Chronosonic XVX.

[Ron Resnick]

XLF will sell between $65-80k for factory reconditioned in excellent to near mint
condition me thinks. I don’t see $50k or less being very realistic. I may even be a buyer at $65k

. . .

As for used values, Wilson has for about 4 years now (officially, ad hoc for years before that) had a comprehensive trade in program in North America designed to treat the customer fairly as well as offer Certified AuthenticTM Wilson products to those who are interested. Certified AuthenticTM offers a used Wilson buyer a new buying experience with a used Wilson speaker. Since Wilson is willing to pay the dealer for a trade in based on actual retail market value, our used speakers not only reflect the market but insure that if the dealer does not wish to keep the trade in, Wilson will take it. Based on history ( we have been taking X2 and XLF in trade on WAMMs for a couple of years now), I would expect XLF trade ins to be in the 50%-65% of original retail range. Remember too that unlike a single retailer taking a trade in, Wilson Audio has a world wide network of established distributors and dealers who will happily buy a Certified AuthenticTM pair of Wilson speakers to sell to a client in their market.

. . .

This is a wonderful business model of which I was previously unaware. Thank you for explaining this!

 

[tima]

Wilson Audio RMAF 2019 Schedule



With Rocky Mountain Audio Fest right around the corner, we’re excited to share with you our latest Loudspeaker, Chronosonic XVX located in Room 11115. Chronosonic XVX will be featured on static display alongside our Wilson Audio Subsonic, WAMM Master Chronosonic and WAMM Master Subsonic. Display in located in our suites’s adjoining room.

Chronosonic XVX will be on static display during the following times:

Thursday, Sep 5: 1:00PM - 2:00PM Opened to Press
Friday, Sep 6: 10:00AM - 6:00PM: Opened to Public
Saturday, Sep 7: at 10:00AM - 6:00PM
Sunday, Sep 8: CLOSED

In the adjacent room, listers can enjoy our active system, in collaboration with VTL in suite 11115. Our active system gear list is as follows:

SPEAKERS:
Wilson Audio - Sasha DAW
Wilson Audio - WATCH Dog (Passive Pair)

ELECTRONICS:
Wilson Audio - ActivXO (NEW)
VTL - TL7.5 Series III Reference Preamplifier
VTL - S-400 Series II Reference Stereo Amplifier
dCS - Vivaldi One

RACK:
Grand Prix Audio - Four Shelf Monza

CABLES AND POWER PRODUCTS:
Shunyata Research - Denali 6000
Full Shunyata Research Speaker and Power Cables (including both Sigma and Alpha series)

 

[XV-1]

What colour is on display? That beautifully sexy purple I hope.

 

[Steve Williams]

What colour is on display? That beautifully sexy purple I hope.

It’s called black almondine. My Wilson speakers are the same color

 

[Steve Williams]

Black Almondine

 

[Steve Williams]

 

[cannata]

This is a wonderful business model of which I was previously unaware. Thank you for explaining this!

There were dozen or so Alexia for sale on AG at a fixed price (~$30K) for a very long time (Now it is the Sasha 2). I doubt any were sold at that asking price (there is one on AG now for $22K – and it is not moving). The used market all over the world is very soft these days. In the end, someone has to pay the bills. That may explain some of these ridicules prices we see. Imagine you just bought a WAMM and now realize you could have bought a WAMM minus only two 7” drivers (XVX) and saved $350K

 

[jeff1225]

There were dozen or so Alexia for sale on AG at a fixed price (~$30K) for a very long time (Now it is the Sasha 2). I doubt any were sold at that asking price (there is one on AG now for $22K – and it is not moving). The used market all over the world is very soft these days. In the end, someone has to pay the bills. That may explain some of these ridicules prices we see. Imagine you just bought a WAMM and now realize you could have bought a WAMM minus only two 7” drivers (XVX) and saved $350K

Wilson is attempting to keep prices in the secondary market high by buying back trade ins from their dealers. Great strategy if it works, but you need deep pockets and willing retailers.

 

[Joe P]

What colour is on display? That beautifully sexy purple I hope.

According to Daryl it will be a "surprise combo."

 

[cannata]

Wilson is attempting to keep prices in the secondary market high by buying back trade ins from their dealers. Great strategy if it works, but you need deep pockets and willing retailers.

4X7” woofers, for $350K, will, indeed, yield very deep pockets.

 

[tima]

Wilson is attempting to keep prices in the secondary market high by buying back trade ins from their dealers. Great strategy if it works, but you need deep pockets and willing retailers.

I suspect dealers are very willing; trade-ins become desirable rather than a liability. Factory reconditioning makes it easier for dealers to sell used. I've heard it is v successful so buyers likely see value in reconditioning.

 

[jeff1225]

I suspect dealers are very willing; trade-ins become desirable rather than a liability. Factory reconditioning makes it easier for dealers to sell used. I've heard it is v successful so buyers likely see value in reconditioning.

It's based on the car industry's system of "Certified Pre-owned Cars." Take control of the used market, add minimum value, and most importantly keep the pricing disparity between new and used as small as possible.

 

[asiufy]

Value is subjective. Dealer support might have no value to you, but it might not be the case for others, who end up buying a used Wilson, not installing/positioning it properly, and in the end, not getting their money's worth.
A warranty (which IS included in the Wilson Certified Pre-owned program -- even for older, discontinued products), might likewise be of no value to you, but that is certainly not the case for a lot of buyers.
I think Wilson is on to something, and I certainly wish other manufacturers, specially ones with a lot of history and products under their belt, would do something similar.

 

[metaphacts]

What colour is on display? That beautifully sexy purple I hope.

The color in the photos is a new color called Cranberry Pearl.

 

[metaphacts]

Wilson is attempting to keep prices in the secondary market high by buying back trade ins from their dealers. Great strategy if it works, but you need deep pockets and willing retailers.

Almost 90% of the speakers taken on trade are resold by the dealer taking them in on trade. Wilson actually buys back very few speakers, though that is always an option to the dealer. The values are based on the actual used market and updated as the market shifts.

 

[metaphacts]

It's based on the car industry's system of "Certified Pre-owned Cars." Take control of the used market, add minimum value, and most importantly keep the pricing disparity between new and used as small as possible.

Certified Pre-Owned is now a category unto itself in the car industry. Virtually every manufacturer has some form of it. Some buyers are simply not new car buyers, whether for sales price, depreciation concerns, budget, etc. They also prefer the comfort of manufacturer warranty and service instead of buying from a regular used car dealer. That CPO remains a growing segment of the automobile market bears that out.

 

[KeithR]

Exactly @jeffrey_t . And similarly whatever they take on trade comes out of the XVX side of the transaction. I do think its a nice option for customers who upgrade often as its an easy solution - and dealers can install the speakers better than most.

Several of the X2s on this forum were bought for $50k in the refurb days by a certain dealer. This is probably not far from where XLFs will ultimately trade. Super high end speakers (>40k) depreciate heavily as Elliot has shared. Sasha Is have held value much, much better than any of the upper tier Wilsons.

 

[metaphacts]

There were dozen or so Alexia for sale on AG at a fixed price (~$30K) for a very long time (Now it is the Sasha 2). I doubt any were sold at that asking price (there is one on AG now for $22K – and it is not moving). The used market all over the world is very soft these days. In the end, someone has to pay the bills. That may explain some of these ridicules prices we see. Imagine you just bought a WAMM and now realize you could have bought a WAMM minus only two 7” drivers (XVX) and saved $350K

You will always see the most used units of a discontinued model in the year following the release of it replacement. Wilson owners tend to upgrade over time.

We have some dealers and distributors who have standing orders for discontinued Certified Authentic speakers. They run ads continually. Finding new friends by selling Certified Authentic is a big part of their business model. They understand that the most likely person to buy a Wilson already owns one. New Wilson owners buying used Wilson is a great way to grow their market.

What I can't explain are non Wilson dealer resellers who seem to stockpile Wilsons. I guess they find a decent market in used Wilson product as well.

 

[jeff1225]

Almost 90% of the speakers taken on trade are resold by the dealer taking them in on trade. Wilson actually buys back very few speakers, though that is always an option to the dealer. The values are based on the actual used market and updated as the market shifts.

There have been several MAXX 3's that have sold for sub $25K on Audiogon, I know because I was looking to buy a pair in the past. Currently there is a "Certified Pre Owned" for sale on Audiogon for $35K. This price seems to be outside of what the "actual used market" is for these speakers.

 

[cjfrbw]

Have there been any reports of the larger Wilson's attacking and eating their owners?