years ago I bought a used Tech 21 LM-300 head for $250 and a brand new matching Tech 21 B410 cab for $200. Still own both today. Now it is mostly businesses selling their stuff at retail.
By all means it would be great if all of you fellow bassist would swear off eBay, it would make purchasing great deal items easier for me.
There are still good deals to be had out there on the bay. IMO
Research, wait, find, and buy.
I have gotten some great deals on eBay over the years. For instance my most recent high dollar purchase this year was a brand new Fender Bassman Pro w/warranty shipped for $1200. Usually go for $1799
Last April I bought a brand new Fender Japan Classic Series 70s Jazz bass for $700 shipped from Japan and received it here in Chicago in 2 days. Usually sell north of $1100!
Maybe I am lucky, so I stick with eBay.
I do agree years ago it was more a garage type thing with regular people selling their stuff at reasonable prices.
About 10 years ago I bought a used Tech 21 LM-300 head for $250 and a brand new matching Tech 21 B410 cab for $200. Still own both today. Now it is mostly businesses selling their stuff at retail.
By all means it would be great if all of you fellow bassist would swear off eBay, it would make purchasing great deal items easier for me.
There are still good deals to be had out there on the bay. IMO
I find eBay is a joke as a seller. Their fees are outrageous.
I've found all my great deals on Craigslist. I just got a like new pre Fender SWR 2x10 cabinet and a like new Ibanez 2004 Artcore AGB140 for $300. I can't find deals like that anywhere else.
eBay isn't an option ever for me as a seller or a buyer. I also find that selling anything musical instrument related is pretty much a lost cause anyway as the market is very soft.
I've found all my great deals on Craigslist. I just got a like new pre Fender SWR 2x10 cabinet and a like new Ibanez 2004 Artcore AGB140 for $300. I can't find deals like that anywhere else.
eBay isn't an option ever for me as a seller or a buyer. I also find that selling anything musical instrument related is pretty much a lost cause anyway as the market is very soft.
I will agree that as a seller the fees are waaaay to high.
eBay was fun in 1998, awesome deals could be easily made everyday. It was a small thing, trustable sellers & buyers, realistic prices and real auctions. Then Paypal got married to eBay, then endless fees arrived, then no more deals.
eBay is just a regular store right now. I haven't used eBay or Paypal in more than 10 yrs. And nowadays buyers have lots of options to get their stuff - Amazon, just to name one.
eBay is just a regular store right now. I haven't used eBay or Paypal in more than 10 yrs. And nowadays buyers have lots of options to get their stuff - Amazon, just to name one.
Dunno…
I think it depends on what you're looking for.
If you're a bottom feeder looking for top name at rock bottom prices, you're out of luck. People in general are a lot more aware of the going prices thanks to the web. So the days of scoring that closet queen vintage Fender for $200 is largely a thing of the past on eBay. So be it.
The scammers and quick flippers have gotten more numerous and sophisticated however. So seller and buyer reputation scores (which are harder to manipulate) are more important than ever. Just like in the real world.
eBay is what it is. And what it is has changed a great deal from the good old days. About all I use it for now is to spot the occasional oddball or sleeper bass I like to play so much. For example, I just bought a Peavey T-40 last night. It wasn't something I needed or was GASsing over - or even went there specifically to find. I just saw one in a condition I considered acceptable being offered by a seller to whom I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt. I entered a single bid for what I thought it was worth. Next thing I knew, it was mine.
I think if you approach eBay that way, (i.e. think pawnshop or serendip) it's still workable.
For anything really good (and expensive) I just stick with brick & motar pro shops, private sellers, and the big boys like Elderly. A little more money. But a whole lot less aggravating - and far less dangerous if dealing with an unknown seller or buyer you met on Craiglist.
YMMV.
I think it depends on what you're looking for.
If you're a bottom feeder looking for top name at rock bottom prices, you're out of luck. People in general are a lot more aware of the going prices thanks to the web. So the days of scoring that closet queen vintage Fender for $200 is largely a thing of the past on eBay. So be it.
The scammers and quick flippers have gotten more numerous and sophisticated however. So seller and buyer reputation scores (which are harder to manipulate) are more important than ever. Just like in the real world.
eBay is what it is. And what it is has changed a great deal from the good old days. About all I use it for now is to spot the occasional oddball or sleeper bass I like to play so much. For example, I just bought a Peavey T-40 last night. It wasn't something I needed or was GASsing over - or even went there specifically to find. I just saw one in a condition I considered acceptable being offered by a seller to whom I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt. I entered a single bid for what I thought it was worth. Next thing I knew, it was mine.
I think if you approach eBay that way, (i.e. think pawnshop or serendip) it's still workable.
For anything really good (and expensive) I just stick with brick & motar pro shops, private sellers, and the big boys like Elderly. A little more money. But a whole lot less aggravating - and far less dangerous if dealing with an unknown seller or buyer you met on Craiglist.
YMMV.
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For me, FeeBay is good for purchasing small items like bridge and pickup covers. I once bought a hard case for a Squire VM J bass but it wreaked of mold and I had to return it. For selling, I avoid FeeBay at all costs due to the outrageous fees from both FeeBay and PayPal. Plus the fact that you have to deal with flakes all the time. OK for a buyer, not so good for a seller. drool
Ebay charges what they wanna charge and they make a killing. That's capitalism. It's a shame they don't weed out the shenanigans but it is what it is. No one has to buy or sell there if they don't want to.
As a buyer, at least, I've continued to have good luck on Ebay. This has come about mostly through under-informed sellers and errors in listing titles and keywords. So, for example, my latest and possibly greatest score: a classic 1995 big head Ken Smith BTG5 for $1750 BIN.
Seller appears to run a stall in a flea market on the weekend and didn't know the value of this particular model designation. I also managed to score a hand-tooled leather vest (list price $1000) for $45, because the seller buried the brand name in the listing text. So yeah, it's become more retail, cutthroat, and expensive for sellers. But it's still such a phantasmagoria that cool stuff can be found in the dark corners.
Seller appears to run a stall in a flea market on the weekend and didn't know the value of this particular model designation. I also managed to score a hand-tooled leather vest (list price $1000) for $45, because the seller buried the brand name in the listing text. So yeah, it's become more retail, cutthroat, and expensive for sellers. But it's still such a phantasmagoria that cool stuff can be found in the dark corners.
eBay used to be the equivalent of a giant yard sale -- a place where people could unload their junk, quickly. Now it is a business -- a place where people make a living to pay the mortgage and their kids tuitions. It's a business, no different than GC. If you want bargains, you gotta search. If there was a deal every time I click on eBay, I'd be broke.
Ebay went downhill when they switched focus to commercial sellers. They wanted to be Amazon. I sold stuff on Ebay for years until their fees went sky-high. Now it isn't worth the effort.
It's definetly gone down hill. I've noticed a lot of people just don't care on there anymore either. If you're selling you pay higher fees than ever, I've had several buyers win auctions only to not pay. In one case eBay actually charged me fees for two auctions on the same item after the first buyer never paid and they gave me the go ahead to relist it. So I had to call them up and deal with that. From a selling standpoint it sucks now, paypal will take your money instantly but you often have to wait sometimes weeks to get money. Personally I think the money should be released as soon as the buyer marks it received and it is the correct item. I do still buy some things from eBay though. Mainly less expensive stuff, the case for my new base, straps, used pedals, recently upgraded my DI for my sampler from a imp2 to a radial pro DI. Either because it's a cheaper price or I just have money in PayPal want to wait a freaking week for the money to transfer from PayPal to the bank. We use PayPal for taking credit cards for merch sales. So it is necessary for me to have a PayPal account
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As a Canadian, Reverb tends to be more expensive than eBay as many businesses can't ship to Canada or flat out refuse, and those that do end up charging a fortune for shipping.
Waiting for Axe or LAMusic to have a sale nets me the same item new, for cheaper on almost everything common.
eBay is cruddy, but I still peruse it and see some great deals hidden in the deeper corners. If anything, most TB classifieds seem almost as high in the sky as eBay for everything but cabs when the exchange rate is calculated.
Waiting for Axe or LAMusic to have a sale nets me the same item new, for cheaper on almost everything common.
eBay is cruddy, but I still peruse it and see some great deals hidden in the deeper corners. If anything, most TB classifieds seem almost as high in the sky as eBay for everything but cabs when the exchange rate is calculated.
I use eBay, Reverb, Amazon, Google, Craig's List, etc as tools. Even GC used section. Unless there is a substantial savings, I buy from the local shops.
I seldom see great deals pop up like they used to, but it does happen occasionally. Years ago (maybe 10 or 15?) I made tidy profits flipping basses on eBay, satisfying my GAS to try different gear in the process. Not as easy to do in today's market, as others have mentioned music gear sales are soft.
I seldom see great deals pop up like they used to, but it does happen occasionally. Years ago (maybe 10 or 15?) I made tidy profits flipping basses on eBay, satisfying my GAS to try different gear in the process. Not as easy to do in today's market, as others have mentioned music gear sales are soft.
I browse eBay every day. I still see a lot of great basses and items. But for some reason, prices are getting out of control. The value just isn't there anymore. Not that eBay sets prices, but rather the sellers.
For a buyer, it's perfectly fine. Just gotta keep an eye out for the deals. And there are often very good ones.
When you factor in import duty, Reverb just isn't cost effective living in the UK. European listings are pretty thin on the ground.
EBay is usually worth a gander for less expensive items. There's usually a MIM fretless Fender around for decent prices, or pedals. I picked up a Ukrainian Moog ring mod for £130, which is an absolute steal. You've just got to be super cautious.
EBay is usually worth a gander for less expensive items. There's usually a MIM fretless Fender around for decent prices, or pedals. I picked up a Ukrainian Moog ring mod for £130, which is an absolute steal. You've just got to be super cautious.
