Amiga.org
Amiga computer related discussion => General chat about Amiga topics => Topic started by: impactor on May 14, 2009, 02:39:14 PM
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Amiga 1000 (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Amiga-1000-computer-very-rare_W0QQitemZ160333487221QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_VintageComputing_RL?hash=item160333487221&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A13|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50)
Amiga 4000 (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AMIGA-4000-A4000-with-Flickerfixer_W0QQitemZ320367859862QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_VintageComputing_RL?hash=item320367859862&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A13|39%3A1|240%3A1318|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50)
:-? :crazy:
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Wow, the buyer of that A4000 (030, but still) got himself a helluva deal, w/ a FF and all!
The A1000 guy must have wanted one REAL bad. Such an ugly system! LOL
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save2600 wrote:
Wow, the buyer of that A4000 (030, but still) got himself a helluva deal, w/ a FF and all!
The A1000 guy must have wanted one REAL bad. Such an ugly system! LOL
Yes indeed he did, I was so tempted to bid on that A4000 myself, but unfortunately it wouldn't have gone down too well with my better half.
:-( :lol:
A month ago an eBay seller had to relist several times a much better condition A1000 with printer, monitor, loads of extras before he eventually got a buy it now of £50!!! Just shows there can still be some huge disparities in what Amiga stuff sells for - which is good to know :-)
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Timing is everything on ePay. I suspect many of us have 'over paid' because we previously missed out on a different auction. Then you see the same item again a short while later, and a bidding war pursues. Amazing how much stuff actually gets by us on the cheap though. Seems (and I can't be the only one) I always miss out on the 'great' deals. Do a search on ePay for items that have already ended, you'd be surprised what you didn't win. lol But somehow, I'm usually aware of the stuff that fetches more dollars than I care to spend that given day, week or whatever.
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@save2600
I know what you mean.
eBay often gets my anxiety levels up and I usually start twitching when bidding on certain items. Maybe that's just me ;-)
I realise I've often paid more for certain items when I've reviewed other similar auctions. Ah well, I've paid less than some other people, also. I try to make myself feel better.
I still wonder if I was nuts to pay over £300 for a PPC card (from Canada) - I just had to have one there and then. I have conflicting thoughts on that one :-D
Steve
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To prevent the adrenaline getting the better of me when bidding I set myself a limit before hand and then submit my bid in the last 10 seconds, that way if I get aced by another bidder I know I didn't go above my limit. Saying that though, when it comes to retro computer stuff I have to do some serious soul-searching and ask myself "do I really need that?" :lol:
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@stevieu:
I'd say you did pretty darn well for yourself on the PPC card!! :-D
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The 1000 is a collector's item already IMHO: it's where the amiga started, and throughout the whole of the history of the Amiga hardware it was the biggest hardware innovation in terms of redefining personal computing. I have one, I am using it often, and I have big plans for it ;-) .
The 4000 could and should have been much more. It needed to be much more for CBM to survive. It should have been AAA, it should have had a DSP, it should have moved the game on in the same way OCS did. it didn't. I'd bet that way more 4000s than 1000s were made, too.
That particular 4000 had broken keys and broken cosmetic bits on the main machine: it's not going to appeal to a collector. There's also the risk that the battery is knackered, and that the sound circuits have failed due to leaky caps. the sound on my 1000 is better than the sound on my 4000 :-)
Saying that, I think the 4000 was about right money wise, but the 1000 was too expensive. I about that for one that was boxed, mint, with manuals, with a Xebec hard drive and a Spirit inboard expansion!
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impactor wrote: ask myself "do I really need that?" :lol:
Need? I don't think anyone needs this stuff. Want? That's a different question. And the question I always now ask myself is "will I use it at least once a week". :-)
I do similar to you though: pick my max, and submit it in the last 10 seconds, forcing myself not to outbid myself :-D
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@impactor
I try to do the same. I often bid from my mobile phone when I'm away from home and try to get a bid in at the very last moment. Of course, it also doesn't help the adrenaline factor when my mobile phone decides to lose connection in the final moments. Argh!
It's always annoying when you lose out by a couple of pounds, or whatever. "Maybe if I'd have just gone that bit higher..."
Ah well, life's full of regrets :-D
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@save2600
save2600 wrote:
@stevieu:
I'd say you did pretty darn well for yourself on the PPC card!! :-D
I guess so! I've seen them go for a lot more and for less. I was damn lucky to buy it from someone with integrity and honesty, given that FedEx took forever to get it delivered. I have my apprehensions when bidding on items from abroad, to say the least! :crazy:
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save2600 wrote:
Timing is everything on ePay. I suspect many of us have 'over paid' because we previously missed out on a different auction.
Oh yes.
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Look at the US ebay prices,A4000 usually sell for twice that UK price.
I recently got A1000 with 1084, A520,1200RS,some music software,all for less than $100 shipped total.
Timing is everything!
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stevieu wrote:
I try to do the same. I often bid from my mobile phone when I'm away from home and and try to get a bid in at the very last moment. Of course, it also doesn't help the adrenaline factor when my mobile phone decides to lose connection in the final moments. Argh!
I've never understood that. If you're going to snipe what's the point in bidding in advance? You're only driving up the price!
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@HenryCase
That's the whole point of bidding at the very last moment. If someone's maximum bid beats yours, then I just say it wasn't meant to be :-D
Annoyingly, I never bid until the very end of an auction.
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Yes, I agree. The A4000 is a hit or miss buy everytime you buy one from someone who have left the community.
I think I have owned closed to 10 second hand A4000 now and it seems everytime I open up an incoming A4000 I see rotten batterys, broken SIMM-socket, hell, even broken SIMM-sockets on a CyberStormPPC (!), brute-force modified brackets, missing small parts. Holes drilled, home made internal adapters, missing small bits that is a must for cosmetic 100%, and the list can go on (forever I suspect).
It is annoying as hell but it is part of the gamble when you roll your dice and purchases a second hand A4000. You never know what to find in someones Amiga system!
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@stevieu
I misread your post then. I thought you said you bid and snipe later. I know people who do this and I don't know why they bother. If you're going to snipe (the best way to keep prices low), why bother bidding hours in advance as well? It's silly.
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@cv643d wrote:
I think I have owned closed to 10 second hand A4000 now and it seems everytime I open up an incoming A4000 I see rotten batterys, broken SIMM-socket, hell, even broken SIMM-sockets on a CyberStormPPC (!), brute-force modified brackets, missing small parts. Holes drilled, home made internal adapters, missing small bits that is a must for cosmetic 100%, and the list can go on (forever I suspect).
It is annoying as hell but it is part of the gamble when you roll your dice and purchases a second hand A4000.
You never know what to find in someones Amiga system!
To avoid a disappointment ALWAYS ask for clear pictures
of the insides before you close the deal! Especially from the clock battery area.
:rtfm:
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But pictures mean nothing, especially if you buy something from someone less scrupulous than they could be... It's easy to remove a battery and say "battery removed before any damage occurred", only to find that the clock doesn't work, FAST RAM isn't recognised...
Caveat emptor is truly the case with 4000s it seems!
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@chiark wrote:
But pictures mean nothing, especially if you buy something from someone less scrupulous than they could be... It's easy to remove a battery and say "battery removed before any damage occurred", only to find that the clock doesn't work, FAST RAM isn't recognised...
Caveat emptor is truly the case with 4000s it seems!
Asking for pictures can mean the difference between a good or a bad deal.
If there's no battery damage, chances are good that there is no hardware failure. I always ask for pictures before buying and look very good if there are no damaged traces around the battery area. No problems in that case.
It's better to ask for pictures then blindly buy an Amiga
without even knowing what's inside.
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I just wish more people listed their "junk" on Ebay. There must be many who throw stuff in the trash such as old yellowed A1000s with who knows what precious expansions. :roll: A touch of retr0bright (I hope and will find out in 6 months when I try it) and things could have been better.
I like A1000s because they really were the pioneering model and have a colourful (4096 even) history of Jay Miner, Mitchy (dog print in the case), RJ Michael (he has a web site - do a google). From what I have read, these guys worked WITHOUT PAY for a period just to get the A1000 out there. You know they *loved* their work.
I aren't much interested in the A4000 but I do like the A3000 (more similar in appearance to the A1000 perhaps) and of course the A500 which I actually owned back then. I bought an A3000 in Australia with a 68040 on ebay but then the seller said the 68040 died and for some reason I thought he might be scamming me so I got a refund. In hindsight, the 68030 would have been just fine. :cry:
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A month ago an eBay seller had to relist several times a much better condition A1000 with printer, monitor, loads of extras before he eventually got a buy it now of £50!!! Just shows there can still be some huge disparities in what Amiga stuff sells for - which is good to know :-)
£50 - maybe that was the one in the US i was watching.
If not it must have been badly listed - what category was it in? i have been watching ebay with daily searches for Amiga 1000 and A1000 etc Only 2 have appeared in many months. one listed above (in this thread) and one in US which did have to be re-listed (with cut down accessories) that finally went for peanuts.
trouble is i am in the UK. shipping an amiga 1000 from the US with extra goodies costs a great deal. I dont know this for sure but i dont remember the 1000 being a big hit in the UK, and maybe there arent that many here. Its was the A500 that really brought Amiga to the attension of the British public. Anyone have any numbers for the A1000 in the UK?
Oh and yes, i confess, i bought the other Amiga 1000 for £122 in the UK. My limit was £100, but i just couldn't let it go. :-)
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Ebay are the masters of emotional manipulation.
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hey its all about who 'wants' that certain piece of nostalgia RIGHT NOW! that drives them crazy bidding wars on ebay