Need help with valuing speakers, politics

[Nappylady]

Okay, so, over the course of their 3-year marriage, my sister and her husband managed to get together about 57,000 stereo systems in various states of disrepair (okay I exaggerate) and among them is a pair of Yamaha NS-890's, which are apparently pretty rare speakers (not bookshelf, not monitor, not floorstanding... dunno what to call them, they're just... boxes with drivers and a crossover) and definitely very nice. They paid $50 for the pair, and the foam surrounds are completely gone.

Well, time goes on, people discover they actually hate each other's guts, and the brother-in-law is now banned from the premesis. All of the $#!& he collected over the 3 years is up for grabs at "fair market value" and I really want this pair of speakers, but I can't find any information on this particular setup anywhere... beyond that, even if I got an MSRP for them, it would be grossly off, because these speakers are both used and the surrounds are dead. And the dustcaps on the mids are punched in.

My deal is, how on earth do I figure out "fair market value" for them given the condition they're in, and how do I wrestle with my sister to get to an amicable price point that both gives her a healthy markup, and leaves my wallet with a sense of sanity?

Thanks all... please help me 🙂

 

[cocolino]

Hi Nappylady,

considering the age of this speakers and in particular that the surroundings are gone respectively the hassle to replace them (if at all possible not only because it`s quite tricky to manage but likely suitable surroundings are inavaible) IMO the "market value" of this speakers is towards zero.

Invite Your sister to an icecream (or two) - that really should do it.

BTW: Try to figure if the mids are still in good working condition -the punch on their dustcaps might have damaged something.

If the mids don`t work properly also, Your sister has to invite You a beer if You take them.

 

[kelticwizard]

...my sister and her husband managed to get together about 57,000 stereo systems in various states of disrepair (okay I exaggerate) and among them is a pair of Yamaha NS-890's, They paid $50 for the pair, and the foam surrounds are completely gone.

.....these speakers are both used and the surrounds are dead. And the dustcaps on the mids are punched in.

My deal is, how on earth do I figure out "fair market value" for them given the condition they're in...

She only PAID $50 for them, and the surrounds are gone and the mids punched in, and you are wasting time arguing?

This is Yard Sale stuff.

Come to the Yard Sale at 9:00 AM and you might have to pay $40 for the pair. Come at 2:00 PM when the sale is ending, and if nobody had bought them yet, ( a fair possiblility), you can take them home for $10.

What was your brother-in-law doing, speculating in broken stereo futures? 😉

 

[Nappylady]

Yeah, that's about it. Acutally, everything James owns is just fine, except that it needs a new (insert part name) or that only one part of it is broken.

It's infuriating.

I would really love to have them, but at the same time, maybe it's a good idea to wait--eventually she will want them out of her life more than she wants my measly offer for them, and I seriously doubt she's going to get more than $50 out of them, ever.

Thanks, guys.