Vide-greniers: not very interesting anymore.

[Hotrodder]

Anyone who doesn't see the value in old electronics/hi fi etc. should have a gander around ebay or some other specialist sites. I see certain NOS valves going for pretty big numbers. Clearly there are people out there who want to keep their "mellow" sounding vintage kit going instead of joining the streaming of heavily compressed music reproduced by speakers the size of a peanut.
I was a Fender man, Stratocaster + Bandmaster amp + Reverb. Our lead had the same amp and one night after a gig he was in a foul temper and kicked his amp down a flight of stairs. Apart from one tiny dent it remained unharmed and playing fine. Not bad for a piece of ancient valve technology. A decent one today will fetch £2000-£4000 so valves for them will be worth hoarding. I keep an eagle eye open for old hi fi separates and turntables at vide greniers but rarely ever see any decent brands at medium or high end. Usually low budget stuff in hardboard casings. It seems good Japanese made stuff wasn't that popular in France. I notice the bulk of high end kit is now coming from Germany at eye watering prices.

[RobertArthur]

@ Austin France & Hotrodder, more pictures, not of vide-greniers, but of a simple chateau in the Nièvre where the son of the owner organised a garden party with his pop group from Paris.













Beat music from Paris? No, their inspiration comes from London, sixties and seventies.

[niemeyjt]

Interesting, on the corner here there is a shop selling "old technology" record players, amps etc - and I recall similar in Zurich. Mind you, there was also a film camera shop in Zurich next door as well.

I wonder whether the reason we don't see these shops often in UK is the extortionate business rates that require a "pile-'em high, shift-'em quick" approach - the opposite of what you have here.

[RobertArthur]

@ niemeyjt, many of these shops faced the same problems, consumer base shrinking, where to find reliable spare parts. I used to have valves made by Siemens, Telefunken and Philips. Even from professional series, an example of the venerable EL34 in its Long Life version: EL34L:



Bought from Philips Telecom industries NOS (new old stock), once in the output stages of shortwave transmitters on the high seas. The early transistor shortwave power amps didn't like salt water waves more or less shorting antennas and the metal structure of the ship, they blew up. I could have made a little fortune looking at the prices of today.

The guys in the DDR produced very unreliable tubes under the name of RFT. The Russians however had several excellent Sovtek valves. Paying in Rubles is a bit difficult these days....

Where to find these hard to find and expensive parts and old school professionals or their pupils...and rich clients.

[hughnique]

A side from all this amplifiers and the rest which bear no attraction to me, I have attended several boot sales, vide greniers, and have never come across so much overpriced rubbish in all my life> I have noticed the increase of vide maisons in the last year or two, again nothing worth taking a look at, at the couple I have been to.

[Pathca]

It’s good we don’t all like the same thing,it adds variety to life

[Loup-garou]

We like to visit vide-greniers. We used them to have a deekabout local villages without people being suspicious and calling the gendarmes, it follows then, that we are not so keen on those set in fields, parking areas or halls so much as those pitched in the streets. As for what's on offer, it is pretty standard and, for the most part, uninteresting. There always seem to be plenty of veg steamers, long-stemmed wine glasses without bottoms and globes. Additionally, there are often old men sellers with their hair dyed bright ginger.

I think that there are three types of vendors. Those who want shot of rubbish or things no longer of use to them, first timers or those who really have no idea what price to put on items and those who want to sell their tut at a profit. Consequently, you see some who are happy for stuff to disappear from their spread and some who get quite aggressive at the prices they are demanding being rejected.

Perhaps surprisingly, we never ever visited a car boot sale when in the UK.

[rsm]

Many vide grenier sellers seem to think that they can ask new prices for old tat, and tat is a kind word for it.Worst for me are the ones who slap a bit of something on old furniture and think they have a piece of chippendale. with a price to match.

[Blaze]

Worst for me are the ones who slap a bit of something on old furniture and think they have a piece of chippendale. with a price to match.

We went to a big antique fair at Durtal in 49 years ago where a lot of the 'antique' furniture was full of worm holes and in bad condition but the worst was the appalling way so much of the furniture had been tarted up. Everything was over-priced.

We haven't been to anything like a vide grenier for years - we have enough tat of our own without needing to add to it !

[Pathca]

There’s always a coffee set often the same design of coffee ste