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Ronito6

Ronito6

Super Member
Hey all! Ron from Japan here, and I have a bit of a shocker to share.

Judging by the selection of higher end Sansui stuff posted on HiFiDo and Yahoo Auctions Japan, it seem that the higher end gear supply has darn near dried up here.

I tried searching for an AU-9900 just to see what they were going for here these days, and neither site had one.

Searching further on the HiFiDo site I did a general search for anything Sansui, the result was only 3 pages of Sansui gear (50 items per page) only a few pieces of higher end quality.

In the recent past there would be a lot more stuff on offer and there was always several pieces that were truly desirable and collectible.

So just out of curiosity I went down to my local HiFiDo here in Osaka just to see what they had on the shelves.

Not a single Sansui item was present. In the 10 years I’ve patronized that place they always had some Sansui on the shelves. Not today though.

I guess I’ll just have to start shopping for my Sansui stuff in America.
 
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At this moment there are 8,800 listings on eBay with the word Sansui in the listing. 7,400 of those listings are in the US.
 
I have been watching Yahoo auction Japan for a year almost daily now. And there is a lot of difference one week to another especially for the pre 80 models.
Comparing USA with Japan gives still a big difference. eBay, searching with hifishark "Sansui AU" (so amplifiers) gives for example 700+ hits for the USA, but just 74 amplifiers. The rest mostly manuals. On Yahoo auction you get 400+ hits, with around 250-300 amplifiers.
Receivers the USA is well ahead,150+, in Japan mostly the older pre-70 models, a hand full at any given time.
 
Also, consider that Yahoo Auctions Japan is a real auction. Most (90%+) are sold in the 5-7 days. On eBay they can be on for infinity.
Example: I didn't see a CA-303 for 10 months, then two on one week.
I have seen three to four AU-9900/10000/11000 in the same week for sale.
My data is ofcourse from just one year and I can imagine that a few years ago there was a lot more for sale.
 
While I have no hard comparative data to offer, my general perception over time (past 3-5 years especially) of US offerings (mostly via Ebay) is that the quantity of quality gear has been very much in decline even as the prices have gone up. Much of the same beat down and/or grossly oveepriced gear sits on eBay for months on end with no takers, and apparently no willingness on the seller's part to consider taking less to make a sale.

I've not followed the Japanese market so closely, though do browse HiFiDo, and Yahoo Japan via hifishark a few times a week. Based on my limited exposure there, offerings seems down in quantity there as well, but cycilcal as @GrisPato has observed. When I was actively looking for a CA-606 a few months ago I ended up finding a Japanese resale shop offering the one I ultimately bought on ebay US, though it was offered for domestic retail sale as well. The kicker is that it was asking less than any I'd found elsewhere

Around that same time there was a smattrering of BA-100 and 150's on ebay US by a number of Japanese sellers, now I see almost none over the last 3-4 months (but not really looking closely, admittedly). Seems like the Japanese market that existed in isolation for so long is finally trying to open up to American purchasers over the last 2-3 years.

This, undoubtedly, is taking JDM gear out of Japan at an increasing rate now. I have numerous pieces of JDM gear here now, all picked up over the past 16 months. While that's good for me - and others - seeking these rarities, it will have a depleting effect over time on what is available in Japan.

Of course I see big economic pain coming to the US, and this will surely slow down such international purchasing/importing. That has been part of the rationale for my recent push to "get while the getting is good", otherwise my acquisition of additional gear would've been more measured over a longer time frame.
 
Sansui may be some nice vintage audio but it not the only game in town. Maybe based on its low availability and high prices it’s time to consider other manufacturers. There are many others to chose from.
 
^ Can't really argue with that, though everyone seems to have a preference, and some makes are as expensive - or more so - than Sansui in the current market. I have some Pioneer, Technics, Akai, Hitachi, Denon, Dual, Onkyo and DBX here besides Sansui. Others have passed through my collection (Kenwood and Fisher, notably) so I'm not 100% single minded in my collecting.

Problem is, I tend to build complete systems from a matching line of components. That chews up a lot of space, and I dare not start down that road with other brands now.
 
Ronito6 said:
it seem that the higher end gear supply has darn near dried up here.
Click to expand...

When we are talking about the above

audiocrzy said:
it’s time to consider other manufacturers. There are many others to chose from.
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Considering integrated TOTL "high end" amplifiers what brands should I consider where is more available for lower prices. I don't see them. At least not in Europe or Japan.
 
In my part of the US I've been seeing the Sansui CL listings drying up over the winter (and a couple pieces on eBay I’m looking for). Maybe seasonal. Not sure. I have not been tracking this stuff long enough to identify seasonal trends. Definitely a recent drop in the listings here though.

As @audiocrzy pointed out maybe this will lead to more support, restoration and attention for brands and or models with less attention from that period. Would be nice to see as much of the period gear restored and kept on the road. And not just TOTL pieces either - would be great to see it all live on - BOTL to TOTL.
 
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I can't speak to most other brands in this regard (though it certainly happens with Marantz and Pioneer gear that I'm seeing around) but the "BOTL" Sansui models from the golden era are getting lots of attention and restoration work now. Small receivers like the 210, 350(A) and amps like the AU-101, AU-117 and such are presently quite popular.

This is both because they are good sounding, well built, budget concious gear, and because the bigger models have gotten so costly many are priced out of the market for the units that have typically been most sought out like. Also, people are setting up secondary (or tertiary) systems in smaller rooms where a 100WPC+ receiver or amp is overkill on both the budget and the needs of the space in which it will be used.

I'm waiting to see if the rising tide on even the lower end vintage gear eventually has the effect of elevating the popularity of currently maligned mid-late 80's BPC era stuff. Personally, I have no sentimentality for that sort of kit, but popularity is an odd thing, and when a trend is born there is no accounting for the underlying taste or rationale behind it.

People have gotten hung up on all kinds of weird and even stupid stuff (pet rocks, bell bottoms; or of more relevance in 2022 the "designer" completely shredded jeans that are everywhere now). So, don't rule out the possibility that the rack systems that sold by the truckload at JC Penney and Service Merchandise circa 1987 might make a comeback. To the extent there are any working examples left around to collect, anyway.

That gear has been treated as disposable for years now, depleting the supply along the way. If they ever do become collectible, people will be listing them as "ultra rare" on eBay. Go ahead and laugh at the notion, but I can almost see it happening. It'd make as much sense as anything else going on now.
 
Sansuiman said:
I can't speak to most other brands in this regard (though it certainly happens with Marantz and Pioneer gear that I'm seeing around) but the "BOTL" Sansui models from the golden era are getting lots of attention and restoration work now. Small receivers like the 210, 350(A) and amps like the AU-101, AU-117 and such are presently quite popular.

This is both because they are good sounding, well built, budget concious gear, and because the bigger models have gotten so costly many are priced out of the market for the units that have typically been most sought out like. Also, people are setting up secondary (or tertiary) systems in smaller rooms where a 100WPC+ receiver or amp is overkill on both the budget and the needs of the space in which it will be used.
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Enthusiastically agreed. And hopefully the collector focus stays aimed at pieces of high build quality and sonic performance, at all power levels.

Also should be said that it is in large part thanks to the depth of experience, expertise and generosity of knowledge sharing in the community here, this gear stands a good chance of renovation and living on and on.
 
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JimEGR said:
In my part of the US I've been seeing the Sansui CL listings drying up over the winter (and a couple pieces on eBay I’m looking for). Maybe seasonal. Not sure. I have not been tracking this stuff long enough to identify seasonal trends. Definitely a recent drop in the listings here though.

As @audiocrzy pointed out maybe this will lead to more support, restoration and attention for brands and or models with less attention from that period. Would be nice to see as much of the period gear restored and kept on the road. And not just TOTL pieces either - would be great to see it all live on - BOTL to TOTL.
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I agree whole heartedly with this! I was just revering to the original poster mentioning specifically TOTL offerings drying op and not being able to find a lot of offerings from other brands TOTL models or for lower prices.
Here in the Netherlands you can still get an AU-217 for around €100 and they are for sale regularly. But also on that level I do not see often models of other brands.
 
GrisPato said:
I agree whole heartedly with this! I was just revering to the original poster mentioning specifically TOTL offerings drying op and not being able to find a lot of offerings from other brands TOTL models or for lower prices.
Here in the Netherlands you can still get an AU-217 for around €100 and they are for sale regularly. But also on that level I do not see often models of other brands.
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I actually recently acquired an AU-117 and AU-217(two of these actually). First play sonic impressions were very positive, considering such small and simple(maybe the secret to the sonics) integrated’s - and they are all original aged components. Love the simple and clean esthetic of them, too. Wish the knobs were metal and not plastic, but they do not feel cheap - still a good tactile interface. Going to renovate them both, thanks to the expertise of @Leestereo, and I’m sure some other community contributors here as those two projects move along.
 
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