pawn shop deal.

jimistone

jimistone

long standing member
From time to time I cruise the local pawn shops, to see what they have to offer. Most of the time it's a bunch of way overpriced junk, but sometimes you can find a great deal. Yesterday, I found a great deal. A peavey 50 watt all tube valve king amp. The clean sounds very fender super reverby, and the high gain channel will go into heavy metal territory. They are pretty awesome amps and new run $550 to $600. Guitar center gets $350 for a used one. The cheapest I have seen a used one was $279 on ebay.

The pawn shop deal is $200 cash out the door.

I almost bought it but I just don't need a big tube amp...I want one of those 15 watt Vox or Ibanez tube screamer amps. If I was still playing live I would be the owner of that Damn amp.

Have any of yall had to fight off the urge to buy a piece of equipment you don't need because it's a great deal and you hate to pass it up?
 
A guy at work is selling his mint Jimmy Page Les Paul for 2 grand (paid 3200 CDN about 15 years ago). He's offering it to another guitar playing co-worker who's humming and hawing because the top is not grainy enough and he doesn't like sunburst. It's a killer deal but I don't need another great guitar anymore.
 
You know, I like the flame top Pauls...but at the same time I love the tops that have no flame whatsoever just as well....
I love them all!
Les Pauls are cool looking guitars. From the headstock all the way down the the back strap button.
 
Those Peavey valve king amps are some of the most god awful sounding pieces of crap that I've ever had the misfortune of playing through. The distortion channel sounds both murky and piercing no matter how you EQ it.
 
I browse through my local pawn shop from time to time and have come away with a few decent deals. The best buys are often things that are a bit more specialist than guitar amps. For example I got several Audio Technica mics (can recall the number without running to the mic box) which are their now-discontinued equivalent to the SM57 and, if anything, better sounding. I got these in mint condition for $10 each. I've also found several very nice audio interfaces at a fraction the usual second hand value. Guitars, amps and keyboards, on the other hand, are often over priced (though the marked prices tend to be starting points open to negotiation).
 
I cruse pawn shops weekly tp browse. I picked up a Strat copy for $40. I've never heard of the brand (an Indiana) but it plays and behaves as nicely as any guitar I own, and I own some guitars.
 
ocnor said:
Those Peavey valve king amps are some of the most god awful sounding pieces of crap that I've ever had the misfortune of playing through. The distortion channel sounds both murky and piercing no matter how you EQ it.
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To tell the truth I have never really cranked one up on the distortion čhanel. I played around with one for a few minutes at a local.music store at low volumd. I thought the clean was very nice. Fender sounding clean. The reverb sounded great too..I didn't mess with the drive channel a whole lot but I don't remember it sounding awful.

Maybe it's a good thing I resisted the impulse to buy it.
 
Bobbsy said:
I browse through my local pawn shop from time to time and have come away with a few decent deals. The best buys are often things that are a bit more specialist than guitar amps. For example I got several Audio Technica mics (can recall the number without running to the mic box) which are their now-discontinued equivalent to the SM57 and, if anything, better sounding. I got these in mint condition for $10 each. I've also found several very nice audio interfaces at a fraction the usual second hand value. Guitars, amps and keyboards, on the other hand, are often over priced (though the marked prices tend to be starting points open to negotiation).
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There is one particular pawn shop I check out from time to time but never expect to buy from. They are just stupid high priced and even after negotiating down the price is still too high. But, I found a museum piece in there for cheap. It was a transitional microphone. ...from the first run of shure SM 57 mics. Shure had the Unidyne mics and then developed the SM 57 and 58. This mic is labeled "Shure SM 57 Unidyne". According to the guys who frequent the mic forum it's a very rare mic because only a few were labeled like that.
It was $20 cash price.

Also, it sounds better than the modern one I have.
 
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jimistone said:
From time to time I cruise the local pawn shops, to see what they have to offer. Most of the time it's a bunch of way overpriced junk, but sometimes you can find a great deal. Yesterday, I found a great deal. A peavey 50 watt all tube valve king amp. The clean sounds very fender super reverby, and the high gain channel will go into heavy metal territory. They are pretty awesome amps and new run $550 to $600. Guitar center gets $350 for a used one. The cheapest I have seen a used one was $279 on ebay.

The pawn shop deal is $200 cash out the door.

I almost bought it but I just don't need a big tube amp...I want one of those 15 watt Vox or Ibanez tube screamer amps. If I was still playing live I would be the owner of that Damn amp.

Have any of yall had to fight off the urge to buy a piece of equipment you don't need because it's a great deal and you hate to pass it up?
Click to expand...

I very rarely go to pawn shops anymore, but man oh man, am I addicted to Evilbay and Reverb.com! I pass up great deals daily! I am looking for a great neve-ish or api-ish preamp in addition to my FMR RNP. I have a Presonus Eureka atm and I've had a lot of problems with it. I'd like to get something dependable
 
I used to go back when their were pawn shops on 14th street in DC. They were always way over priced. Only real score I ever did was an ampeg jet - the only amp I still own and use.
 
Our local pawn shop is nothing of a temptation at all. The few times I've been there I've noticed prices are nothing special, and in a few instances, prices for used gear was higher than new at Sweetwater or GC...There's a bunch of 'em in Fayetteville, but I don't get there much. Miss the pawns in Spokane, though. Got my Dragonfly and the Yamaha acoustic for $350 (either is worth more). :)
 
My local pawn shop is HUGE. It's a gun shop as well. Lots of great stuff, but musical instruments? Pure crap and mostly priced above retail for the same new item.

However there was once a mint 52 Les Paul gold top (actually all gold) with original Lifton case and all the case candy.

They let me take it apart to authenticate it. It was all original and real. It went for 15k at a time when you could get 20 to 25 for them.

Only time there's been anything cool and priced right there.
 
There's a not-called-pawn place in Nashua called 'Tradeland', pretty large music gear selection, but most of it looks like crap or is too high priced.
The $200 "great deal" may have solder joints that get funky when it gets hot - no way to know until you use it for a while. All sorts of issues that may not crop up when you try it out in the store (if you can).
 
I've never found a "great" deal at a pawn shop - but I've have found some really great deals at rummage sales. An electronic drum kit for $40 - I did not need it but traded it for a $400 bass guitar. A Yamaha "SG" style guitar for $20. A Roland drum machine for $20. A mint Shure SM58 for $5. A Peavey KB300 keyboard amp for $40. A "vintage" Epiphone combo with a 10" speaker for $10.

Pawn shops are out to make a profit and know how to research to determine the value of gear - people at rummage sales are often simply trying to gear rid of some music stuff the kids left behind when they left for college.
 
Don't know if it still happens, but when I went to college, there were always kids throwing all sorts of stuff into dumpsters. Daddy sent them extra money they spent on a new guitar or amp or stereo or what not. Now they're going home and want daddy to think the money went for books and beer. Can't take the goodies with 'em...:)
Back in those days you could get really good deals at pawn shops on certain things (like stereos and computers) because they'd all get 10-20 of them out of the dumpsters and sell them off at 100% profit.

Not sure if today's dynamic would hold today. Too much in society has changed.
 
One of the pawn shops here used to have an old coot that was in charge of music equipment buys and sales. He was old school though. He thought Fender guitars were all high quality American made and high priced. I guess he hadn't heard about the Mexican and Korean guitars. I had a cheap ass Fender acoustic that was Korean made and it sucked....build wise and tone wise. I think I paid $125 for it and even had buyers remorse at that low price. Anyway, I took it to that pawn shop and told him " I hate to part with this old fender, but I need money worse that I need a guitar....even if it is a gem."
He looked at it like it was a chest of pirate treasure and asked "How much are you asking for this guitar son?"
I told him $300 and he told me "I'll give you $250". I tried to contain myself from getting giddy. lol. I didn't say anything for a few seconds and then I sadly said "OK I'll take that". Man, he couldn't get that $250 in my hands fast enough! He was almost trembling. I said "You got a good one" and he said "This one's going home with me!"

lol...on the way out the door I was telling myself "These fuckers are going to lose their asses if they don't get that guy out of there and get someone who knows his assistant from a hole in the ground."
 
jimistone said:
One of the pawn shops here used to have an old coot that was in charge of music equipment buys and sales. He was old school though. He thought Fender guitars were all high quality American made and high priced. I guess he hadn't heard about the Mexican and Korean guitars. I had a cheap ass Fender acoustic that was Korean made and it sucked....build wise and tone wise. I think I paid $125 for it and even had buyers remorse at that low price. Anyway, I took it to that pawn shop and told him " I hate to part with this old fender, but I need money worse that I need a guitar....even if it is a gem."
He looked at it like it was a chest of pirate treasure and asked "How much are you asking for this guitar son?"
I told him $300 and he told me "I'll give you $250". I tried to contain myself from getting giddy. lol. I didn't say anything for a few seconds and then I sadly said "OK I'll take that". Man, he couldn't get that $250 in my hands fast enough! He was almost trembling. I said "You got a good one" and he said "This one's going home with me!"

lol...on the way out the door I was telling myself "These fuckers are going to lose their asses if they don't get that guy out of there and get someone who knows his assistant from a hole in the ground."
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Now that's a good story :)
 
Around here there are ghetto pawn shops and then there are really high end ones as well. We have a fairly well to do clientele that lives around here though and not much gets pawned. BUT that said there have been a few things slip through the cracks... Buddy of mine caught a Takamine Martin Copy for $350 that became his main gigging acoustic, sounds great unplugged or through the PA... I picked up a number of affordable mics and things, nothing too high end but quality affordable gear usually less than $50 and nicely working.

My favorite pawnshop find was a few years ago when I picked up a Ampeg Reverb Rocket 2x12 combo for $179 out the door. It was an early reissue and was made in the states. I loved the tone but didn't need the power or the weight and sold it for $250 and bought a Fender. I've been flipping cheap Yamaha guitars from pawnshops for years though, mainly payed my rent doing that when I lived in Indianapolis.
 
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