New to the site, A question about reproductions please..

[Coast Steve]

Hey guys, Awesome site you have going here I must say.
I'm near Vancouver BC.
I'm looking to get into buying a nice old classic and big box.
I've noticed all the really big top of the line models on e-bay seem to be in Russia....What's with that?
Are they just China made clones /reproductions?
How do I spot a clone. Or is there no such thing.
It's just that some of these Russian boxes looked brand new.

I hope to find a really mint Sharp or JVC, but don't want to get scammed.

One Russian E-bay seller has the identical pictures for 2 different adds and both adds are priced differently.
So a bit fishy.
Do they really have this many boom boxes in Russia? I must have seen 20 awesome boxes from there.

I'm confused.

Also, I see lot's are asking in the $3000-$5000 range .....Do they actually sell for this or is this just a case of everyone else asks that much,...so I will too.
Please tell me a Sharp 777 doesn't really cost that much.

Here's the Sharp boom box I have now. Had it for years. I'm hoping for a much bigger one.
If you can lead me to a nice machine with an honest seller, pleased do.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[Reli]

Exact clones of radios are not really an issue in this hobby. The biggest issue is dishonest people who don't reveal all the technical problems their radio has.

Also, watch out for is people who claim "New in box" when what they really mean is "I still have the box, but the radio itself has been used, but I'm not going to tell you that."

Also, don't be impressed by colorful, new-looking labels or decals....Some people re-print them and act like they're original when they're not.

Don't pay attention to Russian prices. They are deliberately trying to inflate the cost of this hobby. Most of them are just buying from Yahoo Japan and re-selling them for a profit. Also they like to flip radios they acquired cheaply from people who didn't photograph them well. I'm not impressed.

 

[Radio raheem]

Agree with Reli, mostly ignore the Russians, there on crack or something like that and spoil it for the rest of us

 

[T-STER]

Yeah as Reli says the russians are trying to artificially inflate prices by listing them at ridiculous prices. They buy them from Japan or from people who don't know what they have then clean them and realist at silly prices.

A member here has a GF777 for sale for £675 for instance... much more realistic.

 

[Superduper]

If you do your due diligence, you will find that these Russian sellers have 20 (or more) boomboxes for sale and these exact same boxes have been for sale for months, years so it just seems like they are spitting them out of magical reproduction machines because they are always in their inventory. But I assure you it just seems that way. They do appear to sell an example or two once in a long while but not nearly as frequently as you think, and probably only when they find someone like you who are affected by their marketing scheme. I (and some others) believe they purposely wage a campaign of creating a perception of these high prices being normal so as to numb customers to their prices making it seem like the new normal. Also, they are not reproductions but rather restored used examples. Like others have said, forget about the new labels and decals, they are merely reprints affixed to make them look new. I'm going to guess that 99.98% of the new looking labels are actually reprints. Actual original labels would obviously be degraded to some extent unless the boxes truly were brand new in box which are few and far between.

On the other hand, many of these boxes do seem to have undergone some significant restoration so I am going to "guess" that they would be in better shape than most non-restored units out there for sale. However, only you can decide whether the time and effort they invested to restore those examples and put new labels on them are worth the $7000 price tag vs $700 un-restored ones.

 

[Reli]

A lot of those Russian and Ukranian auctions just say "fully restored".…. or my favorite, "After full and complex prevention"

What does that mean? What exactly was restored? How and by who?

So now I have to send messages to him, hoping he'll answer completely and honestly. Not just vague one-word answers like "yes".

If a seller wants someone to pay $1,000 - $7,000 for something, shouldn't they be courteous enough to provide a detailed description?

 

[baddboybill]

A lot of those Russian and Ukranian auctions just say "fully restored".…. or my favorite, "

After full and complex prevention" ​

​

​

​

What does that mean? What exactly was restored? How and by who?

So now I have to send messages to him, hoping he'll answer completely and honestly. Not just vague one-word answers like "yes".

If a seller wants someone to pay $1,000 - $7,000 for something, shouldn't they be courteous enough to provide a detailed description?

Some will use no prevention needed as well. Which is total BS. I got my Crown 850 from a Ukraine seller but actually purchased it in Chicago from his friend. It said needed no prevention but again that was BS. I had to do full cleaning and restoration!!!

 

[Northerner]

Russian prices are just absolutely insane...do not pay those figures whatever you do, just madness. I have plenty of high end boxes and pay a tiny fraction of those delusional figures. It’s not hard, just takes work doing searching, and of course a bit of luck

 

[Styleking]

It makes me nostalgic for the times when there were dozens of 777's available through Chinese sellers listing for $199. plus $180 for shipping. Although they were packed like $hite and always arrived damaged...

Does anyone remember the line: "It's getting hard to find them like this these days"

 

[Coast Steve]

Wow, all I can really say right now is, I'm SO pleased I found this forum you guys have built.
Too bad about those silly prices. I'm not a collector I just want a special high end model for my new gym.

I'm not sure if I'm allowed (at this point) to look in the buy and sell section on this website. I tried last night and I didn't have permission yet.
I hope to find something for sale in there.

I think along with finding the right system, I'm also a bit concerned about how it will be shipped so there's no damage.

Also, In Canada we're 110v and also 220, I would prefer 110volt, but a nice clean 220v model will do just fine.

Quick story..

Years ago I was in Hawaii at the airport and this sharply dressed slim black guy had the biggest boom box I'd ever seen.
It was on but not too loud. You could hear it just enough to know it was a serious unit.
He had it strapped on a little wheeled cart thing as he was strolling through the airport. Head high / huge smile.

Damn that guy was "the shitee" I thought. I'll never forget seeing that.

The crowd kind of parted as we walked by LOL.

I was about 13.

 

[baddboybill]

You have to post up to 50 times before being let in the sellers section.

 

[Coast Steve]

Yeah as Reli says the russians are trying to artificially inflate prices by listing them at ridiculous prices. They buy them from Japan or from people who don't know what they have then clean them and realist at silly prices.

A member here has a GF777 for sale for £675 for instance... much more realistic.

Thanks T-STER, Is it easy for me to get a hold of the member on here? I would love to see info and the pictures of it.
Might be just the one I'm looking for.