Onix / AV123 Strata Minis in Piano Rosewood

[gw89020]

For sale: Onix (AV123) Strata Mini speakers in beautiful piano-gloss Rosewood finish. These speakers have been widely praised by many reviewers, and are recognized as competing with speakers sold at twice the price.

If you're familiar with AV123, you know that their ability to produce products hasn't met with the level of demand, leading to lengthy backorders and waiting lists. By most conventional measures, they are very underpriced against the market. Currently, Strata Minis are not available, and no ETA has been published. The piano-gloss Rosewood finish was a limited offering which is no longer produced; according to AV123, only 35 pairs were ever made in this finish.

Pricing: asking $1875 OBO. Originally paid $2500 + shipping. These speakers are sold manufacturer-direct and don't have an inflated "retail" price. My asking price is 25% off new, but I am open to reasonable offers. Searching audiogon, eBay, etc. shows that these speakers rarely come to market.

Full information, specifications, and links to reviews are available at the manufacturer's web site: av123(dot)com

• Limited Edition – Only fifty pairs will be produced per month.
• Cabinet: Gorgeous real wood South American Rosewood veneer wrapped around a well-braced MDF frame.
• System: Four way, four driver direct-radiating system. Sealed enclosure except for the 8” woofer which is ported via a flared slot.
• Drivers: Planar magnetic 1" tweeter, planar magnetic 8" midrange, 5.25" mid-bass coupler, 8" mass-loaded woofer.
• Amplifier: Built-in 350 watt class A/B for the powered woofer. Includes LINK cable so no additional speaker wire is required for connection. Features crossover, gain, variable phase and high level/low level inputs and outputs.
• Crossover Network: Includes air core inductors, polypropylene capacitors and non-inductive wire wound resistors. 4th order acoustic slopes on the upper end and 2nd order slopes on the bottom end.
• Crossover Points: 8" woofer : 27 Hz - (user definable), 5.25" has a 1st order high pass at 80Hz, 5.25" mid-bass coupler to 8" midrange : 650Hz, 8" midrange to tweeter : 4100Hz
• Frequency Response: 27 Hz to 35 KHz (± 3 dB)
• Impedance: 8 Ohms nominalEfficiency: 86 dB (@ 1 watt / 1 meter)
• Dimensions: 47" H x 17.5" D x 11.5" W (note on depth: 17.5" is the deepest point at the bottom of the speaker. Depth reduces to 3" at the top)
• Weight: 94 lbs each (315lbs total shipped/crated/palletized)

This pair of Mini Stratas was purchased less than two years ago and served in a secondary audio-only system that received light and infrequent use. The gorgeous piano-grade finish in bookmatched Rosewood is in perfect condition, and the speakers have been well cared-for in a non-smoking home without children or pets.

I have the original crates, socks, spikes, manuals, etc. as provided by the manufacturer. These speakers weigh in at about 90 lbs. each, and around 150 lbs. each when crated. Delivery/shipping options are as follows:

1. I will deliver within 350 miles of Las Vegas, NV at no charge; either to your location, or to meet you at a designated transfer point.
2. I will deliver the speakers to a freight depot of your choosing within 350 miles for transport arrangements that you make.
3. You can pick up the speakers at my location, approximately 100 miles north of Las Vegas, NV.

Payment terms: cash, money order or Visa/MasterCard with no fee/upcharge. If you choose to have me deliver the speakers to you or a freight depot, payment must be made before I will crate and transport.

Other info: I have 200+ transactions on eBay with 100% feedback. I can also provide personal and professional references for your assurance.

Click thumbnails for larger view - what look like streaks and marks on speakers are reflections of the room, due to the high-gloss finish:
   

[Dr Dave]

Good luck with your sale.  I'll be honest, the finish looks pretty suspect in at least one of those pictures, the one on the right particularly.  The price seems pretty steep as well.  Maybe I'm way off base though.  I hope things work out for you.

[gw89020]

Nope, the finish is flawless. It's very difficult to make a good photograph of a high gloss surface such as this; everything in vicinity of the speaker is reflected in the finish. In one of the photos, you can actually see me, my arm, the flash unit on my camera, etc.

That's why objects with large, highly reflective surfaces, such as automobiles, are normally photographed using equally large light sources (e.g. softboxes and strip lights) in carefully controlled studios. I happen to make my living behind the camera, so I know of what I speak. However, I didn't want to take the risk of crating, hauling, and uncrating the speakers to bring them to my studio.

As a small business owner and an eBay trader with 100% feedback and 5/5 scores across the board, I value my reputation and I am very conservative when it comes to describing the condition of my goods, which includes a clear disclosure of any shortcomings. Burning a customer just to make a sale always comes back to haunt you in the long run.

I understand that this is your house, Dr Dave, but I don't appreciate you calling into question my veracity or integrity based on your review of a relatively small low-resolution photo.

Likewise, unless you're ready to make me an offer, any comment about my asking price isn't worth the paper it's (not) written on. Whomever buys these speakers from me will do so at a price that *they* think is fair. It's called the free market system, and commerce doesn't happen until the buyer and seller reach an agreement they both can live with.

[Dr Dave]

Nope, the finish is flawless. It's very difficult to make a good photograph of a high gloss surface such as this; everything in vicinity of the speaker is reflected in the finish. In one of the photos, you can actually see me, my arm, the flash unit on my camera, etc.

That's why objects with large, highly reflective surfaces, such as automobiles, are normally photographed using equally large light sources (e.g. softboxes and strip lights) in carefully controlled studios. I happen to make my living behind the camera, so I know of what I speak. However, I didn't want to take the risk of crating, hauling, and uncrating the speakers to bring them to my studio.

As a small business owner and an eBay trader with 100% feedback and 5/5 scores across the board, I value my reputation and I am very conservative when it comes to describing the condition of my goods, which includes a clear disclosure of any shortcomings. Burning a customer just to make a sale always comes back to haunt you in the long run.

I understand that this is your house, Dr Dave, but I don't appreciate you calling into question my veracity or integrity based on your review of a relatively small low-resolution photo.

Likewise, unless you're ready to make me an offer, any comment about my asking price isn't worth the paper it's (not) written on. Whomever buys these speakers from me will do so at a price that *they* think is fair. It's called the free market system, and commerce doesn't happen until the buyer and seller reach an agreement they both can live with.

Calm down, I wasn't calling your "veracity or integrity" into question, I merely offered my opinion based on what I saw and since you are such an expert in the area I wouldn't expect you to be surprised at what I think I see.

I've seen many mini's sold so I know a bit about resale, but you are 100% correct regarding your last sentence.  Good luck with your sale.