View Full Version : Massive problem with E-Bay ?
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 00:29
Hi Guys
Tried having a look at some audio kit on E-Bay tonight and was unable to do so. Pages would not load...that included E-Bay world wide I tried a few other countries...same result, an apology message from E-Bay..."service not available try again later".
E-Bay is back but all auctions seem to be gone...only buy it now has survived the server crash (if thats what it was). There will be quite a few pissed of sellers if the missing data is not recovered, never mind missing/missed auctions.
Regards D S D L
That's interesting Neil,
I've just been 'surfing' eBay and was puzzled to find only 'Buy it Now' listings. In fact if you selected 'Auction only' there were '0 results found'.
Suspect it's a glich, but a bit of a bummer for any one wanting to do a last minute bid.
Regards
aquapiranha
22-11-2009, 00:41
Come on Neil, it was you wasn't it? revenge is sweet and all that....
:lolsign:
Just kidding! ebay will have huge back-up reserve, I am sure it is only a matter of time before all is back to normal.
:scratch:
Rare Bird
22-11-2009, 01:19
Neils it's fine now i was getting serious withdrawals i know how yer feel.
:lol:
Neils it's fine now i was getting serious withdrawals i know how yer feel.
:lol:
No, it's still 'broken' - or at least I can't find any auction only listings.
Rare Bird
22-11-2009, 01:33
O shit better check mine then
:(
Yup,same here,was rather bemused why there wasnt a single car for sale,guess everythings gone down the shitter!:lolsign:
Rare Bird
22-11-2009, 01:41
The whole lots wants going down the shitter for sure..We'll be getting odd sellers invoices at the end of the month no doubt
The Vinyl Adventure
22-11-2009, 02:26
The worlds largest market place going to shit ... Apocolyps ... 12/12/12 is getting closer!
sburrell
22-11-2009, 05:31
Hi,
I've noticed anomalies with eBay too, such as my Watched Items no longer actually having a listing if you manually search the category, but still existing through My Ebay. Also, I use the eBay app on my iPod touch and it's still updating my Watched Items correctly. It pulls fresh info every time it's launched.
Ah!... I wondered why I could only find 3 Audioromy amps last night!
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 09:42
It would appear overnight that they are restoring data and listings, but its still not back to normal. Individual manufacturer listings are missing still.
My fear would be that we might be looking at the aftermath of a hacker attack. If so has our personal data been nicked ? E-Bay need to tell us what happened quick.
No doubt many auctions that were due to end last night are now stuffed.
Regards D S D L
Hacker attack is highly improbable. ;)
Most probably a datacenter shutdown (for security reasons, fire or flood near-by or something like that). Alternate datacenters need 12-24h hours to deploy.
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 09:55
Hacker attack is highly improbable. ;)
Most probably a datacenter shutdown (for security reasons, fire or flood near-by or something like that). Alternate datacenters need 12-24h hours to deploy.
You may well be right. However E-Bay should as soon as possible issue an info release to confirm what happened. Surprised its not in the news as it appears to have been all E-Bay that was effected...at least the other countries that I checked last night all had the same issues.
If any one reads or sees some more info, maybe they could post it here with a link so we can have a read.
Regards D S D L
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704888404574550383546493624.html?m od=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLTopStories
http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/cab/abn/y09/m11/i21/s02
A bug ?! Unbelievable. :mental:
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 10:28
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704888404574550383546493624.html?m od=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLTopStories
http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/cab/abn/y09/m11/i21/s02
Thanks for that info Howard.
Regards D S D L
I also affected all my overnight email alerts for saved searches, hardly any of which came through.
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 10:43
More info here (follow on from Howard's second link) http://blog.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/pl/2009/11/1258839253.html
Seems E-Bay will be issuing refunds and extending listings by 24 hrs...though this has not been confirmed yet (if you have been affected, then can you tell us what E-Bay have done to help/refund you) The problems were world wide.
E-Bay say it happened due to a 33% surge in listings being uploaded yesterday...:doh::( This is not very good imho.
Regards D S D L
LOL@ all you 'Ebay-aholics'... :eyebrows:
I only look there once in a blue moon, so was completely unaware of any problems.
What's the obsession with Ebay, anyway? :scratch:
I'm just curious!
Marco.
Rare Bird
22-11-2009, 11:52
The obsession apart from some of us sell is the classic stuff that turns up you don't see elsewhere without paying the earth for it.Granted there may be issues with it but generally can be ironed out, still coming out trumps..
What i was annoyed at was i realised it was children in need & wanted all my sales to go there but the listing wouldnt let me alter even though they had days to go
:steam:
Isn't there only so much classic stuff you can buy, though? How much gear can you actually use in your system?
Each to his or her own, of course, but unless I'm in the market for buying or selling something, I never look at Ebay - I just don't see the point :confused:
I'm of course sorry to hear about any problems the downtime has caused people.
Marco.
hifi_dave
22-11-2009, 12:27
Of course there is a limit to the amount of vintage gear you can buy and that is directly proportional to the amount of space you have. Personally, I've got enough for a small 'museum' and I can't stop buying stuff that I remember from way back when I couldn't afford it...:eyebrows:
My name's Dave and I'm a vintage hi-fiaholic...:doh:
The Grand Wazoo
22-11-2009, 12:41
Marco - How many rooms has your house got? Surely each one should have it's own system? All that multi-room / wireless nonsense is just a red herring - this is the way forward.
Hi Dave,
Of course there is a limit to the amount of vintage gear you can buy and that is directly proportional to the amount of space you have. Personally, I've got enough for a small 'museum' and I can't stop buying stuff that I remember from way back when I couldn't afford it...
My name's Dave and I'm a vintage hi-fiaholic...
LOL... Therein perhaps lays the difference between yourself and Andre, and me :)
I also love (some) vintage gear, but my interest in obtaining it is directly proportional to my ability of using it to good effect, sonically, in my system. I'm not into collecting old bits of kit to form a 'museum', or to sit and admire it or whatever - it has to have a functional purpose...
In my view, surfing through Ebay when one isn't in the market to buy or sell anything is akin to the 'window shopping' most women love doing - a completely pointless exercise that through temptation often leads to frivolous and unnecessary purchases (and many mistakes, too).
Respect to those who think differently, though, and sometime I'd certainly love to see (and hear) your collection of vintage gear :cool:
Marco.
Hi Chris,
Haha, good one! :eyebrows:
The other thing is, some people seem to change their gear more often than their socks, and their continual browsing through Ebay is sometimes directly responsible for this ('the grass is always greener' syndrome)!
I'm afraid that's just not for me.
Marco.
The Grand Wazoo
22-11-2009, 13:22
Now we've been in this house for a few months, we're up to 4 systems set up - I'm just pondering what we're going to do for sound in the kitchen! That little world-band radio just won't do!
I buy a lot of CDs off ebay - if you're in no hurry, (i.e. set your price and keep trying) you can usually pick up albums far cheaper than anywhere else. As far as hifi gear goes, I'm with Hifi Dave and TGW Chris - buy all the stuff you fancied years ago and have a hifi in every room! I have this fantasy idea of creating a 50s ,60s, 70s, 80s & 90s setup each in a different room. (I'll never do it of course, but could be fun!)
I'm with Hifi Dave and TGW Chris - buy all the stuff you fancied years ago and have a hifi in every room! I have this fantasy idea of creating a 50s ,60s, 70s, 80s & 90s setup each in a different room. (I'll never do it of course, but could be fun!)
Sounds like a nice idea, Alex, and I'd do it in a flash if I had the room. If or when we move to a larger house, what you suggest could be a distinct possibility :)
The key thing for me though, in that scenario, would be that every system would have to sound fantastic (in its own unique and individual way), and thus get used regularly. The fact is, if it sounded shit, I'd just never listen to it.
Therefore, I'd certainly not just pile any old stuff into a room in the hope that it (might!) work, just because it was 'vintage' - it would have to offer superb sonic performance and synergistically (and musically) work together as a system; a tricky thing to do sometimes, IME, with vintage gear.
For me, owing a vintage hi-fi system (or any hi-fi system) is not about looks (or at least that's not the main consideration) and certainly not nostalgia; it's ultimately about how it sounds, and therefore how much I'd enjoy listening to music through it.
Marco.
Primalsea
22-11-2009, 15:00
Well Neil all I can say is that they say if aliens attacked they would take out communications first. Obviously being aliens they have misunderstood and somehow thought that humans communicate via Ebay (there's so many humans glued to it after all).
I thought you would have know all this from your time being posted on Scaro.
Haselsh1
22-11-2009, 15:10
OK I own up...!!! It was my revenge for some bastard selling me a Chinese amplifier...!!!
Primalsea
22-11-2009, 15:13
OK I own up...!!! It was my revenge for some bastard selling me a Chinese amplifier...!!!
What, did you only discover it was Chinese when songs were being sung in Engrish or something??;)
The Vinyl Adventure
22-11-2009, 15:16
when i was at the shop full time i used to browse ebay quite a lot most days!.. if i for example searched for photography - camera lenses - for 35mm rangefinder. i would almost always find something new and then go research in online leading me to other stuff i didnt know about. i learn a hell of a lot about cameras doing this in a relativly short amount of time!
i still do it now when i have little else to do. im sure there are better ways to research a subject but i personally find it very satisfying
Did you ever get sucked into buying lenses that you didn't really need, though? ;)
Marco.
The Vinyl Adventure
22-11-2009, 15:38
yep, nothing i havent used,kept if good, or sold on for the same or more money! i went through a short period of buying lenses when people were selling them in 3's or 4's
i once bought a 21mm, 25mm and 75mm voigtlander, 40mm leica and and a bessa r2 for £400. i ended up keeping the 75 and 21 lenes and sold the rest individually and still made a clear £100 profit! i made a few early mistakes and was left with a few bits of crap but i soon learned what i was doing! unfortunatly since the down turn started it seems people have become a little more wise and i rearly find anything worth while taking a punt on! although i did recently just miss a naim nait 2 with a pair of speakers cd player and tuner i worked out that i could prob get about £500 if i sold the lot separatly and it went for £300.. if i had bid, it may have gone up to £350... but nait 2's by them selve go for similar money! if you are clever and very carefull there is money to be made! and its fun, and you get experience of equipment you may not otherwise have got!
Haselsh1
22-11-2009, 15:41
What, did you only discover it was Chinese when songs were being sung in Engrish or something??;)
No, it was the missing twenty bloody volts that they forgot to send me...!!! :p
The obsession apart from some of us sell is the classic stuff that turns up you don't see elsewhere without paying the earth for it.Granted there may be issues with it but generally can be ironed out, still coming out trumps..
:steam:
Me too i love buying old amps for next to nothing and get rewarded with a very good sound per pound, not all of us have the funds to splash out on exotic valve or solid state amps that in truth are not a million miles away from some of the classic stuff, ive listened to amps from next to nothing right up to 10's of thousands of pounds worth of amps, the williams citcuit is still hard to beat.
I still love changing amps, each one does something a little different to the other, horses for courses i know but each to there own but thats my interest.
if you are clever and very carefull there is money to be made! and its fun, and you get experience of equipment you may not otherwise have got!
I do understand what you mean, Hamish, but it's just not for me. 'Fun', I suppose, is subjective... I wouldn't dream of buying and selling on Ebay for a money making exercise - that's what I run an art business for ;)
Marco.
The Vinyl Adventure
22-11-2009, 16:30
dont get me wrong, the cash is just a bonus, and it is satisfying ... but its more about getting my hands on a wider range of kit! you would be suprised how much cameras vary from one to the next! you get a real feel for the history and development somthing such as a camera if you can actually get your hands on the things!
i also have a much better abiltity to understand what are flash in the pan formats and ideas, and what types of camera are likely to stick around. this helps me to make more educated desisions on what new kit that i buy!
but you are right, fun is sujective, and i can see that not everyone would want to risk hard earned cash and spend countless hours trawling ebay etc
I can see how eBay could become addictive - I could spend far too long browsing, and like you say Marco potentially buying something not needed, or not well researched. My Tecchie was an impulse 'Bay purchase and turned out to be not the bargain it was advertised as, I think I could have done better if I'd held out for a decent one off here (or any of the other fora) but you lives and learns...
I think that there are bargains to be had but speculatively trawling is a slippery slope. My preference now is to buy from forums - their members can be a little more self policing than the anonymity of ebay, and the whole 'pay up front' problem is often eliminated.
Having said all that, it can be great for specifics - I've just pushed the 'Buy it Now' button for a new front wheel for my BMW motorbike. £60 instead of £450 for a new 'un. Gotta be good...
Jason
Spectral Morn
22-11-2009, 17:25
Well Neil all I can say is that they say if aliens attacked they would take out communications first. Obviously being aliens they have misunderstood and somehow thought that humans communicate via Ebay (there's so many humans glued to it after all).
I thought you would have know all this from your time being posted on Scaro.
:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: Indeed it was a trial run for the big invasion coming.
More seriously though, the Bay is a necessary evil if you are into Reel to Reel or cassette tapes (not that I have bought either recently). E-Bay is the best/almost only source for these items. I know you can buy tape new but its not as good or cheap as S/H tape.
My tuner fetish recently has simply been an ends to a means...I want to do as comprehensive a tuner write up as I can..so those that I can't borrow I have bought of the bay.
I agree with Marco though trying to buy stock to sell off E-Bay is a difficult and frustrating exercise. As with all auctions this is not a basis for value only the madness of a group of bidders at any one time. The prices on the bay fluctuate so much from silly cheap to silly dear that really the right price probably, sometimes sits between the two extremes...however as my Mum used to say "Something is only worth what you are prepared to pay for it".
I must admit though that my interest in the antiques trade and antiques does fuel my interest in watching a bidding war on the Bay and I laugh myself silly when things go to crazy extremes such as an Audio Technica stylus cleaner selling for £180 recently or a single metal empty Revox reel going for £55 :lol::lol::lol::lol: A week or so later I bought one for £8 :):):):)
Regards D S D L
Rare Bird
22-11-2009, 17:30
Marco told u befor i don't buy classic gear to listern to just a fettish. I must have 100 pieces out back renovated.. I listern to what want..IMHO all modern hifi is shit but i feel CD is my primary source...The amp/choice are only my preference when i feel like it...There is always something about a certain speaker that is good for one thing than another hence the change..
I have dabbled with eBay for about five years, purely as a buyer not a seller.
My motives for shopping there are for the same reasons as have already been expressed: the chance to buy vintage items that I used to covet when I was younger but unable to afford them. Some items I have bought simply because I got them for a song.
Items in the the first catagory would include: a Nagra reel-to-reel tape recorder, an EMT turntable, a Leak tuner, a Quad tuner, various pickup cartridges, various photographic lenses and lately some Mark Levinson electronics.
Items in the second catagory would include: three Quad 50E amplifiers, a Thorens 124/II deck with 12" SME arm and a stack of metal spooled 1/4" magnetic tape.
Having bought vintage equipment, which is no longer supported by the manufacturer, eBay is usually the only place where spares and accessories can be obtained. This is especially true of reel-to-reel recorders as Neil has found, and is an area where the 'rip-off' merchants lurk. But spares for the likes of Nagra, EMT and to some extent Thorens can be found nowhere else.
I'm not sure if I buy these items as 'museum pieces' or not; they have to be in working order and I do use them, but they also have to be good cosmetic display condition. I already have two systems and speakers apart, have the making for two more.
I collect classic 35mm cameras and buy lenses for them on eBay, however they will only be by respected lens makers: Zeiss, Schacht and Steinheil. I like to try out and compare lenses of nominally identical focal length and speed but of different design e.g. the 135mm f/4 Zeiss Sonnar, Triotar and the 135mm f/3.5 Steinheil Auto-Quinaron.
So there you go, crazy or what?
Regards
Barry, no, not at all. That makes perfect sense.
We're all different, that's all. I treat Ebay like any other 'shop', on-line or in a town, i.e. I only use it/them when I need to, carry out my business, and then I'm off until the next time I'm in the market for something.
Chacun à son goût, as they say :)
Marco.
DanJennings
23-11-2009, 16:19
I mostly use it for getting cheap CDs, and looking for rarities....
I've been trying for YEARS to get a copy of Wrapped In Grey by XTC, but I always get outbid at the last second
Hi Dan,
Try sending a PM to 'mayor of simpleton', who's on-line now... As you can guess from his username, he's a massive XTC fan, and I know he's in the process of selling his music collection due to personal reasons. His name is Ron. Mention my name - he's a friend of mine.
He may well have the album you're looking for! :)
Marco.
Rare Bird
23-11-2009, 16:25
I mostly use it for getting cheap CDs, and looking for rarities....
I've been trying for YEARS to get a copy of Wrapped In Grey by XTC, but I always get outbid at the last second
I'm assuming this is a Demo!
DanJennings
23-11-2009, 16:31
cheers Marco, will do.
I'm assuming this is a Demo!
nah, it was a withdrawn CD single that Virgin record basically murdered at birth.... radio stations were given promos, but most of them were recalled and destroyed.... There are meant to be about 70 in existence, and I'm desperate to get my hands on one, but they unfortunately go for silly money.
Last one on ebay went for £107 - gulp! IIRC Dan got outbid on this earlier in the month :(
DanJennings
23-11-2009, 17:03
107 is the cheapest I've seen it go for, unfortunately I was stony broke or I would've had it....
The most I've seen it go for is just over £700... far too much for me...
There's only one track on it I haven't already got
107 is the cheapest I've seen it go for, unfortunately I was stony broke or I would've had it....
The most I've seen it go for is just over £700... far too much for me...
There's only one track on it I haven't already got
£700 for a CD! Clearly bought be a collector who will probably never play it!
Have you heard it - is it really worth tracking down?
Regards
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.3 Copyright © 2026 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.