does anyone know about c-j premier 5 monos?


how much used?
how long the tubs last for?
is it worth buying such an old amp?
will it sound right with my B&W 805?
will it fit in with my c-j pv 10 a pre?
amp used know is bryston 3bst.
thanks
phatal
The C-J Premier 5 was a superb amp in its day, and will still be very competitive sonically. It will be warmer tonally than some of today's comparable amplifiers, and it will not be a quick or detailed or extended in frequency response. But what you will get is a very powerful 200w amplifier with a beautiful midrange and authoritative, if somewhat warm, bass. Based on the EL34 tube, it offers some of the best qualities of that tube in terms of excellent rendition of timbre and delicate rendering of harmonic overtones and midrange detail. It will be a major improvement over your Bryston's in terms of musical and tonal accuracy on acoustic instruments.

Your C-J PV 10 will match up with it nicely; and you should have no problems driving your B&W 805 speakers.

The output tubes are used conservatively, so tube life is very good.

There is absolutely no reason not to consider this amp just because of age, if the price is right. As with any equipment nearing 20 years old there are some components that will benefit from replacing eventually (most likely some of the capacitors), but the parts quality used in this amp was very high and even after 20 years internal components are probably all still in good condition.

If you have the opportunity to have the amp checked by a competent service technician (such as Music Technology), it would be prudent to do so in order to know how well it's functioning vis-a-vis specs.
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thanks rushton.

what do you think about a price?
how do i know if its been retubed?
what questions should i ask the seller?
these amps are massive 80lb.will they need a fan to cool them?
what tipe of care do i need to know?
sorry about all the questions, but im new to tube amps.
The comments above are absolutely perfect advice.I have a friend(retired and a very serious vinyl collector)that had this amp for years,listened virtually every day(comparing old vs. new pressings)and had NO problems at all.They also sounded virtually as Rushton described them.You would love them.I know I did!