Here at HPM, we tend to be of the opinion that any kind of advice that comes in blanket-form, is usually of a very low quality . If we were Star Wars geeks (and we are a little) we might state that “Only Sith deal in absolutes”. And being Handpan-Jedi through-and through, we would ourselves instead advise caution, accompanied by an open mind. And here’s why…
What kind of Handpan Could $800 (or less) buy you at eBay?
In a recent post we established that the average cost of a Handpan when purchased directly from a known/established maker is somewhere around the $2000 mark. And while as far as we’re concerned, that is a fine and fair price for a quality handmade instrument, it feels fair to say that that price point was set at the highest wave of Handpan-madness - when it was near impossible to get your hands on a decent Handpan of any kind, and instruments by the likes of Pantheon Steel were selling for as much as $15,000.00 at open auction.
Things have changed a little since then though. And during mid-2016 we announced having added our one hundredth name to our list of Handpan makers. And while prices have been slowly falling over at eBay (a marketplace we monitor closely), very few of the more established makers have really tested their price-point at open auction following this past years influx of new builders. And the only one who has in more recent times, found that the prices people were “happy” to pay (even if they might be willing to pay more in a closed sale), had fallen considerably.
So, with this post, for comparison purposes, first we’ll be sharing a video of a Handpan from the Saraz team that sold recently in way of direct sale via their website for the cost of $2400. And we're singling out Saraz here only due to the fact that as makers they are now about as established as any are, and because we have a known price point for the sale of this particular instrument which was sold recently via flash-sale...
And then next we'll share videos of the last three Handpan that sold via eBay over the last few weeks at under $800 (at a combined cost of $2157 for the three instruments)...
(2) Handpan by Logam Acoustic ''Agnima" (Sold for $730)...
Of course, price isn't necessarily the only factor a prospective Handpan purchaser should be considering. But for some it could be a deciding factor. And for comparison purposes, hopefully this post demonstrates what kind of instruments do come up for sale for your consideration at auction at the sub-$800 price point, at time of posting. Leaving readers free to decide how much of, and where they choose to spend their money - for themselves.
