It's always going to be the case on ebay with last minute bids as people don't want to show an interest to other potential bidders in hope to keep the price down.
The problem with not putting a high starting price is that there's always a possibility it may not get the bids and you end up losing it for little money.
As for your particular machine, it's very desired BUT a lot of people that want one already have one now, so the value will be less now. I paid over a thousand for mine a few years back as I didn't know if another would come along. I imagine other people have progressively paid less for theirs as there are less people in the market for it as each one surfaces.
I still think yoiu'll get 300+ for it though. As I say, I'ld have another one for that money!