How quiet is your Rogue Sphinx?

Very quit since I sent it back. I had it maybe a week and sent it back. To much noise with the volume pot which was audible through the speaker, same issues I had with Virtue M901(which I enjoyed alot more).

Big_katydid,

I submitted a follow-up to my earlier note but it hasn't posted yet, so this reply may be redundant... we'll see which actually appears first.

A minor correction to your question, my amp was one of a pair of M180 mono blocks rather than a Perseus. The hum came only from inside the amp and was not transmitted to the speakers. The only sound coming through the speakers was the usual faint hiss from the tubes. Nothing unusual there. Once the faulty transformer was replaced both mono blocks performed flawlessly for the four years I owned them.

Going back to another of your posts, I wouldn't wait for the dealer to offer an exchange, I'd either tell them to get you a new one or handle returning yours to Rogue for inspection or repair. If they balk at that I'd call Mark O'Brien directly and tell him what's going on. But all of your posts describe an amplifier that I would not keep. They describe too, at least up to now, a dealer that I would be hesitant to keep too for that matter. Home demo or not, your dealer should work with you on getting this issue resolved. They may say that the unit is working to spec, but how do they know? Or get Mark O'Brien on the phone and ask him if this is up-to-spec performance standard. I've met Mark and visited with him for about an hour at a recent audio show. He proved himself to be committed to customer service when I owned a Rogue system and that feeling was only reinforced upon visiting with him. I told him that I had moved on from my Rogue system but wanted to take the opportunity to thank him for his support when I did own his products. I firmly believe that if you tell him that you are not happy with your amp, nor happy with the dealer representing him, he'll help you. Again, I would tell your dealer what you want done and if they don't help then go around them, and also lodge a complaint with Rogue about them while you're at it.

Good luck,

John

Big_katydid,

Glad to see that Mark got back to you. If he figures your amp is operating properly according to its environment then that would be good enough for me too.

Regarding your comment about extra detail and solid state, all I can say is that I think you might be surprised at the amount of detail that a properly set up tube system could deliver.

Glad though that it seems like the concern with your amp can be put to rest!

Cheers,

John

Reynolds853.

The transformer hum is audible close up, certainly not several feet away as was yours. The balance hum is more the issue, to be honest if I tried for an exchange with the dealer they probably would oblige especially as they also felt it was a bit noisy. However I do like the amp and find my system engaging (I actually got the amp after suffering a nait 3's excessive gain in the line input for years, actually not as I was using an attenuator! I finally had enough, bought the sphinx and am now able to listen to cd).

I'll probably ask mark a few more questions after the weekend.

BTW, if the transformer hum turns out to be DC on the line, there is now the Humdinger from AVA, that does what the Humbuster does (reportedly even better). If DC on the line isn't your problem, then it won't help you. But they have a 30 day return policy