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Replacement Amp For Audio Research Classic 60

Very pleased with my System which is Turntable based and consists of the following;

Audio Research Classic 60 Tube Amp.

Audio Research LS5 MKIII Pre-Amp.

Herron VTPH-2A Phono Stage.

ProAc Response 2.5 Speakers.

I have owned the ARC Classic 60 Tube Amp since New it has been that long. Scott Frankland formerly of MFA has changed all of the important Caps.

Fearful due to Age that I need to research a Replacement Amp in either Solid State or Tube form but here is the catch; It needs to fit in a Rack so the Dimensions should be 19" Wide Max X 8" (Give or take High) X 16" Deep.

ARC LS5 MKIII has Balanced Outputs but I can go to Single Ended since there is a Switch on the MK III for Balanced or SE. I am running it SE at present to the ARC Classic 60.

My musical tastes are Classic Rock and Folk with some Classical.

In my research the one that has caught my eye is the Pass XA25 but I am truly not sure how this would be with the ProAc’s. I would hate to buy this Blind. I also liked the Luxman 509X very much but I really do not need an Integrated. These two Models are mentioned to give an idea of Price Range also.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

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djohn
djohn OP
64 posts
 

@sturgus

You have hit the nail on the head since after much research this is what I have decided to do;

1) Classic 60 is in Scott Frankland’s Shop at present. Years ago he was unable to source the 4 Filter Caps and these can be seen if you look at Images on the net (In the middle of the Amp with Red Plastic Caps). This was a concern for me due to the age rightfully or wrongly. Scott has recently rebuilt an ARC M-300 and the Filter Caps that he changed in that Amp will fit in the Classic 60. He is also going to change out the 6 Infini Caps that he installed previously to V-Caps Copper Foil types. A full Spa treatment essentially.

2) I agree with the other posters that an ARC Reference 75SE will be the replacement if it comes to me replacing this Amp after this work. Keeping my eye out for a NM One Owner unit at present.

I really appreciated all suggestions to my question.

fuzzyj
3 posts
 
@djohn  - Just curious, did you end up going with a different amp? How does it compare to this Classic 60?

daveyf's avatar
daveyf
2,880 posts
 
The OP is correct, the D115 Mk 2 is a nightmare to bias. I used to own, and love, a D70Mk2...which is what I think the Classic 60 is based on, the D70mk2 is a stupendous sounding amp, BUT the biasing scheme was best left to a tech and really could be considered as criminal! Same goes for the D115...and I'm sure it sounds just as great!
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