Worst Finds.....

[rs732]

We always hear and boast about our awesome scores,but what are some of the worst finds you ever bought?What are some projects or purchases we should have passed on?

Over the years,I've had some great finds,I usually keep the higher end Marantz and JBL scores. However,last winter at a flea market from a far I seen a pair of large boxes with the the JBL logo. I got really excited once I got closer and I was able to read the box . My heart was racing once that I seen they were 4312A Studio Monitors. I'm a seasoned picker but broke the rule of showing too much excitement. I pulled out one of the speakers and checked the cabinets and drivers everything looked good expert layers of dirt. The other speaker was upside down and awkward to remove from the box so I just assumed it was in the same condition as the other. As I mentioned earlier,I showed too much excitement,I end up paying nearly retail since these seemed to look fairly decent in my quick glance,and they were in their original boxes! I got home pulled both of speakers out of the boxes, and the speaker that was upside down had a ton of mold on the topside of the cabinet and sides. The L pads would not move at all they were so rusted and corroded.

The other cabinet that looked fine but had mold on the bottom and the L pads were as equally corroded. It looked like someone salvaged these things from the bottom of the sea! Surprisingly,they still sound great and after much effort I was able to unstick the L-pads. I still have NOT gotten around to sanding down the cabinets or replacing the L-pads. Just thinking about these speakers irritates me. LOL.

 

[thoraudio]

I was so excited to find a Denon AVR 2309Ci at an estate sale last year for $75 as I was currently using a base model Sony for my living room system. Coincided with a purchase of an entertainment center, so I was looking forward to a day of setting everything up and having a new higher end system.

Took out the old entertainment center, put in the new, ran all the wires, all the extra equipment etc... went to put in the Denon and it was 1/8" too tall to fit into the cabinet.

It occupies a place of honor on my closet floor.

 

[blhagstrom]

Accidenly got some white van speakers a couple times.

One set was real trash. Really fooled me at the thrift store.

One set is next to the work bench and actually sound great. I stuffed them full of polyfill and they are on each side of me aimed at each other, me in the middle.

 

[gslikker]

I have some Micromega Amp which I can not repair. Unfortunately I have to have it bolted all together to work, it simply does not work (nothing smoked), no schematics available and parts to dense to each other to start measuring. (circuit card accessible sideways only. Some weird remote which is needs is missing too. However the microprocessor logic seems working.
Making new schematics out of the actual amp seems difficult because there are things like optocouplers for monitoring or whatever, so it would take weeks to make a schematic which probably would not give me the clue anyway.

As it is an extremely nice built piece I would rather have it work.

A real PITA and I payed 100 euros for it, thinking being able to repair ...not....

 

[CT_Ohio]

We always hear and boast about our awesome scores,but what are some of the worst finds you ever bought?What are some projects or purchases we should have passed on?

Over the years,I've had some great finds,I usually keep the higher end Marantz and JBL scores. However,last winter at a flea market from a far I seen a pair of large boxes with the the JBL logo. I got really excited once I got closer and I was able to read the box . My heart was racing once that I seen they were 4312A Studio Monitors. I'm a seasoned picker but broke the rule of showing too much excitement. I pulled out one of the speakers and checked the cabinets and drivers everything looked good expert layers of dirt. The other speaker was upside down and awkward to remove from the box so I just assumed it was in the same condition as the other. As I mentioned earlier,I showed too much excitement,I end up paying nearly retail since these seemed to look fairly decent in my quick glance,and they were in their original boxes! I got home pulled both of speakers out of the boxes, and the speaker that was upside down had a ton of mold on the topside of the cabinet and sides. The L pads would not move at all they were so rusted and corroded.

The other cabinet that looked fine but had mold on the bottom and the L pads were as equally corroded. It looked like someone salvaged these things from the bottom of the sea! Surprisingly,they still sound great and after much effort I was able to unstick the L-pads. I still have NOT gotten around to sanding down the cabinets or replacing the L-pads. Just thinking about these speakers irritates me. LOL.

In my area, those would probably be considered 'flooded basement' casualties.

Worst deal... anyone remember a place called Incredible Universe? The one near me went out of business (as they all did about 20 years ago), and had a bunch of clearout tables where I picked up a Kenwood receiver for $70. Seemed like a steal to me. Worked 3-4 months before failing intermittently and then one final light flash and hot plastic smell of death. No idea how to fix, tossed it. After that realized that store bargains are most likely open-box returns.

 

[SoCal Sam]

When I was flipping whatever I could find to build my audio collection, I took many flyers on stuff I had no information on or didn't know the true condition. A lot of times, the gamble paid off. Sometimes I ended up with a door stop. Other times, I over paid for the privilege of flipping at a loss. Don't really care now. I'm so far ahead, I don't mind the occasional hit.

 

[swechsler]

Worst deal... anyone remember a place called Incredible Universe? The one near me went out of business (as they all did about 20 years ago), and had a bunch of clearout tables where I picked up a Kenwood receiver for $70. Seemed like a steal to me. Worked 3-4 months before failing intermittently and then one final light flash and hot plastic smell of death. No idea how to fix, tossed it. After that realized that store bargains are most likely open-box returns.

You know you probably could have gotten that Kenwood repaired under warranty, right (yeah, I'm aware that this was a long time ago)?

And yes, I remember Incredible Universe...fun place to try out equipment but they never had any real deals...

 

[CT_Ohio]

You know you probably could have gotten that Kenwood repaired under warranty, right (yeah, I'm aware that this was a long time ago)?

And yes, I remember Incredible Universe...fun place to try out equipment but they never had any real deals...

For $70 I got the unit and the manual. No warranty card; I never fill em out anyway unless it's a pricey item (like my cameras).

no, Incredible Universe was not a home of deals... I think it was actually Radio Shack's attempt to do something different, and it failed spectacularly.

 

[swechsler]

You don't need a warranty card to get a warranty repair, just a receipt. A warranty card was just a way for a manufacturer to get your contact info.

 

[soundmotor]

We always hear and boast about our awesome scores,but what are some of the worst finds you ever bought?

This one is easy -

A set of 80s EPI bookshelf speakers last year for $5. At a yard sale and I did not want them, need them, or have any use for them. Grilles have mold spots (BIG CLUE SOMETHING WAS VERY WRONG), the grille fabric is "torn" away on one, and woofer cones have no foam. As I am leaving the lady running the salesays she's had a rough day, it's all her father's stuff, and she's selling it for him. Told her I didn't need them and she said she'd take $5. Fine, I'll yank the tweeters and throw the rest out.

Earlier that morning I hit an estate sale. One of the things I picked up was a 30" tall 1950s Campari Bitters metal sign (pic of poster like it below). This is an iconic piece of French lithography and this one is not a repro but from the original importer out of New York. I paid $2 for it and still in afterglow about an epic score. In this weakened condition I said "OK, I will take them for $5.", grabbed the sticky woodgrain vinyl cabinets and stuck them in the back of my wife's car, the nicer one of the ones we have.

As I am driving home some idiot plows out of a store lot on the other side of the road making a left into my lane. I have to make a violent swerve to miss and when I do, the speakers crash right onto the litho. Did I mention it had no dents when I got it? Really crinkled it up good but most of it I was able to planish out. However... the speakers had been dunked at some point likely from a flooded basement and the water had been at least 2" high. It weakened the bottoms enough that they both came off. And that torn grille cloth on one? Mouse condo entrance point. one whole side of my wife's car hatch area was covered in seed, acorns, and mouse poop. Gnaw hole through grill, no foam to slow you down, nice front door into cat-proof & comfy living area. I hate mice, they live up to their title, vermin.

Also, one tweeter's magnet fell off when I swerved and the other one was dead. Worst $5 spent, worst audio deal ever, loudest "MOTHERF@CKER!" ever yelled.

 

[KiM3Ce]

In the early 1980s I bought my first large tube TV ( a Zenith) and schlepped it up the stairs to my second-floor apartment. It quit working after four months. Down the stairs and back to the store; it turned out the warranty was 90 days. The retailer took forever to fix it; they said they couldn't get the part from Zenith. When I finally got it, I took another trip up the stairs. I turned it on and the picture was 4" tall from top to bottom.

A warranty is no substitute for quality. The retailer and Zenith both went bust, but I shed no tears. My Sony plasma still looks great!

 

[rs732]

These are all great stories...let's keep this thread going.

 

[Ohighway]

Earlier that morning I hit an estate sale. One of the things I picked up was a 30" tall 1950s Campari Bitters metal sign (pic of poster like it below). This is an iconic piece of French lithography and this one is not a repro but from the original importer out of New York. I paid $2 for it and still in afterglow about an epic score. In this weakened condition I said "OK, I will take them for $5.", grabbed the sticky woodgrain vinyl cabinets and stuck them in the back of my wife's car, the nicer one of the ones we have.

As I am driving home some idiot plows out of a store lot on the other side of the road making a left into my lane. I have to make a violent swerve to miss and when I do, the speakers crash right onto the litho.

Ugh....

 

[soundmotor]

Ugh....

Yep. It went all those years without that damage and within an hour I damaged it.