Marantz prices are up,up,up!!!!!!

Adding to some good observations about quality, look, sq, greater discretionary income vs. when they were new. I agree with all of this, not to mention the supply of the higher spec'd models wasn't that large then due to high costs associated with the units. You needed a pretty good job to purchase a 2385 or a 1250. They were also very well advertised, using big, tantalizing photos and lots of hot-words. I don't think it's just the boomers buying the stuff up, and I don't think the demand will pass with them either. Any of the well known "golden age" components will continue to increase in value, and yes I think some of the brands not quite there yet will also become a greater focus as time goes by. Between economics, the pretty astute observation above that there's really nothing being made to fill the spots these once occupied, nostalgia, and plain 'ol cool factor, there's no reason to imagine the trend just falling off.
I think we're seeing the beginnings of a durable addition to the collectors market.
 
I have also became aware of a considerable amount of certain vintage gear being bought up and shipped overseas, particularly Asia. That, along with all the other things mentioned could be taking a big bite out of the supply, just as the boomers here are ready to buy their dream vintage amp.
 
Demand is rising and supply will steadily subside, especially with all of us collectors hoarding it all. :)

I like that they are 99% discrete, some 100%! Technically, they should never end up in the scrap heap with all the 5,10,20 year old junk.
 
Demand is rising and supply will steadily subside, especially with all of us collectors hoarding it all. :)

I like that they are 99% discrete, some 100%! Technically, they should never end up in the scrap heap with all the 5,10,20 year old junk.

There are components that are becoming very hard to get to fix stuff without a workaround. But the gear should be good for another decade.
 
As a collector and high end seller of Marantz here are my observations. Most of my customers are like me. We grew up in the 70's owning what a kid in high school back then could afford. Fast forward many years later and fortunately now we can afford that vintage audio piece that eluded us for years. Most of my customers indicate to me that they have wanting to buy a Marantz for years and now they can finally afford that dream receiver they have always wanted. I'm also seeing younger buyers wanting the vintage gear as well.

This is EXACTLY the Stereo Store Lust® I have started talking about ever since I read a post by teri patterson, quoted here because it is so true:

remember the great stereo stores of the 1970's?
man..i would walk down the pioneer aisle and physically drool.
the sx-1050 and sx-1250 owned my heart, yet my paycheck could barely afford an sx-550
those massive stacks of silver mesmerized me, and the speaker rooms? my god!!
several years ago i got my dream of ct-f8181 and ct-f9292 answered..they are truly wonderful decks!
now..after all these years im bringing sx-1050 home! im giddy, i really am, this is a dream come true.
i dont think im late to the party at all..this is truly fine equipment...im very happy!


teri patterson, Sep 22, 2016

This is just like the muscle car lust that keeps those prices high. Fools and money are soon parted. Not that they are fools, but serious hobbyists. Cars today are so much better in a performance kind of way compared to those 65-71 cars, but there is that muscle car lust that opens the wallet.

All the brands had something special. The Marantz and early Pioneer had the blue lights, the Sansui had the dark dial when off and nice lighting when on. The Mar/Sui were priced above the others (Pio/Kenwood) and folks remember that and that is what they want today. Pioneer had so much gear it was everywhere and everyone wanted some of their bigger units. Keeps them at the forefront today whereas their multiple ads in key locations in magazines kept them at the forefront back in the day.


The third reason is the stock market has been good for many years which has created more discretionary income. Watch if the next serious stock market correction does not bring down the prices a bit.

This is coming and may well have an effect. We can scoop up those 400 buck baby Marantz receivers and sell em off when the price goes back up. The folks looking at this gear are the same as the ones that looked at it when new. This run should last a while longer as there are plenty of folks that still haven't stepped into the past with a nice vintage rig and would like to.
 
I have also became aware of a considerable amount of certain vintage gear being bought up and shipped overseas, particularly Asia. That, along with all the other things mentioned could be taking a big bite out of the supply, just as the boomers here are ready to buy their dream vintage amp.


This a two way road. Asian buyers get American gear, and American buyers get stuff from Japan domestic market. I am myself in the second category with preamp and turntable from imported Japan (though in both cases through a middleman somewhere).
 
As a collector and high end seller of Marantz here are my observations. Most of my customers are like me. We grew up in the 70's owning what a kid in high school back then could afford. Fast forward many years later and fortunately now we can afford that vintage audio piece that eluded us for years. Most of my customers indicate to me that they have wanting to buy a Marantz for years and now they can finally afford that dream receiver they have always wanted. I'm also seeing younger buyers wanting the vintage gear as well.

A second reason that drives the vintage demand is what is available today. The current throw away black plastic receivers today just don't have the sound or looks like the vintage gear. I hear this all the time.

The third reason is the stock market has been good for many years which has created more discretionary income. Watch if the next serious stock market correction does not bring down the prices a bit.

If you complain about the high prices now then you either have to accept things as they are or sit on the sidelines and hope they come down on price in the future. Personally i am not waiting, I think the values will hold or go up even more (depending on the stock market).


I don't disagree with your points, but I don't think they cover all the bases.


I actually think the current economic situation may drive prices up a lot.

Many of my customers are young work-a-day "kids" that don't have stock market interests or perhaps career time line jobs. And when our stock market sucked eggs, foreign markets bloomed. Asia is liking vintage. Other places want it but the shipping is wicked. Some folks are finding a way. Money always finds a way.

It not all baby boomers or Gen-X either. The Gen-Y and Millennials grew up with digital music. When the ones that care (audiophiles) hear analog, they fall in love. What's not to love?

The boomers do have more "fun" money and less time to enjoy it or to screw around hunting up a score so they will pony up and invest in worthy gear much quicker than the less "wealthy".

And it's not just Marantz. Pioneer and Sansui are doing well. Brands I would look twice at 10 years ago are being sucked up and enjoyed. Even broken stuff is being bought up.

I really don't see any reason for it to quit. More people are getting into it and not as a "fad" thing. Fad crazes (beanie baby syndrome) have a whole different look and feel to them.

There are a lot of people getting very serious about good sound, music, and multi-channel, class D, digital source just does not have that old school "soul".

The tube thing is really running hard and strong. Many of the noob players want in but can't understand the "bargain" in buying a restored piece for $500-$800 so they dig up stuff that needs $300-$500 in restoration and pay $200-$300 for it (get it?)
 
I currently have about 14 or more Marantz units...most fully restored and the rest will be soon, and I love the look , feel and sound ,but like a lot of other folks I only recently ( last 3 years ) got into the hobby of buying and restoring. To give an example of how addictive this Marantz "bug" really is....there was a 2385 advertised on a buy and sell site near me last week and the asking price was $2500 ( and that CDN funds guys ) so I went to have a look at it. It also has the original 3 piece wood cabinet. I have to say the thing is a Beast and I really had to think about it I mean after all $2500 is a lot of cake for an ordinary working stiff like me. In the end I declined. I kind of regretted it but that's the lure of these things. I think had I stayed at the guys house another 10 mins I would have been the new owner but it also has to come down to want and need. Did I want it..... OF COURSE....could I afford it ....maybe.....in the end I just figured that I had a lot more things I could , and need, spend $ 2500 on.
 
As a collector and high end seller of Marantz here are my observations. Most of my customers are like me. We grew up in the 70's owning what a kid in high school back then could afford. Fast forward many years later and fortunately now we can afford that vintage audio piece that eluded us for years. Most of my customers indicate to me that they have wanting to buy a Marantz for years and now they can finally afford that dream receiver they have always wanted. I'm also seeing younger buyers wanting the vintage gear as well.

A second reason that drives the vintage demand is what is available today. The current throw away black plastic receivers today just don't have the sound or looks like the vintage gear. I hear this all the time.

The third reason is the stock market has been good for many years which has created more discretionary income. Watch if the next serious stock market correction does not bring down the prices a bit.

If you complain about the high prices now then you either have to accept things as they are or sit on the sidelines and hope they come down on price in the future. Personally i am not waiting, I think the values will hold or go up even more (depending on the stock market).
Before I purchased the PrimaLuna..Had lot's of stuff. And Yes..Going to the stores in the 70's as a teenager I would be drooling. Getting real good deals (fixer uppers) is all about the hunt and hunt. I sold off much of my gear
but do have Marantz 1060, 2230, Luxman L100U, Pioneer SPEC (not for long). I also agree with "dgunnr" about the Crap that's out there..and this started in the 80's. 4yrs ago I could have pickup a Pioneer SX-1980 for 6 bills..
look what it is selling for now...:crazy:

I am seating back and Enjoying this Audio Ride..:beatnik:
 
I just hope the gov don't force radio to go digtal.
If they do, these receivers will end up like the mexican Telmex stock did as a result of being a fixed line only company. $69 a share to worthless within three years.
 
Wonder what is driving this huge price swing? I know that they are not making anymore of this, but I believe there is more to it. I somehow think some of it is simply a way for the boomers to buy what they lusted for in their youth but couldn't afford, and as the more buy it, the more want to. That and maybe a bit of backlash from the throw it away/built in obsolescence tack that the digital age seems to have taken with many things electronic. Then there are those massive silver aluminum anodized face plates! And heavy duty knobs machined out of solid blocks of aluminum, the look and feel of it. Lastly I think it can still (even with higher prices) be a pretty good bang for the higher SQ buck if chosen right.
I can tell you what is driving it, though it is only a theory:
1. The vinyl boom is also making other components from the vinyl period worth more because it is creating a demand for a retro receiver to match your retro TT.
2. Consumer confidence is skyrocketing in the past couple of months. When the future looks bright, people are willing to spend more on non-essential items like antiques. And this hobby is a cousin to that. i.e. prices are up for the same reason the stock market is up. The future looks a lot better than it has for a long time, and prices are reflecting that.
 
I feel that a change in the economy could cause a change in how much disposable income a person has to buy things. In harder times people conserve and don't waste. In this world we live in, nothing is for sure. Economic conditions change and so do people's attitudes. The global economy is not stable with the new sheriff in town.....
 
I restored my 2285 several years ago, but just before I started the restoration, I came across a working 2270 for $350.00 on CL. I was hesitant to pay that much, but wasn't sure what I'd run into on my 2285 restoration. I always felt by posting prices on AK, I would be labeled a sucker for those prices. I keep my eyes on EstateSales and CL, but to this date, I've not found that good a deal since. So many that pay what some say are too high, may be like me...if I want it, there may not be a second chance, so I'll grab it now.
 
I like my vintage silverface stuff, including Marantz stuff, ... it's fun to look at and nice to listen to. However, there are alternatives in good new or newer analog equipment that will blow away my vintage stuff, in every way except value. The '70s stuff had good specs when new, and if properly restored still does. However, you really can't (IMO) compare a 2370 to what you'd buy in (for example) a new ADCOM for the same money. It's analog, it's going to be built as dual-monoblock, it is made in China, ... which is in some ways the same as made in Japan in the 1970s.

In the late '70s Marantz was considered pretty good, better perhaps than Pioneer, one could argue whether Yamaha was better sounding, but in any case it was not even in the same room (in my local stereo shop) as the McIntosh or Conrad Johnson stuff. Really upper mid-level, ... pretty much like a Corvette, not a Ferrari.

I like the comparison to muscle cars, because I agree that it is very similar. When my generation got to the point where we had extra money, we started to buy things that we couldn't have when we were younger, muscle cars! The Ferraris were always worth money (Conrad Johnson, McIntosh), but Mach 1s and Z-28s from the 60s were being crushed in junkyards. Hell, I met a guy at an auction that rescued an LP-400S Mura from a junkyard!

When my parents were in their 50s and 60s they were buying the cars that were hot when they were young, those prices have plateaued as they stopped buying cars and dying. When my generation is toting oxygen bottles the '60s and '70s cars will plateau, as will '60s and '70s stereos.

Sure there is an export market, and there will be future generations that will continue to collect, but there will then be a new generation of products that will become collectible, ...

As far as supply, I have a feeling that hoarders are not all collectors, and as these pieces appreciate there will be more of you who look at that pile of equipment in the garage and see dollar signs, sell much of it for a tidy profit and keep a few nice pieces for yourselves. I was in a stereo shop last winter where the guy showed me 3 Pioneer SX-1980s in museum condition, has two Sansui 9090s on the service bench for testing speakers, ... figures it's part of his retirement investment and has no interest in selling. Those 1980s hit 5-figures he might change his mind, might not.
 
Vintage HiFi NW on the bay has the best looking fully restored Marantz for a premium price but his pricing is pretty accurate according to current trend.
 
ding
 

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Funny, I thought for the chance to get back to the 70's, the price of my 2235 was relatively inexpensive at under $300. Mid-century design isn't inexpensive. Buy a Nakashima table lately?
 
Really glad I bought my 7T when I did. Asking prices have doubled and in a few cases tripled on eBay in just 2 years..
 
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Our vintage audio equip, is something that the new status, new record buying generation needs to pay big money for to enter this world of vintage audio, They are driving up the prices so they to can also have the bragging rights of a monster Marantz, Pioneer, Sansui at any cost, that's fine with me. Everyday I am thankful I collected my things years ago and I did because I liked it, even when it wasn't as cool anymore. Never ever purchased a item to "flip it" sometimes I get too attached to things because of who owned it , or. the story of the item. I do tend to try to improve some equip, but not for money, or status, for sound and personal enjoyment. I purchased a perfect Sansui 9090db in 2003, for $320 , I hated to spend that much $ then but I was at a point in my life that I could finally have one. I Had only seen them in magazines in the 70s growing up ,and never spun a knob on any real hifi gear. I have a stock Marantz 4400 proudly doing daily duty that im sure needs some caps and resistors by now, but I still have the old Sui covered with a old T shirt in the bedroom, still perfect. Could double my money on the auction site. That's not it, its about peeking under that shirt every so often and thinking..... "yup THAT thing isn't going anywhere" Neither is the Marantz.
 
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