Vintage Keyboard Market

[Pigmeat]

I've been watching the vintage keyboard market recently and have been thinking about selling some of my gear. The prices seem to be through the roof right now and I'm wondering what the market for these instruments will be like in 10 or 15 years - who's going to buy them then? Today's keyboards and software are so good and they keep improving rapidly. That may or may not lower values in vintage gear in the future. I think I'm sitting on some hefty profits - buy low sell high right? Any thoughts?

[MAJUSCULE]

I imagine if you have anything truly collectable (ie a great-to-mint desirable model) it'll keep appreciating.

 

As far as mid-level synths like Junos, DXs, and so on, it's tough to say. I think we've reached a point where "vintage" will always get you some amount of coin. I don't think that's going away. But we may very well see a plateau or even slight decrease with more and more clones, not to mention plenty of new designs and other more modern offerings. I've thought of selling my Juno based on appreciation alone, but decided against it.

[Jonathan Hughes]

Of course, in 10 in 15 years, some component may have degraded making the keyboard non-functional. I say sell them now while they still work. Sure, in 10 years (assuming they still work), you might get more money for them, but if you sell them now, you have a good portion of that money now.

[SamuelBLupowitz]

I think another factor is whether you"re using them and getting joy out of them, or can see yourself doing so, or if they"re just taking up space. I got a great deal on my Wurlitzer with legs, pedal, and road case, and the seller said to me 'it"s a great instrument, but I"m not running a museum, and if I don"t play it, it needs to go.'

 

None of that is helpful with whether you"ll make more money now or in a few years, but I think if you can use the money more than you can use the old boards, that"s your answer.

[Bill H.]

A lot of this hot market is fueled by older players (like myself) who now have the ability to buy what they couldn't in their youth. We ain't gonna be around forever - and neither will the techs who can repair vintage pieces, or the replacement parts for them.

 

Personally I wouldn't bet on prices continuing to rise much beyond the next few years or so, but I don't think they're going to collapse either. I doubt you're gonna lose if you continue to hold.

[Song80s]

I am not aware of anyone who can accurately predict the future, going out 3 months to 15 years.

[Mykhailo]

We ain't gonna be around forever - and neither will the techs who can repair vintage pieces, or the replacement parts for them. .

 

The go to vintage synth repair shop in my home town is staffed entirely by techs born after the majority of these instruments were made. Same goes for vintage vibe, etc. Plus, there are new aftermarket parts constantly being developed.

 

I have an entire studio of vintage gear, and most of the tech work has been done by people who weren"t even born when I was in highs-school.

 

I say keep.

[ProfD]

Sell now. IMO, today's vintage gear will not appreciate in 10-15 years.

 

1) The nostalgia base musicians who are driving up prices now because they can afford the gear of yesteryear as mentioned by Bill H. won't be buying in another decade or so.

 

2) In a decade or so, the vintage gear market will be crowded as older musos will be selling in preparation for retirement homes and/or funeral parlors. Vintage gear will be cheaper.

 

3) Future gear in both hardware and software will be very well packaged with the sounds, features and functionalities of the gear of yesteryear.

 

The reality of a post-pandemic musical landscape will diminish the market for vintage gear as well. Cash out now.

[Mykhailo]

 

3) Future gear in both hardware and software will be very well packaged with the sounds, features and functionalities of the gear of yesteryear. :

 

so long as manufacturers and sound designers keep coming up with patches based on the gear of yesteryear, there will always be a demand for the real thing. Curiosity alone would fuel that demand. The prices for rhodes pianos are the highest I"ve seen in my lifetime, yet this is occurring precisely at a moment when software emulations are sonically indecipherable from the real thing.

 

Once 'bread and butter' sounds no longer include, ep"s, organs, clavs, analog leads, mellotrons, etc., then at that point you will see vintage gear start to depreciate. I don"t see that paradigm shift happening anytime soon...korg just released reissues of the ms20, arp 2600, moog just did a run of reissue minis, vintage vibe is now coming out with their second generation of electro mechanical pianos...vintage gear demand is not going away anytime soon.

[Outkaster]

The Hammond and Leslie market get's flat but will always be there.

[brenner13]

I think another factor is whether you"re using them and getting joy out of them, or can see yourself doing so, or if they"re just taking up space. I got a great deal on my Wurlitzer with legs, pedal, and road case, and the seller said to me 'it"s a great instrument, but I"m not running a museum, and if I don"t play it, it needs to go.'

 

None of that is helpful with whether you"ll make more money now or in a few years, but I think if you can use the money more than you can use the old boards, that"s your answer.

 

THIS^^^^

I"m very fortunate have a plethora of toys and tools, old and new. I"ve delved deep into the inner workings of some; others have only had their surfaces scratched. Of course the newer things get most of the attention, but every now and then some of the vintage gear gets some juice. Absence make the heart grow fonder? Perhaps, but doggone it those old beasties sound real good to me.

 

I have sold some things over the years to help fund new gear and am fortunate to be pleased with nearly every trade. There"re only a couple of pieces I really miss...like the PG800 for my JX10...OY!

 

Does that old gear give you joy? If not, sell it with hopes that someone else may find it pleasing. It sucks to HAVE to sell gear to clear some bills, much less painful when the funds can be used to fund new gear or other toys that provide entertainment. Hmmm...I have a couple of old pieces in storage...and a couple of new things on my radar...

 

Great thread! Inspired to get off my duff and practice what I preach...HA!

[Doerfler]

I say keep.

Sell now.

 

What else would one expect?

[KuruPrionz]

Some great points made above regarding parts, old guys who wax nostalgic and changing market trends.

 

If you don't NEED them or want to modernize, now would be a great time to get out.

Tech costs to repair "vintage" (re anything that is old) gear will become astronomical and/or impossible.

 

If your stuff is in great condition and fully functional and you would not miss it too much, make it go away.

[Markyboard]

I say keep.

Sell now.

 

What else would one expect?

 

 

Give it away...to MEEEEE!

[Adan]

I think there will always be a market, but does that mean this is a good way to invest money? I would think demand will shrink as substitutes get better. There will always be some people who want the real vintage thing despite the impracticality of keeping it running and gigging with it. But an increasing number of people will be ok with a substitute, especially for gigging. In 10 years will there be any classic synth not cloned by Behringer? How good will the best Hammond clone paired with the best Leslie-emulating speaker cabinet be? Will someone come as close to reproducing a Wurly as Vintage Vibe has come to reproducing the Rhodes and Clavinet? One can argue that these reproductions/emulations don't quite get you the experience of playing the real deal. As a Vintage Vibe owner, I'd have to agree. As good as the VV is, I'd still rather have the Mark I suitcase I owned 20-some years ago. But it's so close, and the advantages in terms of maintenance and reliability are so clear, it has to make the vintage market more favorable to buyers.

 

Pigmeat doesn't tell us whether he plays and enjoys this gear. If he does, that obviously changes things. But he's just asking if it's a good investment. That always depends on what else you could do with your money.

[SamuelBLupowitz]

I say keep.

Sell now.

 

What else would one expect?

Reminds me of when I was shopping around for a talkbox. I saw that the MXR unit that I ultimately wound up buying had a three-star review on one of the music sales sites, and I decided to read the user reviews to see what was up. The first review: five stars. The title: "It does exactly what it's supposed to do." The body text: "It does exactly what it's supposed to do."

 

There was only one other review, so of course, it was one star. The title (and the full body text): "It blows."

 

The free market at work!

[Mykhailo]

I get to write off repair bills and a certain percentage of equipment. There is a great second hand store in my town which I have bought pretty much everything I"ll ever need for what I do.

 

(rhodes, a couple of old combo organs, an accordion and a grand piano...)

 

Some like old cars. I like old keyboards. That said, if it does not fit in my tiny studio room, then something has to go...

[Baldwin Funster]

Old guitars can be restored. Most regular people would have trouble finding a tech who could restore an old keyboard with obsolete chips ect. That's why I dont lust for old boards. As for the OP, I say sell while they still work.

[JoJoB3]

2c on this...

 

As long as there are musicians using these in studios (who also purchase such items) there's a market.

There will be route to repair for the most part.

 

Most virtual instruments do not negate the vintage in use, reg working players of all ages will usually always pref these over virtual (although it's very fun, and they aid in the common casuals and studio situations).

There's a market. Would need to know what we're talking about though, what do you have?

[newkeys]

If you want to start making investment decisions about a specialized market*, you"re always going to be guessing to some degree; and if you want to improve your odds, you have to do the work to learn the market. There are no simple rules like, 'Sell it all now!' or 'Never sell anything.'

 

Look at SOLD prices (*not* asking prices on current items) on ebay for the gear you"re thinking of letting go. Likewise for the record of sold prices at Reverb.com. You will start seeing what your gear is worth to other people ... at least what it"s worth right now.

 

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*Old synths are a specialized market. Some are consistently valuable, often with good reason. Other instruments are ignored or disdained (at least this year). If musicianship, and your musical experiences with others, matter more to you than being super-nuanced about what your brass pad or Moog bass patch sounds like, the whole thing may not make much sense. But the old synth world does have its own logic for someone who"s into that. I personally don"t understand paying a lot for a 'better' brand of beer or coffee...but that"s a real thing to some people too.