Long story short, a distant relative of mine passed away and I got pulled into helping clean out his apartment. Mostly junk (lots and lots of junk). But I did make an interesting discovery: new in box vintage stereo equipment. I don’t think it’s anything very collectable, but I wanted to post it here in case anyone knew something about these. They are Pioneer SX-450 and Pioneer CT-F2121.
Some basic Google searches turned up several for sale that have been used pretty hard or restored for ~$150. So maybe some value, especially given the pristine new condition.
Anyone have any insight into these?
Also, can anyone recommend a good vintage hifi forum that maybe I could sell them on? Ebay may be my best option, but if there’s another community out there like hifi guides that would appreciate these I would rather do that.
Yeah, think you will get a great return for those still in the box. Quick search andrew robinson did a video on that reciever. The tape deck made in japan might get top dollar for that too. Sorry about the fam but congrats on the buried treasure.
Pioneer was the “pioneer” of excellent receivers back in the 70’s, including that one you have there. Granted, it’s not a power house like the ones they were produce for the power wars back then, but it’s still a nice little receiver. That cassette deck isn’t too shabby either.
That receiver is only 15 watts, but pair it up with some old vintage Cerwin Vega’s or Realistic Mach One’s, and you’ll be amazed at how good a few watts in a quality designed and built receiver can sound.
Though considering they’re both at least 45 years old, they would still require a recap and a good once over even though they are still “new”. Age does bad things to caps, whether they were used or not.
Thanks for all the feedback! I’m starting to consider just setting there up in my front room and trying them out for myself.
I wondered about that. I ditched all my tapes years ago, I don’t even know how I’ll test it. Maybe a trip to Goodwill for some vintage cassettes…
Thanks for the recommendations!
Thanks for the recommendation. I would have guessed lack of use would have kept it from degrading. But maybe not. Time to find a good shop to look at them…
Hence why I wouldn’t even bother selling on eBay. In fact, I don’t sell on eBay at all. Heck, I barely ever buy on there anymore. Way too many shady characters on there, both sellers and buyers.
US Audiomart, Audiogon and The Music Room would be much better, safer bets.
There are definitely some horror stories from eBay, but there are also some gems found on there. I guess it’s just about knowing your rights and making sure that if things go wrong, they can be corrected and made right.
For example, the best case you can have is if you make a purchase/sale in person, that way you can see what you are buying and/or the buyer can give you the money in cash (and he also gets to see what he is purchasing).
