Amplifiers:A Keeper for Life. Do you know of one ?

Accuphase P-300 ;^0

Burmester 911 MK3 monos. At my ears, the best solid state amps.

WAVAC 833 MK II will leave my listening room after me!

I haven't come across such an amplifier yet. My Tim Rawson built First Watt F1 comes close (as long as I have single driver speaker) but this due to the fact that I value the product more than the ~$600 it would generate selling used--not that its a world beater.

One observation I would make though--A lot more components would have 'keeper for life' potential if we didn't frequent forums like this...

The worst thing I can do in terms of long term satisfaction is sitting before my system with my laptop, surfing the forums and listings while I listen. Somehow I do it nearly every day though.

All right -- maybe not for life but -- with budget in mind here is what I did today and why this is a HOBBY.

Own -- Jolida 302B integrated tube amp. Fully modded by Underwood Hifi -- Love the sound for the buck. I have stuck with it -- had it stored a couple of times now and have it back out. The hobby part? Well today it was setting the bias again. I hadn't done that in a while and thought I better. Yeah baby too true. Recommendations for bias settings are between 34 and 44 mV. Not mA but mV. So I found mine was set at the high end of that. Took them down from near 44 to 36 just to see -- oh my.

The tubes? A matched set of Svetlana EL34s -- wonderful musically in this amp for vocals especially. Once I got the bias down -- boy I had forgotten how wonderful it is.

More on the hobby portion in another forum but with the bias at the lower end of the range -- musical beyond measure. Lovely, lovely sound. More adjustments to the system made today too. Oh yeah -- Matched Mullard NOS 12AX7s and some Telefunken 12AT7s round out the current tube arrangement -- great compliment for the system. I keep other tubes around -- just to roll in and out. Love the JJ Tesla Blues -- as much for the look at night as anything but they do work well in the power slots.

Lots more on this but I'm keeping the Jolida -- note the modded part carefully -- it made all the difference.