Arkay
09-28-2006, 07:52 AM
A few months ago when I bought my Marantz 2285B (told the story in a post here) the guy who sold it to me said that he would have charged me a lot more for it a year or two earlier, but the prices on most Marantz gear, especially 22XX series, had been falling here throughout this year.
He explained that it seemed to be the influence of the mainland Chinese market (I live in Hong Kong). It seemed that mainland Chinese had learned that Marantz was good a few years ago, and were grabbing every Marantz they saw, which drove up the prices... but then they got more knowledgable about other brands, and about the different Marantz models, and more into tubes, so only the rarer and larger Marantz items were still expensive or going up in price. The other Marantz gear, including the entire 22XX line, has not been rising and has even fallen in price, as it became "less fashionable" or "less desireable" for collectors in the big market North of here. That said, prices for 23XX and earlier Marantz tube gear --if you can still find any-- remain high, and are probably rising slowly.
I read here on AK about the value of these things going up, including predictions of the 2265 I paid $38 for today (and probably would have had to pay $60 for last year) going ip to $300 in a year or two, and it seems steady price inflation is happening on eBay, but it doesn't seem to apply here, at least not to the lower- and mid-level Marantz stuff. Lately some price levels on eBay have almost made me want to buy a 2325 and 2385 at "retail" shop prices here. The local prices were equal to eBay prices a year ago, but the local prices have not gone up since then. I'm wondering, is this apparent difference in price levels (between HK and the US) an anomaly, a mis-perception on my part, or an "investment opportunity"?
No one knows the future, but what are your predictions for where prices (on Marantz gear in particular) are heading? For all models, or only for the higher-end ones? How confident are you of your prediction?
I'm curious about this, because I could probably get a dozen lower-end 22XX units tomorrow, for around $25 to $35. Do you think I will be kicking myself in a few years because I "let them get away"? [I will NOT actually go get them all, no room for it all, but just thinking about it as a mental exercise. Conclusions might affect my future decisions on the directions I take with my collecting addic- er, uh, hobby, and purchase decisions on occasional "borderline" units like the 2265, 2270, 2285.]
[Note to Moderator: I'm not sure if this is in the right forum. It is NOT a "how much is this worth" post, more a generic thought exercise about future trends, but it does touch on price levels. Feel free to move the post if you think it doesn't belong here.]
He explained that it seemed to be the influence of the mainland Chinese market (I live in Hong Kong). It seemed that mainland Chinese had learned that Marantz was good a few years ago, and were grabbing every Marantz they saw, which drove up the prices... but then they got more knowledgable about other brands, and about the different Marantz models, and more into tubes, so only the rarer and larger Marantz items were still expensive or going up in price. The other Marantz gear, including the entire 22XX line, has not been rising and has even fallen in price, as it became "less fashionable" or "less desireable" for collectors in the big market North of here. That said, prices for 23XX and earlier Marantz tube gear --if you can still find any-- remain high, and are probably rising slowly.
I read here on AK about the value of these things going up, including predictions of the 2265 I paid $38 for today (and probably would have had to pay $60 for last year) going ip to $300 in a year or two, and it seems steady price inflation is happening on eBay, but it doesn't seem to apply here, at least not to the lower- and mid-level Marantz stuff. Lately some price levels on eBay have almost made me want to buy a 2325 and 2385 at "retail" shop prices here. The local prices were equal to eBay prices a year ago, but the local prices have not gone up since then. I'm wondering, is this apparent difference in price levels (between HK and the US) an anomaly, a mis-perception on my part, or an "investment opportunity"?
No one knows the future, but what are your predictions for where prices (on Marantz gear in particular) are heading? For all models, or only for the higher-end ones? How confident are you of your prediction?
I'm curious about this, because I could probably get a dozen lower-end 22XX units tomorrow, for around $25 to $35. Do you think I will be kicking myself in a few years because I "let them get away"? [I will NOT actually go get them all, no room for it all, but just thinking about it as a mental exercise. Conclusions might affect my future decisions on the directions I take with my collecting addic- er, uh, hobby, and purchase decisions on occasional "borderline" units like the 2265, 2270, 2285.]
[Note to Moderator: I'm not sure if this is in the right forum. It is NOT a "how much is this worth" post, more a generic thought exercise about future trends, but it does touch on price levels. Feel free to move the post if you think it doesn't belong here.]