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Thread [Getting started] Which Site is Best for Selling Gear?

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Mike Levine

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First post

1 Posted on 06/24/2015 at 16:40:21

If you’re a home recordist or a performing musician, chances are you have gear you want to sell. Perhaps you’re thinking of upgrading to something better, or you have extra hardware or instruments that you’re not using. Thanks to the Internet, your chances of finding a buyer are very good. The two most prominent sites for selling are eBay and Craigslist, although there are other options including Amazon.com.

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namnibor

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2 Posted on 06/27/2015 at 15:24:38

Great article! I for one, really value my privacy and above all, my security and safety too much to EVER use Craigslist. I have seen on my local news all too often where people either get robbed at gun point in their own homes, or even some brazen people will try to do same even if meeting in front parking lot of a police station. I just rather deal with the inherent safety and convenience of Ebay rather than the "underbelly of the internet", Craigslist.
A few years ago I was alerted by a friend to look at something I had been looking for that popped-up on CL, well all the conversation went well and sounded up and up, then as soon as asking to meet in a public place...it was what a fresh flea collar is to fleas...so just a heads-up to musicians with a considerable home studio, be careful with Craigslist. Have many other crazy true stories about fellow musicians getting ripped-off, even a whole multi-band practice hall recently was wiped out...it was all from a Craigslist transaction, and luckily they caught some of the stuff being posted for sale...again, their very stolen gear, on CL.

Again, sorry for the rant, but I really hate CL.

"Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding." Proverbs 2:2-3

Mike Levine

Author

3 Posted on 06/29/2015 at 06:23:28

Quote:

I just rather deal with the inherent safety and convenience of Ebay rather than the "underbelly of the internet", Craigslist.

I totally understand where you're coming from. There's definitely more risk using Craigslist, but a lot depends on where you're located. Craigslist does have its benefits, though — such as no commissions or shipping — for those willing to deal with the risks. I've sold a number of items on Craigslist without a problem, but some of the people who responded to the ads were definitely a bit sketchy.

namnibor

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4 Posted on 06/29/2015 at 11:53:21

Right-on!
My point should have emphasized that one of the BIG advantages of Ebay is if an item is a stolen item being sold on Ebay or it's simply or blatantly NOT what was advertised, Ebay has quite a few protections, lest we also not forget PayPal...now, yes, these things come at a small fee and commission, but the Philosophy that Craigslist stands behind that actually infuriates Police of all kinds is that Craigslist stands tall on their position of "freedom" and "ask no questions", which means IF you get ripped-off using Craigslist, you really have absolutely no recourse other than to file a police report because Craigslist will do absolutely nothing to help all in the name of "freedom of the internet"...freedom is all well and good, but we are indeed living in a much different world where unfortunately some people exploit those very "freedom and free speech CL Policies", to the chagrin of the musician or anyone that *may* get ripped-off.
I can say that in my 8 years of buying on ebay, building-up a considerable home hardware synth studio after my military career ended, I have YET to have a bad experience with *any* seller, and all gear as described. I think there's that element of common sense and thoroughly asking the right questions before purchasing, makes a world of difference as well, whatever means a person uses to sell/buy gear.

"Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding." Proverbs 2:2-3

thesweetspot

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5 Posted on 06/30/2015 at 07:15:35

Quote from namnibor:

My point should have emphasized that one of the BIG advantages of Ebay is if an item is a stolen item being sold on Ebay or it's simply or blatantly NOT what was advertised, Ebay has quite a few protections, lest we also not forget PayPal...now, yes, these things come at a small fee and commission, but the Philosophy that Craigslist stands behind that actually infuriates Police of all kinds is that Craigslist stands tall on their position of "freedom" and "ask no questions", which means IF you get ripped-off using Craigslist, you really have absolutely no recourse other than to file a police report because Craigslist will do absolutely nothing to help all in the name of "freedom of the internet"...freedom is all well and good, but we are indeed living in a much different world where unfortunately some people exploit those very "freedom and free speech CL Policies", to the chagrin of the musician or anyone that *may* get ripped-off.
I can say that in my 8 years of buying on ebay, building-up a considerable home hardware synth studio after my military career ended, I have YET to have a bad experience with *any* seller, and all gear as described. I think there's that element of common sense and thoroughly asking the right questions before purchasing, makes a world of difference as well, whatever means a person uses to sell/buy gear.

That's true to an extent, but I've actually bought stuff on both Craig's List and from a french dude on Audiofanzine's french site. In both cases, I insisted on Paypal payment, because much of eBay's protection actually stems from their acquisition of Paypal and the protection that comes with.

I bought a deluxe telecaster from someone on Audiofanzine who sold many used products. I admitted I was nervous that it would arrive beat up or broken, but with Paypal I knew that, at least I would be reimbursed if that was the case. Thankfully, the guitar actually came in perfect condition

My issue with ebay is that, while I've bought things on eBay before, I feel like their prices are higher than on other sites, even for second-hand gear. And as someone who has GAS but not necessarily the money to feed his addiction, any lower price I can get is always appreciated

Mike Levine

Author

6 Posted on 06/30/2015 at 07:57:36

Quote:

I can say that in my 8 years of buying on ebay, building-up a considerable home hardware synth studio after my military career ended, I have YET to have a bad experience with *any* seller, and all gear as described. I think there's that element of common sense and thoroughly asking the right questions before purchasing, makes a world of difference as well, whatever means a person uses to sell/buy gear.

Good point. One of the things that also helps a lot on eBay is the feedback system, which makes it possible to avoid sellers who have had sketchy transactions in the past (there's no equivalent on Craigslist). If you see a seller who's had several transactions resulting in negative feedback, it should be a major red flag.

Mike Levine

Author

7 Posted on 06/30/2015 at 08:38:59

Quote:

My issue with ebay is that, while I've bought things on eBay before, I feel like their prices are higher than on other sites, even for second-hand gear. And as someone who has GAS but not necessarily the money to feed his addiction, any lower price I can get is always appreciated

And that's why it's good that we have a lot of choices regarding how we buy and sell used gear, including eBay, Craigslist, and (shameless self promotion alert :mdr:

) the Audiofanzine Classified section https://en.audiofanzine.com/audio-music-gear/classifieds/, among other choices. Overall, we're a lot better off now than we were in the pre-Internet days, when the only options for buying and selling were classified ads in newspapers and dedicated buy/sell publications, and notices posted on bulletin boards at rehearsal studios or other places where musicians gathered.

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