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Sending a 110 lb amp to the manufacturer for cleaning/calibration. Good idea? How to ship?

Hi All,

So I reached out to Simaudio as my amp (Simaudio Moon Titan HT200 5 channel) is getting a bit long in the tooth. It performs truly flawlessly and is just beautiful and barely even gets warm after running all day long. I was just more curious than anything about lifespan, etc. Simaudio replied right away. They said all the units they'd manufactured since 2001 are still "active". However they did recommend sending it to them (if I could be without it for a few weeks) for "cleaning and calibration".  

Couple of things, I can't even go 1 day without this unit. But beyond that just the thought of packing this thing up and shipping literally makes me cringe. I'd certainly pay extra if there was some way to avoid UPS/FedEx or any other means like that. Any recommendations and have any of you ever done something like this?

Would appreciate any advice. Thanks all in advance...
kingbr
dletch2
455 posts
 
Do you have any woodworking skills? I am not sure I would waste time on cardboard or just whip up a box with 2x4 and plywood, though with the price of wood these days, that may cost more than the amp.

https://www.packagingsupplies.com/collections/wood-shipping-crates
https://www.uline.com/BL_427/Standard-Wood-Crates


Don’t waste your time with regular packing foam or anything like that. Get expanding foam bags. They will conform exactly to the amp and box. Big amp like that, you will need 4 or 6 bags: https://www.amazon.com/EcoBox-Inches-Instapak-Temperature-2032-1/dp/B00KAFU2SK/ref=sr_1_15?dchild=1&...


Is it >4 hours each way? That is 16 hours total. 1000 miles. There is a very real cost for your vehicle usage, probably more than shipping.
kingbr OP
347 posts
 
thanks @arcticdeth great advice and that is exactly my thinking. Making it into a nice day trip/adventure with the wife to include breakfast and stops along the way. And thank you for the kind words on the amp. She really is a beauty which is why I never gave up looking to get my hands on her for something I could afford for the last 20 years:)

Sim responded and said I could do it but I need to declare it (not really sure what this entails but that can't be too painful). They also needed some more info asking if I had the original carton and asked for the serial number. Sent my reply last night and now waiting for next steps. 


hobo1452's avatar
hobo1452
85 posts
 
@oldhvymec Had the best advice. At that weight you are pretty much stuck using a trucking company. I would definitely figure out how to get everything back in the original packaging. If the manufacturer trusted it, then it's the best way to go. I would contact Simaudio for detailed instructions on how the get it back in the OEM box, and also see if they have a specific freight hauler that they use and trust  to return repair units. Be advised that trucking companies operate on a completely different time schedule than product movers like FedEx and UPS. They don't like to move a trailer to a specific destination until it is as full as they can get it, which tends to slow things down a bit.
co93
61 posts
 
What is there to calibrate in a SS amp?
arcticdeth's avatar
arcticdeth
1,572 posts
 
Many amps, both stereo and mono, need manual adjustment of the bias.
    
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