After many months of indecision, I have decided to sell my Blackwood Auteur. They have brass rods and grills, and in my humble opinion are one of the nicest examples I’ve seen of this combination of wood and hardware.
They come with the following:
Auteur Lambskin Perforated Pads
Eikon Lambskin Perforated Pads
Both stock cables (XLR and 1/4”)
Choice of Lambskin Pilot or Co-Pilot Pad
Seahorse case
Owner’s card
My price is $1375 and includes insured shipping in the lower 48 with signature confirmation. If using PayPal “goods and services” please add 3% to cover the fees.
If you’re comfortable using Zelle or a money order for payment, I’ll be happy to give you a discount.
Please don’t hesitate to PM me with any questions.
What’s the problem with paypal goods and services? Friends and family really isn’t the correct way to be selling and buying things off the internet. Maybe a local sale would be best.
I’ve used family and friends with people on here and other places. Of course you want to know and trust the person.
Certain states have a policy when using PayPal anything over 600 in the year was reported to the irs. Now more states are doing it, maybe all. Some cities or counties try to force people to have a business license when going over 600. If I can keep government out of my business, I’m all for it.
I get it if you don’t feel comfortable, but I also get using family and friends. Plus the fees are annoying when you’re talking higher end items.
In the past I’ve always used “goods and services” PayPal payments for anything I’ve bought or sold on audio forums. As @Rhodey said, the reporting rules have changed as of January 1, 2022. Third parties like PayPal will now issue a 1099-K to anyone receiving $600 or more in a given year. It used to require 200 transactions or $20,000 to trigger the IRS reporting.
For those of us that buy and sell a lot of audio equipment, this is going to make a big difference at the end of the year. This is a hobby to me, and most of the time I’m selling one piece of gear to buy another one. I don’t treat it like a business with profits and losses clearly itemized. Often I’m selling something I’ve had for years and don’t have a record of how much I bought it for and from whom.
Moving forward, I’ve decided to request “friends and family” payments to avoid this. I know it severely limits the pool of people I can have transactions with, and I completely understand that many won’t feel comfortable using this payment method. My hope is that two trusted members of this forum or others like it might feel comfortable taking this course.
Here’s a link to an article describing the new reporting law that affects PayPal, Venmo etc:
Not sure about the rest of you but as nice as these are I’d never buy a ZMF without a case. Zach doesn’t sell the wood or seahorse case separately and on the off chance you don’t like them finding a buyer is virtually impossible on other forums. Good luck with your sale but the F&F PayPal probably isn’t the reason you haven’t found a buyer.
I am very clear in the listing that the case is negotiable. I’d prefer to keep it for my Ash Auteur, but if it’s a deal-breaker for someone I’m sure we can work something out. Thanks for your input.
Fiction: Personal items sold at a loss will be taxed
If you sell personal items for less than you paid for them and collect the money via third-party payment apps, this new legislation won’t affect you. For example, if you buy a couch for your home for $500 and later sell it on Facebook Marketplace for $200, you won’t owe taxes on the sale. That’s because it’s a personal item you’ve sold at a loss. However, you may be required to show documentation of the original purchase to prove that you sold the item at a loss.
I’ve seen a ton of people afraid of using G&S now due to the reporting requirement. It’s not hard to show that our audio hobby is a loss hobby. You can look at credit card statements or paypal statements as far back as 7 years. The keyword to that article is you “MAY” be required which is generally highly improbable unless you’re churning a ton of audio gear a year (i.e 20k or more)
I see it as an unintended consequence of the new reporting law – it drives more sales underground, to cash, and to trades or bartering. This was fully predictable. Human nature.
Agree, my accountant said the same when I had to do it last year. My County tax office wanted me to have a business license because I had some transactions and it was over the $600 lol. I said I wouldn’t do it, they said if you continue you will have to. I’ll fight them later on if need be. I just think it was new to them at the time? We’ll see!
I’d take this to off topic thread from here. Maybe a mod can move it. Thanks!
Ok, I have done more research and this is definitely correct. Proceeds from the sale of personal items sold at a loss are not taxable. I will have to keep track of my purchases to prove what I paid for them originally. It gets a bit confusing when you include things in a package deal that were acquired in another package deal from someone else. I may be overthinking things a bit at this point!
FWIW - It seems like ZMFs are experiencing an unusual period of low value right now, probably stemming from the recent explosion of sales & resales on the heels of ZMF November. I have to think the depressed value is temporary. Which means 2 things: (1) for a buyer, you would be wise to grab a ZMF now for less than you’ll probably have to spend to get it 6 months from now, and (2) for a seller, now is maybe not a great time to sell your ZMF.
Can’t help but agree. I thought my beautiful Blackwood Auteur would get snatched up the afternoon I listed them. Supply has certainly gone up recently, so of course demand has gone down. I’m not desperate to sell my set, so I’m going be patient in finding a buyer.
Not to step on your sale – I’ll delete this message if you ask – but my answer is two words: Stimulus checks.
In 2020 and 2021 I sold a lot of audio gear and other electronics for stunningly good used prices. Some other types of products went used for even more. The stimulus money has dried up, and inflation is now causing a panic and sucking the hobby/luxury market dry. People must spend money on food, gas, cars, and rent/mortgages before they buy premium headphones. All of the essentials cost a lot more than they did last year, let alone in 2019.
Added a few more pictures. As you can see, this comes with the original ZMF case that was standard in 2018 when the headphones were released. It’s a little sleeker than the current one.
Decided to throw in either a Lambskin Pilot Pad or Co-Pilot Pad with the package at no charge.
On a side note, I can’t decide if the announcement of the new ZMF Atrium and Auteur Classic will make my Blackwood Auteur more or less desirable amongst ZMF connoisseurs. Only time will tell I suppose.
Difficult to know. My Auteur blackwood are dominating my listening when I’m in a quiet location with no need for isolation. I’ll be jumping in for the Atrium as soon as it opens up for sale, even though I also own VC and VO. So many flavors… but for enjoyment/$$, Auteur blackwood is IMHO the winner among all ZMFs I’ve listened to.
