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People who are Irrationally Afraid of tube amps

Recently I've had a tube amp For Sale on this site. It's a well respected, great amp from a major mfg. I've owned it for 3 years, with absolutely no problems, only enjoyment. I'm only selling it because I sold the speakers I used it with, & my current speakers are a lot more power-hungry. And it's the 2nd tube amp I've owned, my first being a really early model VTL ST-85 that was several years old when I bought it, then I had it for 5 years, & the only problem I had in all that time was replacing a fuse once. And I know almost nothing about electronics, but I learned how to use a multi-meter & successfully biased & replaced tubes in both amps.

Here's the thing: Almost every person who has written to me about my amp for sale asks a zillion questions, you know the routine, e-mails back & forth, then finally says they are too freaked out at the possibility of replacing tubes someday to buy it, whining about the (relatively modest) expense, etc. (And my amp has new tubes!!). Now, these queries are from presumably experienced A'goners because most of them have a large no. of positive feedback ratings here. I mean, we're not dealing with the average shopper at Circuit City, presumably.

My questions are: 1. Why do experienced A'goners waste so much time shopping for tube gear if they're freaked out over the potential traumatic effect that replacing tubes may have on them someday? There's plenty of SS gear FS if that's what they want. 2. Why do many even relatively experienced audiophiles still believe in the "tube hassles" myth? 3. Are there no tube afficiandos who are willing to put up with a minor inconvience every few years?

I feel like putting a warning in the next ad I run for a tube amp: WARNING: THIS DEVICE CONTAINS HIGHLY VOLATILE "TUBES", WHICH MAY BLOW AT ANY SECOND & COULD DESTROY YOUR ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD! USE AT YOUR OWN PERIL, PREFERABLY IN A NON-POPULATED AREA. EVEN IF THEY DON'T KILL YOU, THE TRAUMA OF REPLACING THE "TUBES" SOMEDAY COULD REQUIRE YEARS OF PSYCHOTHERAPY, & MAY BANKRUPT YOU & YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY.

Well, at least that might discourage the "tire kickers". Now, if I could just afford those Cary 805C mono-blocs I've been wanting for years........& thanks for listening to my rant!
steveaudio
ozfly
887 posts
 
Experienced AudioGoners? Not everyone is equally experienced with all kinds of gear. We solid state folks keep hearing that tubes are king (I've heard tubes and ss in many forms and it really is a matter of personal tradeoffs and preferences IMHO). So, some of us want to extend a toe into the water but we are nervous about it and need some reassurances and background to help with the buying decision. At the same time, we want things cheap. There's the rub: We want the advice and handholding of a dealer with the pricing of a web purchase.

Steveaudio, since it doesn't seem you wish to assume a mentoring role (and there's no reason you should), simply let folks know at the first email that you are willing to describe the equipment but will not offer advice or guidance. Don't blame folks for asking, just about everyone wants as much as they can get for free ;-)
cpdunn99's avatar
cpdunn99
639 posts
 
One reason some people I know invoke is that they are not so much afraid of tubes as confused by differing opinions as to which tubes are "best." I've seen a tube aficionados argue ad nauseum about which tubes (NOS vs. this brand vs. that brand) are best for such-and-such a piece of equipment. It's enought to give a novice a splitting headache.
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
I'm one of those that you talk about. Although I've never tire kicked a tube amp, I have thought about trying one occasionally. I've owned tube preamps, phono stges and cd players with no problems or complaints. However, tube amps do take tube problems up a notch, IMHO. I've been in this hobby over 25 years, and I'm afraid to try one, there, I said it. I've heard of the 'problems', and they do seem to be more likely to occur in a tube amp than a SS amp. Power tubes tend to cost more to replace than line stage tubes, and from what I've read over the years, are more likely to cause 'flame-outs'. Possibly even taking out equipment down stream, such as a speaker driver. Some, like myself, are streched as thin as we can finacially to get the best that we can, but cannot afford any kind of reliability issues. I buy everything used, most from Agon. If a tube flames out and takes out a driver, it could take months for me to afford to get my system up and running again, finacially. I don't have a second system, or spare parts (preamps, amps, etc) laying around. Now maybe I'm wrong and I should downgrade from BAT, Classe, and Threshold to Rotel and NAD so I can have money to afford second systems and spare parts, but that's my choice. To squeeze every last penny into one system. Reliability becomes much more important in a situation like this though.

Regards,
John
audiobugged
528 posts
 
TUBES GET HOT = COULD GET BURNED? OUCH
unsound
7,329 posts
 
Wow, what a great forum. Everyone seems to be sincerely in touch with their feelings and yet so civilized. Is this really another Audiogon tube/solid state issue? Very refreshing. Well done ladies and gentlemen.
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