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In Reply to: RE: Right to repair is not "cheaping out" as you will posted by Steve O on December 18, 2024 at 13:35:16

This was THEE MOST UNRELIABLE piece of equipment I've ever owned.

the worst sounding ARC had ever produced as Harry Pearson observed when they first came out. Did you audition before purchase? Bill Johnson said the negative TAS reviews nearly put him out of business. He claims semiconductor provider didn't deliver same quality production devices.

It didn't take long before even better sounding and reliable tube based gear arrived from them.

Have never even considered ARC let alone buy the stuff over the past 45yrs.

In nearly that space of time (44), I've enjoyed a power amp and three preamps, the last of which I continue to happily use. It was the first to *beat* the transparency of a passive. Took me a while to digest and directly experience what Charlie Hansen and John Atkinson had been saying for years. :)

Follow Ups:

"No discussion of "sonic's" is necessary" - Steve O 14:55:24 12/18/24 (2)
Still isn't. The amp was a poor physical implementation of an unstable design. A design that can't accommodate normal production tolerances of active components isn't ready for prime time. If they still wanted to proceed with this they could have selected parts. Apparently they didn't. Holding component suppliers responsible for their lack of design and manufacturing expertise is just shifting blame. A bad look.

I acquired the amp after listening to it. i liked it. I don't give a shit what Harry Pearson thought of it. He's not me. He doesn't have my system. He doesn't have my room. He doesn't have my ears. Plus he obviously didn't have it long enough to really experience it in all its DC rail fuse blowing glory. No more ARC for me . . . One lifetime.
- See you're locked into 1976 -nt - E-Stat 15:02:09 12/18/24 (1)
  - No I'm not locked into 1976. I'm locked into not even considering ARC - Steve O 15:49:44 12/18/24 (0)
    For any future equipment acquisition. New or used or "gift". Friends have ARC Ref something preamps. Sound decent but unreliable. Most pieces have been back to ARC for repairs at some point. Two of those ARC Refs roll off high end significantly depending on setting of volume control. ARC says "normal". No thank-you! Life is too short to put up with this kind of product (un) reliability and design. Plus, there are plenty of other worthy brands to consider with equal or better sonics. And they don't rely on Russian "super tubes" (6H30).
    
    Edits: 12/19/24

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