How do you guys feel about refurbished home theater products?
 

Is it worth the risk? Does it depend on the price? What type of problems may I(or have you) encountered?

I never buy refurbished equipment, generally it's not refurbed at all but just plain used. But, if it works, and the price is right, it's up to you. If you feel it's a good deal and you trust it, then go for it.

It all depends what type of warranty you are going to get and who the seller is. For instance, I would tend to never buy a refurb from a seller on Ebay. On the other hand if the price is good and there is a guarantee of some sort, it is well worth a chance.

J

It also depends of the type of equipment. I own a refurbed receiver and haven't had a single problem yet. (1 year) I would have no problem buying used speakers. (Some of my speakers are 12 years old.) On the other hand, I would stay away from refurb display devices, since they have much more of a limited lifetime.

What everybody else said, look at the warranty, specifically what happens if you get say 3 or 4 bad units in a row, and what you have to do to return a bad unit. I live in SoCal and several of the big brands have outlets with refurbed and returned goods. One place for example gets loads of returns from deptment stores, and only offers a 7 day exchange, and on some items its even AS IS. I buy lots from them, get stuck once in awhile, but also get HUGE discounts so it averages out to a pretty good deal. What makes this work is that when I buy something I check it on the spot for basic operation, and make sure to give it a good workout as soon as its setup in my home. Also if a item goes belly up, I can put it back in the box and easy drive by and return it.

Shipping is the killer. Bad is having to ship it to the manufacturer for repair. Hopeless is returning it for exchange to the seller, since you have a fair chance of getting another funky unit. Quickly the shipping costs eliminate any savings.

Be very carefull buying used speakers as damage can be VERY hard to detect without carefull and knowledgable testing.

Same goes for displays, with the added problem that a unit can be perfect where it is now, and moving it could either cause outright damage, or reveal problems.

OTOH good well cared for used gear is an EXCELLENT choice for people on a budget. Lots of people are in an endless upgrade cycle and let go perfectly good, but not SOTA items for very good prices.

I would not buy a refurbished TV, monitor, or speaker. The rest should be OK if the price is right and warranty is good. And my reciever/amplifier, turntable, and CD player are all mid 1980's refurbished stuff, and they all work just fine.

My first TV, purchased in '92 was a used 27" Panny and it still works fine. Most of my A/V equipment including my HDTV receiver is used. However, I would never purchase a used/refurb Projection TV from a store. I might buy one from a local individual if it looked like it was well taken care of and it was a GREAT deal. When I purchase used, it has to be well worth it....like at least 40% less than what I could get it new for.

The only refurb'd thing I have is my receiver. Onkyo - TS-DX484 that I got for $141 on Ubid. It looks brand new and works like a top (and has for over a year now). I got my parents the Onkyo 494 for $156 from Ubid also and theirs is nicer than mine and still works just as good as the day we got it.

However, TV's I am weary about getting that are refurb.

I am reasonably sure when I buy my $$$ at least to me projection tv, its going to be either used or a demo. I expect to save some SERIOUS money, and get at least close to a new perfect unit, but I know I can live with some problems as long as the basic picture quality is what I want. OTOH I want a front projector which isn't likely to have hidden internal problems.

Part of this is that I have a huge jones for getting a bargain, am basically a cheapskate, and have a reasonable amount of product knowledge so I can reduce the chances of getting screwed.

Rapidly changing technology is prime for bargain hunting. Most of the time when it comes to audio, I have simple taste, just give me the best. Right now though, for all practical purposes NOBODY is making just what I want, so buying a refurb Kenwood VR410 for $169 fits the bill, ditto my JVC 29-U svhs VCR.

dont EVER buy refurbished electronics!...ever!!!

I have purchased demo Mirage speakers from Hifi Buys with a full warranty in the past.
I saved a lot of money!

Does refurbished mean that the product was defective, so it was taken back to the manufacturer and fixed?

In that case, I think a refurbished product is less likely have any problems than a new product.

I try to avoid a refurbished anything

Generally yes. But it could also be that someone didn't like the color and returned it. It's not "new" anymore so they can't sell it as such.

I agree with your second point. Repaired electronics tend to last longer since the high failure part has been replaced.

It's new for me. Never thought of refurbished equipment period.
You'll never know what you gonna get.

It's not that I am rich just having a peace of mind knowing that
the new stuff is under agent's warranty. Hmmm, like the smell of
all things new !

You can buy that new smell stuff in a spray can.

Without question buying refurbished equipment has RISK, much more so than new items. For a start you almost never have the same sort of return priviledges as with new products. Which is ironically why most of the "refurb" stuff exists, people buy new items, and return them for a bunch of reasons that have nothing to do with product quality.

The idea is that if you understand the product, and the risk, and are willing to exercise the extra diligence of short return windows etc., then its possible to save a lot of money. If you can't get some huge amount of bang for getting a refurb product, skip it, don't be a sucker. This needs a new thread though, I am going to make one called

How to save money on equipment.

i have my HT referb frfom the Harman Kardon Outlet over from Oxnard, Ca. its a good 45min drive there. they have good specials time to time, and they try to give the best shape, sometimes its even new, for the referb price!