I would not blame ARC but rather the tube manufactures. Quality is up and down. Since you have the choice of 6550's from Russia or China, I choose Russia. Tubes are not at all like transistors. Once a tube is on, it's going downhill. Some blame also goes to the consumer. When ARC says their output tubes are rated for 2000 hrs. they mean it. I can't tell you how many ARC amps I've seen that were abused. When your 2000 hrs are up that doesn't mean to wait till a tube arcs to replace them. It also doesn't mean if one tube fails, just replace that one tube. It also doesn't mean if the fuse blows, up-size the fuse. When you buy a Ferrari, don't put regular unleaded in it. Any tube amp from any manufacturer can arc a tube, it's the nature of the beast. Treat it well, and it will last many lifetimes. Abuse it, and it won't last long.
Audio Research VSi60 integrated reliability?
Just wondering the reliability of the VSi60 integrated. Am tempted by the idea of a tube integrated, but a little wary with the stereophile review and comment about exploding units. Saw a previous a'gon posting with quite a few replies about another similar situation which seems to have been deleted. Anyways I hear quite a lot of positive remarks about ARC's reputation and reliability, but those posts frankly are ridiculous if the amp is exploding.
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- 15 posts total
- 15 posts total