Audio Research REF 6 to REF 6SE upgrade.

I figure that if my grandson gets into audio that by 2070 he'll be able to buy an upgrade to his Audio Research Reference 50 Mark 15 for a mere $$25,000! 

Well, I love my ARC REF6 and I have very little interest in paying $5K to upgrade it.  I suspect that as with a lot of upgrades, the improvements might be audible, but not by much.  I am sure that there is something that I can upgrade for $5K that will make a bigger difference.  But hey, if you've got money to burn, an improvement is an improvement, however small it might be.

I was a long time ARC owner starting back in the mid-70s, do they offer a trade up program? That might make sense but the bean counters often rule. I haven't deal with them in more than the decade, Zane was gone but Len had just left parts and service. 

I've been with Lamm since 2006 and yes, there are hiccups. But to be expected. 

wm. Johnson is long gone. Vlad passed away. 

We can only hope that the companies not only respect their legacy but their customers. 

Over and out, 

I just saw that they are a step short of filing for bankruptcy. The company was placed in receivership. A company called Lighthouse Group has been assigned all their assets. Hopefully someone will buy them, maybe an agreement has already been made, but this is sad.

Prices are going up everywhere.

i was bummed that my targeted flea watt speaker price jumped by $7k. I complained my dismay to the manufacturer even though I knew Covid/economy supply chain problems was driving costs up everywhere. Luckily, a mint used pair came up for sale in my favorite veneer- birdseye maple, it was speaking to me so I listened :)

Likewise, my someday distant DAC went up in price by $6kI wanted to raise the sonics of my digital chain to closely match the sonics of my high quality analog chain. The best soundings DACs seem to start at $42k Lampizator, Linn, dCs, MSB, WADAX. It was extremely difficult to find something that can satisfying complete at that sonic level but within my budget. . I was extremely disappointed. Luckily Linn wanted to support their past customers of their DAC+streamer unit, so offered the DAC upgrade for $7k. So I purchased their last model used with the older streamer but with the upgraded DAC, the same used in their new $42k DAC+streamer. I’m soooo blessed.