Ad for NAP500DR

[RackKit]

@Beachcomber

Not always obvious, though. Many years ago I saw an advert for NAP300 on Craigslist, at a reasonably good price - fairly cheap, but not ridiculously so (I think it was about £3000 or £4000 IIRC). Never delivered, no communications. Neither his bank nor mine were interested. An expensive error.

Oh no, that’s not good.

[RackKit]

@Thomas

Even if one doesn’t intend to do it, I believe asking for a pick up and payment in cash is always a good idea. If a pick up is not possible then a scam it is.

Absolutely this.
I’ve travelled all over the country to collect items and have No problems with buyers wanting to collect either. It’s great to meet the sellers as it’s a shared interest plus the advantage of transporting the goods yourself and not leaving them to the mercy of couriers.

[ChrisSU]

There have been a few high profile cases where sellers have gone along with this request as you then become an easy target for mugging and theft of a large wedge of cash. So you need to tread very carefully if doing this.
The most effective tactic in my books is to initiate a dialogue with the seller. HiFi enthusiasts generally like to talk about their gear, and can usually be spotted a mile off regardless of the method of payment or delivery.

[RackKit]

@ChrisSU

There have been a few high profile cases where sellers have gone along with this request as you then become an easy target for mugging and theft of a large wedge of cash. So you need to tread very carefully if doing this.
The most effective tactic in my books is to initiate a dialogue with the seller. HiFi enthusiasts generally like to talk about their gear, and can usually be spotted a mile off regardless of the method of payment or delivery.

Agreed. The amount of times I’ve only meant to talk to a seller or buyer for a few minutes when then becomes an hour’s chat about all things hifi instead!

[davidhendon]

You do get some odd situations. Some years ago I bought a Quad 99 preamp on eBay. The buyer and I agreed to meet at a London main line station. It was only a few hundred £ so I wasn’t worried.

Anyway I turned up and waited an hour but no guy with a preamp. So I went back to the office. That evening we emailed and he was apologetic. His dog had been run over he said. We arranged to try again a day or two later but this time he would come to my office, then in central London.

At the appointed hour I waited outside on the pavement and a guy came up on a bike. He pulled the preamp, the remote and the mains lead from a rucksack. I looked at it. It looked fine. So I paid him. And off he went.

When I got it home, it worked properly and was in apparently perfect condition. He said the dog was going to be ok.

There was a small postscript to this deal though, that he didn’t get round to telling eBay that I had paid. eBay got increasingly hysterical over a period of weeks and then locked my account for non payment for a win. So I emailed him again and finally a week or so later he got round to confirming the deal was done.

It would have easier all round to pay for a courier!

[Roog]

You are right about the price being reasonable, I paid a little less than £3k for my NAP 300 a couple of years ago.