2. amps-preamps
  3. 161800-92835

100 W Tube Amplifier Malfunctioned

I will not name the brand of the malfunctioned amp in question, except to say that it is a US brand and it is not a boutique shop. I bought direct from factory as there were no dealerships in my region of the world, Taiwan. As I traded in my old amps, I was given a discount and paid $5,000 for the pair. 

My system consists of a Verdier Turntable, A MFA Luminescence preamp, a Wadia 16 CDP and Eminent Technology LFT 8b speakers. The amps were brand new and worked well for 6 months. Then one of the amps malfunctioned. I sent it to a local technician, and determined that the transformer was shot. 

The malfunctioned amp was sent back  at my expense. After inspection,  I was told that the amp failed because it was operating over voltage. Our power grid delivers 110 v electricity.  And in order to be certain, the other amp which was perfectly fine was requested to be sent back for inspection. 

The solution for repair was to increase the VAC of the amp to 125 V, obviously for both amps, and the tubes will be inspected and biased accordingly. The cost for repair will be $ 850 for each amp. My questions is: Should I pay for the repairs? I was told the reason for the failure was due to the fluctuation of our local power grid. Therefore, the user is at fault. However, if it is  power grid is the problem, then why did only one amp fail? Would it not be a reasonable assumption that there are quality control issues at fault? 

Given that there are brand new amps ( six months old ), isn't paying $ 1650 for repairs unreasonable? Any insight would be appreciated. 
ledoux1238
roxy54's avatar
roxy54
7,700 posts
 
He already told you TWICE! Von Gaylord!
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,266 posts
 
@roxy54 ,    Yeh, I know it isn't but I mentioned it because it still burns me today.  5 grand for a silver door stop.  Seriously, I wonder why people go with a company that makes specialty electronics.  There are so many good name brands wityh years of experience and good customer service available to us.

raysmtb1's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
raysmtb1
792 posts
 
The fair deal is a 50/50 split on the bill. 
scrumpymanjack
2 posts
 
Hi all - first post here. Thanks for the amazing content...thanks for sharing all your knowledge!

I think it's worth stepping back for a moment to consider that if the manufacturer had gone the extra mile and repaired it either free or at cost, the OP would be singing its praises on this forum right now, drawing all of our attention to a brand that might not have been on our radars. 

How much would this free and persuasive advertising in an influential forum have cost the manufacturer? The price of a transformer. 

It seems incredible to me how short sighted some companies are. Do they not realise that we are living in an age where the consumer, through forums like this, has the power to make and break brands? 

I don't have the money to go shopping for amps in this price range, and I had never heard of this brand before today. But if tomorrow I win the lottery and decide to upgrade my system, the one thing I can be certain of is not buying anything from Von Gaylord Audio. 

Reputation is an extremely hard thing to build - but exceptionally easy to destroy.  
bob540
405 posts
 
@scrumpymanjack — precisely!   I never understood companies not even trying to build good will with customers and also getting positive word-of-mouth reviews of their customer support.  Sounds short-sighted to me too,

Im not tech savvy at all, but the fact that the amps worked fine for 6 months suggests to me that it was a problem with the one amp and not the electric power.  It sounds to me like the manufacturer is trying to push the responsibility onto the customer instead of standing behind their high-priced product and building brand credibility.  Sorry to hear of this hassle you are going through.
More to discover