9 Thrift Stores And I Found Nothing

[DJboutit]

I went to 5 Goodwills and 4 other thrift store here and Houston Last week and I found nothing wow. The Goodwills do not carry stereo equipment any more they had nothing. I guess 2 or 3 people get first dibs on all the decent stereo equipment at the Goodwills here the rest goes on the auction site. I guess all the decent stereo equipment is now getting listed on Craigslist Offerup and Ebay for 2x to 3x more than they are worth. I have been looking for close to 3 months. I have found nothing even decent.

 

[Bodyblue]

Umm that is just the breaks. I would doubt there are just a few with dibs on anything special, it is just the ebb and flow of donations in your area. The world is not ending, nor is Goodwill changing......

 

[spark1]

Stories of great scores at thrift stores are by far the exception. You might stop at those 9 stores 20 times each (and 50 garage sales) and still never find anything good...or you might get lucky on your next visit.

And with the improved economy of the last 3-4 years, and the renewed interest in vinyl, demand for used audio gear has skyrocketed...making gear that much harder to find.

Also, the proliferation of ebay and similar venues has made it very easy for even those with no audio knowledge to value (and often overvalue) the stuff they are looking to get rid of. This too makes it harder to find good stuff cheap.

You are right to consider later-era gear...demand for it has not yet hit the levels seen for "golden age" gear (late 60's thru early 80's). While the proliferation of IC devices in the 80's can make this gear harder to repair, there were plenty of pretty good integrated amps, power amps, tuners and receivers still being made by the big manufacturers in the 80's (Pioneer, Kenwood, Yamaha, etc).

My curiosity was piqued, so I took a look at CL in Houston. There is a Pioneer SX-737 for $125, claimed to be in good operating condition. That would be a good start for a budget system. There is also a pair of little Boston CR6's for $50. I assume both of these items could be bought for at least a bit below the asking price. So for maybe $150 you would have system that I would have loved to own when I was younger. Add a decent small, used subwoofer later and you might have a system you'll keep for many years. In any case, good luck.

 

[Ds2000]

Things are changing in some thrift shops. I was a floating mgr for a prominent New York City only thrift. We did get some very fine electronic donations a while back, and of course the myriad small electronics etc. Ultimately we found the liability of selling this stuff to be too high, customer complaints, mobs for the stuff, etc. were working against the core customer service we wanted to put as first and foremost. So the whole network of shops ceased taking any electronics in as donations. In our instance, it was a better move, they are fashion involved and handle clothing, furniture and housewares for the most. So other shops may be following suit and removing this stuff from the floor to a central location or letting a third party do the bidding for them.

 

[DJboutit]

Stories of great scores at thrift stores are by far the exception. You might stop at those 9 stores 20 times each (and 50 garage sales) and still never find anything good...or you might get lucky on your next visit.

And with the improved economy of the last 3-4 years, and the renewed interest in vinyl, demand for used audio gear has skyrocketed...making gear that much harder to find.

Also, the proliferation of ebay and similar venues has made it very easy for even those with no audio knowledge to value (and often overvalue) the stuff they are looking to get rid of. This too makes it harder to find good stuff cheap.

You are right to consider later-era gear...demand for it has not yet hit the levels seen for "golden age" gear (late 60's thru early 80's). While the proliferation of IC devices in the 80's can make this gear harder to repair, there were plenty of pretty good integrated amps, power amps, tuners and receivers still being made by the big manufacturers in the 80's (Pioneer, Kenwood, Yamaha, etc).

My curiosity was piqued, so I took a look at CL in Houston. There is a Pioneer SX-737 for $125, claimed to be in good operating condition. That would be a good start for a budget system. There is also a pair of little Boston CR6's for $50. I assume both of these items could be bought for at least a bit below the asking price. So for maybe $150 you would have system that I would have loved to own when I was younger. Add a decent small, used subwoofer later and you might have a system you'll keep for many years. In any case, good luck.

SX 737 $125 is a little high I think it worth like $70 to $90 I want something with a little more power.

 

[fredgarvin]

OP, You are absolutely correct, however you may find any statements about that particular place being deleted if they are not shiningly positive.

 

[Dave_1962]

 

[SoCal Sam]

Unlucky but not unusual. If you are looking for classic silver or high end, forget it. If you are looking for interesting BPC, your odds are better but not much. If you are looking for interesting stuff to flip that is not audio, try your GW Outlet or Clearance Center.

 

[SoCal Sam]

I went to 5 Goodwills and 4 other thrift store here and Houston Last week and I found nothing wow. The Goodwills do not carry stereo equipment any more they had nothing. I guess 2 or 3 people get first dibs on all the decent stereo equipment at the Goodwills here the rest goes on the auction site. I guess all the decent stereo equipment is now getting listed on Craigslist Offerup and Ebay for 2x to 3x more than they are worth. I am looking for a mid level 70s or late 90s setup for under $200 I have been looking for close to 3 months I have found nothing even decent in my price range. I am need to get another setup to replace the one I lost in the hurricane last year.

For $200, I could set you up with awesomeness.

 

[spark1]

SX 737 $125 is a little high I think it worth like $70 to $90 I want something with a little more power.

Ok...that would be 100 watts to get a noticeable gain in headroom. Receivers and integrated amps with that kind of power will cost disproportionately more.

If you want to play loud and stay in budget, rather than pay the higher price for more power, focus on high sensitivity speakers instead. This approach would probably be cheaper.

 

[spark1]

For $200, I could set you up with awesomeness.

Tell us more!

 

[SoCal Sam]

Tell us more!

First off, we are far apart distance wise so this is for your imagination. It takes time and luck to find these but they are out there. Also, keep an eye on CL, estate sales, and yard sales.

These are 120-130 wpc. These have MM Phono. They should have output for passive subwoofer.

Add in a TOTL DVD player as a CD player

Some budget busters that sound far better than they have any right to. Ignore the JBL's, they are over your $200 budget.

 

[quiet]

Sounds like Pioneer Elite territory is the cure.

 

[DJboutit]

I have been looking for like 10 different receivers speakers are so easy to get I can get a really good pair for $50 to $85

 

[sqlsavior]

Sounds like the electronic rag-picking and basement-mining industries are consolidating.

There's some money left in those life-tailings, and people need to eat.

Support Your Local Flipper!

 

[Bodyblue]

OP, You are absolutely correct, however you may find any statements about that particular place being deleted if they are not shiningly positive.

Complete and total tin-hat bullshit. Where do people get crap like that?

Goodwill is what it is. Every few months somebody gets butt-hurt that they cant find a SX 1080 or 2270 for $40 and says GW is crap........ Look, picking and thrifting is all about hard work and LUCK. I find the harder one looks, the more luck one has.....BUT sometimes one stumbles upon some gold with zero effort. 99.99% of the time a thrift gets some free stuff, puts it on the shelf and somebody buys it. There is no conspiracy to make sure that one person gets all of the "best" stuff. Most big thrifts are so freaking busy sorting disgusting crap from stuff that actually has value that they simply dont have time for anything "shady"

 

[GChief]

I still have hats FS

 

[soundmotor]

Look, picking and thrifting is all about hard work and LUCK. I find the harder one looks, the more luck one has.....

This is the key to finding gear if you don't have a brick & mortar business. When you do, sellers come to you with their stuff. It's why antique & vintage shops usually have some unobtanium kicking around, someone brought it to them (like a thrift). For everyone else though it's work, work, work. If you don't do that, you won't find anything. Thrifts are the last place I go and not where I start. As far as conspiracy though, some thrifts do hold better pieces for employees. One of the larger chains near me even puts that in their in-store help wanted ads that they paper all over. If you work there you get first crack at incoming stuff. Those things never hit the floor.

 

[quiet]

Wash D.C. has a "large" private thrift with staff that price vintage electronics for pennies on the dollar, then call their buddies to come and purchase. And split the profit on craigs.
Arkansas has nothing, a dead zone.

 

[Dazaa]

SX 737 $125 is a little high I think it worth like $70 to $90 I want something with a little more power.

Broken ones are selling for more than that on Ebay.