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Old or new gear

Greetings,

I am trying to buy my first tube amplifier. Budget is about $2500-3500. I am not very good at doing electrical work myself and do not intend to restore/repair/update the equipment myself. No time for another hobby. 

Looking to get something very reliable to use for years to come. I tend to keep my equipment for a long time, and do not upgrade things frequently. Trouble free listening is the goal. US made (or Japan or western Europe) would be really nice. Looked at Chinese models, but decided not to go that route, although there are many very good quality brands with great reviews. The top of the line Chinese units are not much cheaper than US made ones, through.

For that money, I am looking for something like quicksilver mid monos or decware MK4, brand new, both made in US, with good reviews as far as build quality and reliability goes.
.
Alternatively, there are amps here on Agon, such as CJ, Cary, VPI 299d, VTL de luxe 300,  VAC rebaissance 30/30 MK3, all used, about 10-15 years old, some in mint conditions with low hours, under or around 3K.

I am looking more for good sound and reliability than a specific amp type (pp vs SE) or output tube design.

Any advice? Again, not looking to resell but this is always a consideration as well (never know what the future holds). Main concern is quality and long term reliability.
Are there better transformers, caps, resistors etc... now than 10-15 years ago? Again, not looking to upgrade anything myself and do not have the time to spend in repair shops.

Thanks for your advice.


sophie999
czarivey
5,946 posts
 
I am trying to buy my first tube amplifier. Budget is about $2500-3500. I am not very good at doing electrical work myself and do not intend to restore/repair/update the equipment myself. No time for another hobby.
No good for tube amp. At least you need to know when to replace tubes and on some units you need to know how to bias (usually instructions are in the manuals or available to download online).

 The lowest maintenance required tube amps are Quicksilver (not done in China yet for good vibes:)) and it's the BEST starter amp period. Depending on speaker of your choice, you can choose within your budget the right one. I'm fan of M60 that can accommodate different power tubes such as KT90, 6550, KT66 etc, but there's a newer version and perhaps you've mentioned that one.... 

Spend little to no attention on type of amp operation weather it's push-pull or single-ended or sepp or SET. All you need to know is your speakers, your room and power speakers require.

twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
Have a look at Audio by Van Alstine's offerings.  He does an updated Dynaco as well as various other highly recommendable models.
sophie999 OP
29 posts
 

@czarivey  Thanks. I can use the multimeter, so biasing should be OK. I just prefer not to replace/upgrade parts requiring soldering.

Been leaning QS way. Just wanted to see if any of the old used amp here may be worthwhile for a fraction of their original price.

donvito101
278 posts
 
I have the QS mid monos. They have a built in bias led meter. They also have the option of using different types of tubes.You can't beat them for the price!
wolf_garcia
6,704 posts
 
Although Jolida is made in China (along with Primaluna, Hegel, your phone, your computer, your shirt, etc), it's finished and tested in MD USA by smart guys. Very well made and there is nothing that comes close to these things in relative value that I know of. I had a 502P (with inexpensive factory upgrades) for years and it sounded magnificent and was fun to bias (although it didn't need it generally, I just liked messing around with the meter) and roll tubes through, and I only sold it when I found a single ended tube amp I liked.
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