eBay-PayPal suff - just for the discerning audiophiles ;)

[trane]

there's my version for eBay AND PayPal's 'great' manners, those of (some) sellers' included:

i almost exclusively buy audio equipment (occassionally) and cds/vinyls (regularly) from eBay. what have just happened are 2 (typical) stories - listen, interesting stuff :rolleyes: (please note, these stories are simplified versions both linguistically and time/action-wise)

tale 1.
a(n otherwise well-respected german) seller lists his cd-player as - even to question - working 100% perfectly. player won, paid immediately, received safely. unpack, wait 1 hour to stabilise, install, switch on. plays MUSIC - excellent, amazing, phenomenal - happy :) night comes, player switched to standby. morning cheers, player switched on, cd put in, play. i say _play_. i SAY _PLAY_! I _SAY _DO _PLAY!!! no, player refuses, even to recognise cds. player switched off, wait 2 mins, switch on. GREAAAT, PLAAAAAYS O.K. :) but after next time's standby session player neither plays nor recognises cds. seller contacted - says (as 'expected') everything was okay pre-shipping. eBay/PP contacted, dispute filed. seller responds saying buyer dunno how to operate a cd-player, loaded cd-rs, that's why. leaving no chance to respond, seller at the same time escalates dispute to claim, thus, no way to act. PP says they'll decide in 30 days (per their own-set rules). buyer contacts PP offering to send video taken as proof explicitely showing player in trouble. NO, can not accept messages of the kind (...). 30 days over - nuttin. enquiring - wait! say PP. 45 days over - nuttin. enquiring - wait! say PP. 50 days - Easter Sunday! - PP seeks immediate!!! reply from 'independent' expert, and (PP) say hope buyer still has player in the condition as it was when received (NO repair done allowed for almost 2 months...). all ON EASTER!!! :doh: buyer responds can't do for 1., EASTER (NO ONE works) 2., expert on holiday for 2 weeks (no wonder, anyone who can does so). buyer also says PP IT'S_ENOUGH!!! will rather sell player at reduced price but won't wait other min. 2 weeks... (end for now - but not THE end)

tale 2.
buyer spots LP unsure if to bid for it. unsure, for seller states LP in 'excellent' condition referring to Record Collector's Guide, where no grade as such present, but buyer knows by Goldmine it's a VG+, so places the ONLY bid at 23h (listing ends 00h) w/o question (no chance for a reply) - LP won :) on winning it buyer immediately asks seller if LP is in VG+/EX by Goldmine? 2 DAYS LATER seller gives lesson in that 'EX' IS present in Record Collector's Guide, in spite buyer previously gave link to their site where 'EX' obviously IS missing from. also, and what's more seller claims buyer being picky and giving "extremely high number of neutrals and negatives" on checking his feedback. buyer asks what if a guy sells you something and that is FAR from what it was described to be, or same guy asks double the cost of shipping and when claimed for refund not only refuses but gives a feedback stating buyer wants pocket HIS money? now buyer leaves for present seller grade his LP again and decide to go forward or decline the buy... (end for now - but not THE end)

moral/lesson?

LEAVE eBay/PP - though difficult from THIS part of the world, at least...:scratch:

[Spectral Morn]

Hi Attila

E-Bay is a minefield that's for sure and sadly even 100% feed back does not guarantee you anything. Some problems I have had have been via 100% feed back sellers.

There are nice, kind, good, professional sellers out there but finding them is the trick. Equally some of those nice sellers can become not so nice when there is an issue.

The ideal is being able to handle the item in a shop in person and decide whether to buy or not, based on seeing it, handling it and seeing it work. This I will freely admit is not so easy if you live hundreds of miles away from such facilities or what you are interested in is only available on E-Bay.

However every so often you find someone really nice. I messaged a guy who had a tuner for sale, that I already had. He had the instruction book for it(I didn't). I asked if he could copy it for me and I offered to pay towards that. He did it for free....:)Yes free. He took photos of it and E-Mailed me them. After saying who I was it became clear he had read my Tuner write ups on AOS and said he was looking forward to part two...I suggested he should join the forum (I don't think he has yet)

Really nice guy. They are rare though.

I hope you get your problems solved. I should say though if you bid last minute then you are taking a risk on many levels...goods may not be as described, you may get hit by a huge postage bill etc, etc. Always ask first, if reply is poor or late, then frankly I would not bother the risk is likely to be way to high.

With E-Bay, Caveat Emptor is what you should live by....BUYER BEWARE.



Regards D S D L

[Haselsh1]

EXAMPLE ONE:
I purchase a vinyl LP described as 'Collectable' condition. LP arrives and crackles like a bugger. Clearly not collectable. I complain but get nowhere. This was through Amazon.

EXAMPLE TWO:
I sell on ebay a Pentax 67 camera to a guy in France and post it off with full tracking and insurance. Guy gets the camera and tells me it was smashed on arrival. I ask him to send it back and once I have seen it I shall give him a refund. I get positive feedback and hear no more about it. The bastard quite clearly wanted the camera and his money.

Watch out, the truth is out there.

[DSJR]

If the CD player works for a few hours and only fails if left on overnight, then it could be said to be working, as most people turn the stuff off after a few hours use. only the most dedicated audio buff would leave his gear powered up all the time, after which a power regulator may have over-heated for whatever reason (something's got too hot I reckon). Could just as easily be a misaligned heatsink or loose fixing bolt causing the device to run hotter and hotter...

Just a thought.

[trane]

If the CD player works for a few hours and only fails if left on overnight, then it could be said to be working, as most people turn the stuff off after a few hours use. only the most dedicated audio buff would leave his gear powered up all the time, after which a power regulator may have over-heated for whatever reason (something's got too hot I reckon). Could just as easily be a misaligned heatsink or loose fixing bolt causing the device to run hotter and hotter...

Just a thought.

hi, Dave and DSDL, thanks for both of your inputs, really :)
well, you know it's not so easy to digest certain things - i'll explain shortly.
i was awarded an MSc degree by the University of Manchester in 2000. that's fine and kinda appreciated in 'everyday life' (to note, i am NOT proud of it, it's just a trait/token/thing belonging to me).
however, i was born a Hungarian - and THAT's a curse - in everyday life, too, if translated into e.g. purchasing anything from abroad. be it the Germans, French, Americans or Britons (sorry, and i do not intend to hurt anyone there, but that's the case) whenever it's learnt that i want to buy an item they're selling all the usual considerations, e.g. EU membership, just suddenly disappear and i am left in nowhere with my honest intention and money ready to be parted with, even in the case when there is obviously NO interest for the item for months from the home mates...:doh: usually, my messages got unanswered despite my 100% and quite a muti-number positive feedback in both eBay or other forums/e-markets :(
to widen the picture, it's almost always the same with dealers/forums' members and their months-staying stuff as well... :scratch:
and this ignorance is what makes me truly feel sad. why can't i be treated as all the 'true-born ones' ?
i do NOT want to go into politics or related silly generalisations, but our nation is one of the quite few who accepts and welcomes different cultures and people with no preconceptions - why can't it work with others, i wonder? :scratch:
anyway, i do not want to go sideline too much, so back to the starting issue:

NO, the player never could read a disc when switched back from standby - a feature it was originally and consciously designed to be used even so defined by the accompanying literature, the manual... also, the ex-dealer (who actually is a skilled repair man) named the problem as a cause of age and, consequently, which must have been present when the player was sold :scratch:
anyway, i AM really fed up with eBay/PP, especially that the item was purchased WITH buyer protection fully insured - and you see how it 'works' in pratice :(
to finish, here in my country, there WAS a great hi-fi culture (i am 44, so i know), but it was totally destroyed by the 'new deal', home cinema - which has its psychological background, of course, mainly here, but i do not want to mistrack.
luckily, there are still at least 2 companies that have good reputation worldwide, Etalon and Heed - and that's what shows there is potential here...
but i stop now, sorry if i have been too much.
cheers,
Attila (the hun :eek:)