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ARC Phono Ref 2 SE - Dealer Demo Unit Worth Price?

The local ARC dealer I've purchased from many times over the years is about to move to a new location and has offered me a deal on a Phono Ref 2 SE he's had in his demo rack. He retubed the unit a while ago and the tubes now have about 1400 hours on them. Is $10K a good price for this? I've been saving for the Phono 8 which is just $2k shy of what he's asking.

For what it's worth, I'm running a VPI Classic 3 with Dynavector DV-20X2H, ARC LS-27 pre and Ayre VX-R amp into Vandersteen 5A speakers.
cosinaro
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa
4,867 posts
 
Cosinaro...

29% off from a dealer is a good deal. I worked for an ultra high end audio store for a couple of years ... and the best anyone ever got was a 30% discount ... and that was a couple of guys who were repeat customers who were turning over very expensive Goldmund equipment. You probably could have gotten one for less from a private party that was a couple of years old with no warranty left. You're better off with what you did, IMHO.
abrew19
146 posts
 
Me, for 10 g's I would buy a lower noise Pass phono stage and pocket the dollar savings. But that's just me. There's a factory refurb XP-25 for sale right now for $6800 at Reno Hi Fi web site that looks pretty good. (no connection to seller other than being a former satisfied customer).
therealist
22 posts
 
Manley Steelhead would be my dream. First I don't like 6H30 tubes. There's no way to upgrade or fine tune tonal balance and I think they lack body.

Also the Steelhead operates differently if you go to their website. I asked one of the biggest writers in analogue about this question and that's how I learned about it. And it was his suggestion.
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