2. amps-preamps
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DC Leakage and dealer issues

I was auditioning an amp from a well known Canadian designer. The amp played for 30 seconds and then blew. The designer told me that my preamp must have DC leakage and that the amp has DC protection circiuts. The Spectron Digital amp I also auditioned also kept turning off but did not blow. The other amps I auditioned Pass X-250, Rowland M-112, Plinius 102 and Sonogy Black Knight II, etc., did not have any issues with my BAT preamp. I took my BAT VK-30SE preamp to a dealer who told me he could not find the DC leakage. I wrote to BAT and they told me to measure the output with a volt meter and when I did, I did not get a reading. I returned the amp and received a second amp to audition. BTW, the manufacturer also wanted me to become a NY area dealer if I wanted to accept their offer. The second amp keeps turning off after 5-10 minutes of play, again they are telling me DC leakage. I have advised them that I do not want the amp and that I am sending it back for a full refund. The manufacturer now wants me to pay $400 repair costs for the first amp that blew up plus their customs fees. That would mean that it will cost me $830 (including my shipping and customs fees) to audition a $2200 amp. Boy am I pissed off.

What do you think I should do? I still have to ship the second amp back.

All comments welcome.

Peter
bigkidz
bigkidz OP
3,444 posts
 
Sean & Zaikesman,

Thanks for your replies. I can always count on both of you to give honest opinions even if someone does not agree with them. I emailed the same thing to the designer about why I should pay the repair and how come the second amp did not blow the fuses and cause any damages. The second amp keeps turning off after 5-10 minutes but has not blown any fuses. The problem is I sent my check and they can return a check to me in any amount they want. I have learned a big lesson here and I probably will never consider another company without checking out their customer relations, custmer polieies and will probably lean towards USA companies in the future.

Bob Crump told me to replace the tubes and that he feels I will never be able to detect a burping tube that may be on its way out. He had a similiar experience with one of his JC-1 amps and a reviewer with a BAT VK-30.

How do you tell if a tube is going bad and how much damage can happen to your system?

Where do I get the best 6H tubes for my BAT?

I will probably post a follow up to the final outcome next week. Should I spill the beans on who it is then?

Thanks

Peter
bigkidz@optonline.net
ivanj
35 posts
 
Did you have the Canadian amp set to French or English when it blew? (just kidding.)
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Peter, why not refer the manufacturer to this thread, and then see if they want to continue in their present vein? In the retail businesses I've been in, we have a saying: An unsatisfied customer will tell a hundred times more people about their experience than will a satisfied customer. If you sell somebody a great widget that works as expected or even better, they might tell one person; if you sell them a bad widget, and particularly if you then give them a run-around about it, they will tell a hundred. In the case of the internet, raise that to a thousand. If the manufacturer wishes to remain anonymous in this case, let them make you a satisfied customer as they should.
sean
6,231 posts
 
Peter: It sounds as if the BAT VK-30 can be a handful to own and operate in terms of finding suitable candidates to operate with. I have run across similar products in my line of work. The bottom line in most of those cases is that the owner ends up selling it in order to find a product that is both more versatile and less volatile in terms of the components connected to it. While i still stand by my comments that the original amp had problems, it is becoming more obvious that other brands also "dislike" or "have problems with" that specific preamp.

I wonder if this could be a specific problem unique to circuits using the BAT 6H30 "super-tube" ??? Sean
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smotyka
62 posts
 
Peter,

I just happened to see this thread and it reminds me of the same problem that I had with a BAT P5 / BAT VK30se.

I purchased a BAT P5 Phono and connected it to a BAT VK30SE.

This in turn was connected to an ARC VT130se.

When I tried to use my system, my new KT88 tubes started flashing and 3 of them were destroyed. The P5 was the problem.

This started in May and I finally got my P5 back last week. This story is too long to post all of it here.

The point I'm making here is that the P5 had a high frequency oscillation that passed through the 30se and caused all sorts of damage to my amps power tubes.

Also, BAT put on a fix on the P5 to filter DC leakage.

Steve
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