The black hole of component repair?


Is the repair time for components typically measured in months? I have been fortunate over the last ten years with this hobby but at the end of January I had to send an amplifier and a DVD player in for repairs. The DVD player was past warranty and had to be sent to an independent service facility. They have had the player for 6 weeks and informed me today that the manufacturer in the UK sent them the wrong part (or maybe they ordered the wrong part) and they are waiting for the correct part. Looks like another 3-4 weeks before I see the DVD player. The amplifier was under warranty so that went back to the manufacturer. The amp sat on the floor for 6 weeks. I was told today that they have looked at it and that they have located the board they need to fix it. They may be able to get it installed in a week but can not make any promises. I am guessing that it will be another 3-4 weeks before I see the amplifier. I know some of this repair time is unavoidable but weeks can quickly turn into months especially with shipping time and components sitting around for weeks before they are even looked at. I now know why there are frequently things for sale on Audiogon where the listing states something like "just back from the factory in perfect working order". I guess when you send something in for repair you might just as well go ahead and replace the item right away and then sell whatever you sent in for repair when you finally get it back.
mchd1
I had to send in my warranted Sony SACD player because it quit reading SACDs (funny enough). It took 3 days to get it back! I was shocked and elated - sorry you haven't had the same experience as me. Arthur
Magnum-Dynalab repaired my amp and returned it to me in less than 3 weeks including the shipping time both ways to Canada. The amp was under warranty. I really like this company!

I had speakers repaired at a the local shop where I purchased them due to a broken driver. They were out of warranty and the company had changed hands meaning that the identical drivers were not available. It took MANY months to get them back, even after calling them repeatedly. They sounded O.K. with the new drivers, but one of the new drivers blew on about the third day. I decided that the problem must really be in the crossover. I still have the speakers and they are not repaired. I try not to shop at this hi end store anymore.

My car stereo took 3.5 months. The Eclipse 5444 head unit (VERY recommended for the car) broke under warranty and was sent back to the company. After several calls as I was loosing my patience, I found out that they were waiting for a part. I pushed and got them to replace the old unit with a brand new one as I had waited too long for the repair.
It took me a year to get an NHT Sub Two with blown mosfets back from a local shop... I forgot about it after bugging them for several months and then only remembered when I moved. Hopefully that isn't normal...
I have owned some Audio Note pieces since 1995 and when they required service and I used Nick Gowan at Truesound (gowan@tsound.com) who sold me the stuff at retail originally. DAC required a chip; same day repair while I waited and he upgraded the tubes without asking and charged me a modest fee.

I blew up an Audio Note Conqueror (watch how you put those 300b tubes in....) and it required new caps and an power transformer (think....at least two transformers were required so maybe output). It was repaired in something like three days on demand; ie, did not wait for appointment and Nick expedited the process.

Never had a car audio unit fail.

I buy cheap DVD players so they are a disposable item. The Sony ns700 DVD player is now 5 years old with nary a hiccup.

JM Lab subwoofer solder connection failed and the sub required service. A friend who is an electrical engineer took it apart and fixed it in a matter of minutes. JM Lab would be well served to design their woofers with the amp in a vibration controlled compartment (not).