Are Factory Refurbished CD Players as Reliable as Brand New ones?

[MKAL]

I am considering buying a factory refurbished CD player (sealed), because it is about 25% cheaper than a new one. Is there anything to worry about with factory refurbished players? Do they tend to be "lemons" that go bad again, or are they just as reliable as brand new players? The factory warranty for the refurbished player is 1 year, while that of the brand new player is 2 years, which makes me wonder if the refurbished player is more prone to breaking down.

 

[PsychoZX]

If anything refurbished items tend to be better than new. This is because refurb stuff usually has to go through a lot more QC checks before it leaves the factory after being refurbished.

 

[Old Pa]

Refurbished can mean several different things. It can be new that was just returned from a dealer. It can be LNIB that was returned by a customer without faults. It can have had some problem and come back on warranty. What happens to it then also differs between manufacturers. It can be inspected and tested briefly and go back out. It can be repaired, tuned up to specifications, and have any lost or damaged parts replaced and then sent out. It all depends on the manufacturer and/or their domestic agent/importer. What you want is a new product warranty on the CD player you would have otherwise bought new. Check it out carefully when it shows up and listen to it critically while it burns in. Refurbished gear can provide some of the best deals in audio.

 

[braillediver]

“refurbished items tend to be better than new.”

That would be wishful thinking. The best the unit could be is “as good as new”. No one knows for sure.

If the Unit was “As good as new” then why the reduced warranty? Seems the manufacturer knows something we don’t.


25% off doesn’t seem like an incredible bargain for a refurbished unit. Add to that the reduced warranty and how much are you actually saving?

If you get the unit you should run it in for a week straight to see if there are any problems. Try every function and control to make sure there are no problems.


Good Luck

Mitch

 

[gerG]

I only have experience with one FR CD changer, one of the cool old HK topload units. It has been very troublesome, with an intermittent jamming problem. My conjecture is that it was returned under warranty, bench checked, worked fine for 5 minutes, and was boxed back up and sold to a wholesaler. I have no idea what "factory" did the bench job.

I have had similar experience with other products claiming to be "factory refurbished to original spec". This can mean a lot of things, and the fine print is typically not available. My advice would be to make sure that the unit carries the full warranty of the original manufacturer, and not some second party paper. Also make sure the warranty period is long enough for intermittent problems to show up and work out (a year or more would be good).

gerG

 

[Captain]

I brought a refurb Minolta film scanner and a Olympus digital camera with in 6 months of each other. Both were faulty and did not work on arrival. Not HiFi, but the same could happen. Both came with 1 year warranty's. I had to send the scanner back twice to Minolta before they totally fixed the problem, Olympus just replaced the camera.

So not totally convinced that "refurbished items tend to be better than new"

 

[MKAL]

Sounds like it might not be such a good idea to buy factory refurb. The brand is NAD if anyone knows how they rate in the service/refurb area.

 

[jjcapurro]

My only experience with refurbs was with a pre/power combo from Pass Labs... obviously at a much different price point than NAD products, but my experience was very positive. I couldn't tell the difference... EASILY as good as brand new.

Cheers,
Jeremy

 

[Mr.PD]

I have had 2 factory refurbished items.
The first was a Sony car tape deck. It lasted longer than any other tape deck I ever put in that old pickup.
The second was a Pioneer 100 disc CD changer. I had it for only two years with no problems. I will admit that it didn't hold up well to a house fire, but I don't think a brand new one would have done any better.

Oh wait, I also bought a Ford Probe GT that had been sent back to Ford under a lemon law. That turned out to be a great car, that I wish I still had.

 

[YngwieJMalmsteen]

Refurbished items are exactly as good as the person doing the refurbishing. So, if it is factory refurbished from a good company (like NAD) there should be no problem. But remember that many refurbs are not done by the factory, or the factory technicians may not know what they're doing anyway.

 

[rodentmacbeastie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MKAL Sounds like it might not be such a good idea to buy factory refurb. The brand is NAD if anyone knows how they rate in the service/refurb area.

My buddy bought a FR NAD surround receiver. He has had it for around a year now and has had no problems. To top it off, it was a model that was prone to firmware problems. That, apparently, was the main cause for them to be returned and installed with better firmware.

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

i bought a refurb tv once and cosmetically it looked like junk. just make sure you buy from someplace with a good return policy in case you get something that looks hideous.

 

[MKAL]

OceanEnthusiast,
Would a brand new player also have looked like junk? Did the refurb look any different than a new one, scratches, etc., or did you just buy online without seeing a new unit also?

 

[OceanEnthusiast]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MKAL OceanEnthusiast, Would a brand new player also have looked like junk? Did the refurb look any different than a new one, scratches, etc., or did you just buy online without seeing a new unit also?

oh, sorry for not being clearer. i actually sent it back and bought the same model but a new unit instead. the refurb unit i got was completely thrashed, had duct tape goop all over it, stains all over it, was very sratched all over (like someone took a quarter and thought it was a lotto ticket). it was absolutely unacceptable, i was so pissed that someone would actually think they could get away with sending that to someone. i wouldn't want it in my garage, let alone my living room.

on another note, my girlfriend bought a refurb PDA for a great price that looked brand new and worked flawlessly.

i dont think buying refurb units is neccessarily a bad idea, just make sure you buy from a place with a no penalty return policy.

 

[S_Dedalus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braillediver 25% off doesn’t seem like an incredible bargain for a refurbished unit. Add to that the reduced warranty and how much are you actually saving?

With the $60 Toshiba, certainly, with the $500 players, it starts to seem like a better deal, and once you get into the G08 range, 25% seems like a huge discount.