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What's a good price?

JDemoret

Member
Mar 5, 2009
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I'm looking at buying a base and would like to have a Cobra 2000 GTL and found several on ebay.

What would you guys pay for one in very good to excellent condition and would you buy stock or a radio that has been modded. Of course accessories have alot to do with price such as mic and speaker.

Did these radios come stock with the external speaker or were they an add on?

Thanks John
 

I think the 2000's are overpriced for what they do myself. Some folks love them for the looks....me, I gotta have more than looks and more bang for the buck.

I think the speakers were separate.

Good luck !

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The way i have been told some came with both speakers and some only came with one. If you find one that is unmodified and is in really nice shape then $400.00 is a good price although i have seen some in the original box in nearly new condition go for over $600.00. I paid $500.00 for one i have that has never been out of the box since new. If you can find one with both speakers try to get em so that they match the wood color and pattern of the radio itself. Same goes for a radio with just one speaker,they are worth more this way. These are great radios as i have 3 of them right now. The receive is strong and clear on AM as well as SSB and the sound quality is very good in both modes as well.

If you want one i would strongly recommend that you get one that is unmodified. These radios are worth more to a collector unmodified because it is rare to find one these days that has not been screwed with. You see a lot of em on Ebay that have mods done to them but if they have been modified by some hack you never know if the person who did them knew what they were doing,you can really screw one of these things up if your not careful! Also. This is nothing more than a Cobra 148 GTL in a big box with a built in power supply so even with extensive mods your not going to see much over 15 to 20 watts AM and around 25 watts SSB. These radio are just not built to be power houses and although you can do the mosfet mod to these radios ( 30 watts + and a real pain in the ass to do this mod the correct way because it's way more than just a final swap ) the factory power supply is just barley big enough to run the radio as it is and since mosfets are power hungry you will have the lights on the radio go dem every time you key up if you do the swap.

Just a heads up. If something happens to one of the chips inside the radio that controls the frequency counter you may have a hard time finding a replacement so this should be something to consider before you get one.

Other than that you cant go wrong with a nice Cobra 2000 GTL!
 
The Cobra 2000 units came with a single speaker, but, some guys have bought a second speaker for the stereo look, it does little for the price of buying used, since there is only one external speaker jack. But Rat Shack can solve that problem.
 
since there is only one external speaker jack. But Rat Shack can solve that problem.



I've owned 4 2000GTL radios over the years, including one purchased new directly from a Distributor, All had Dual Speaker jacks on the rear panel, and as you can see by my attachment even the schematic verifies it was standard equipment. The Uniden 8719 Madison (Uniden version of 2K) also had dual speakers jacks.

Personally I wouldn't pay the money they are fetching, I would consider a "good" price $300 or less for a nice clean one. IMO anything over 300 is top-buck, but they are worth what the buyer is willing to pay.
 

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yeap , speakers 1 and 2 or both can be used on them there 2000's. Well I sure dont' have 4 of them boxed in some closet . They always came with one speaker (that I know of) and you could always buy the second one seperate. (Then you were really cool) Dual mono day mono. :drool:

I'd give 250.00 for one that was in good condition with a speaker and a Silver eagle on the side. Moded or not as long as it was looking and performing as it should. No Silver Eagle ? I might give you 180.00 for it . But that's just me. I need no trophys laying around in there boxes. (or out of them)

If you want to pay the numbers King Mudduck is talking about ? GO FOR IT !! Your dime and your time. The real kick in the ass about Ebay is that it's kind of like a Forrest Gump type deal. You know .....life is like a box of chocolates , you reach in and grab one and some times you never no what your going to get :headbang ;)

It's really all good with me . Guys tend to invest in all kinds of things. The Cobra 2000 is now 30 years old. :) They had a good run from 79 to 93 and that was all she wrote. So the youngest ones are 16 years old. I wish you the best of luck John , do your homework buddy , try not to spend to much on one if you don't have to. Make sure if your dealing with Ebay , cover your ass the best you can , ask questions to the sellers , get it in writing so you have proof , make sure they have damned good feedback and use Paypal if you can. They are better nothing in many cases of being ripped off.

Those radios are old now John , new in the box is still old . Caps dry up , some more then others and depending on how they might have been stored ? New in the box is fine and Dandy and you might be some rich dude for all I know John ? maybe 500.00 ain't that much to you ? Don't shy away from a good condition moded 2000 if the price is right. Like I said , just do your home work if you have to have a 2000 that bad.

Now IM speaking here in a operators text , not a collectors. The only thing I collect personally is gray hair and air for the spare. Now , John ? Is this 2000 for you to be used or is it to be collected and put in a closet ? (I could never make them work very well in closet )

The reason I ask you this , and if money might be a problem for you ? You could always go with a 148GTL side mic versions or a Grant XL which would be the newer model , that one went out in around 2001 and then they had the Grant LT for a few years after that. These are mobile models of the 2000. Very nice and very well known for the TX/RX capabilities.

They are very nice with a wired in FC-390 Freq counter and a good 20 amp Astron power supply. Now I would personally take my bets on that in the longavity department over a 2000 any day of the week. There's a big differance between a 2000 trophy and a 2000 operating unit. You see what IM saying here John ?

Also ........MOSFETS in a 2000 is a NO NO !! Why ? The power supplys in the 2000s will go bye bye fairly quickly. :headbang But hey !! You could always use the DC side of the radio and use a power supply. Now why in God's name would I want to do that on a 2000 ? ........Oh yeah !! oh nevermind , I won't even talk about those aged power supplies in those radios. :(
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I've found Cobra 2000's for anywhere from $100 - $200 on craigslist in really nice condition.

Ebay prices tend to be a little high IMO
 
All depends on what you want, and are wiling to pay. In our area 100-250 seems to be the norm for nice clean decent units. Paying 400 plus I think is insane. For that you could buy a brand new base with a warranty and have tons more features. The only exception would be," new in the box and never used ", radio. Even then though I have heard wild stories of these kind going for 700-800 bucks.
 
cobra 2000

they go froum 200 to 300 around indiana. a friend of mine has 3 for sale. i will check and see what he wants for one. there is a guy in southern indiana that mod's them and they work great.
 
Never really owned one but they are good radios for their time. (y) Dual conversion made for a quiet and selective receiver. Common chassis were the Cobra 148GTL, Uniden Grant (ones with the 5 pin mic) and the Madison base. Their age is the only real problem now unless you find a "hack" job. Price can range all over and the replys above say it all...
I would love to have a 2000 but it's big!

mechanic
 
After some thought i decided not to go after a 2000 since I already have a 148gtl side mic which I've been using mobile on a daily basis and also set it up as a base when I'm not working (truck driver).
I ended up getting a Galaxy 88 HTL and got it for $200.00 and it is good shape.

Thanks for the replys
John
(y)
 

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