Handling Heavy Amps

I have this problem too!  For many years I owned a 55 pound Audiomat Arpege and a 51 pound Audiomat Prelude.  Both integrated tube amplifiers.  The Prelude was in my living room audio system and the Arpege in my TV system,  Both Audiomats come with three very pointed and very sharp spikes for feet.  To avoid scratching the stereo console it takes extra care  and extra  strength.   Everything was okay until my husband died two years ago.  He would do the heavy lifting.  I can’t.  I am 85 years old and weigh 108 pounds.  Fortunately, I have a brother but this can’t go on forever.  My brother is getting older too and his back can be troublesome.  I’ve just had the tubes blow on the Arpege and not two weeks later, the selector knob started exhibiting static and uneven volume.  In both cases my brother came to my rescue,

But this can’t go on,  What to do?

I had to replace the Prelude recently.  Instead of buying an integrated amplifier, I bought separates.  Luxman tube gear,  Both the preamp and the amplifier weigh just under 40 pounds and there are no pointy feet to make things worse.  I can manage 40 pounds.  At least for now.  I probably should have bought solid state so I wouldn’t have the problem of changing tubes but tubes suit my speakers so perfectly, I went for tubes again.

What happens if I can’t manage 40 pounds and my brother isn’t able to be helpful?  Darned if I know.  I guess I’ll have to hire someone.  I’m not going with Class D.ř

I might have to sell the Audiomat and replace it with separates.

I’m a competitive powerlifter (if you’ve ever been awake watching ESPN ant 2:00 am and watched meat heads carry rocks, you may have seen me) and have struggled putting some components where they belong.  So you’re not unusual.

 A lot of the issue is how awkward the weights are and how you have to support the weight forward from your center of gravity coupled with the lack of any good hand grips.  A 50lb awkward weight is worse than a well-designed 200lb.

Smart designers put in handgrips, which changes things immensely.

The other thing you can do is partially disassemble things.  Usually, most of the weight are things like heat sinks.  These are generally not hard to take off and put back.  Get a screw driver and an Allen wrench and turn 100lb of deadweight into four 25 lbs small weights.

OP, great question cause many of us struggle with this issue moving around monster amps.  Gonna get me one of those hydraulic things...

That is surprising that your dealer is willing to pass up on an expensive sale by not offering to have a couple of employees deliver the amp to your home. Have you asked? I purchased a McIntosh MC 312 clocking in at 138 lbs in its box from Magnolia (Best Buy) and they delivered it to my house and put it in my stereo room without charge because of precisely that issue. I did have to have a buddy help me unbox it and put it in -- what I hope will be -- its final resting place for the next 20 years. :) Good luck!

I'm in the same boat - I have heavy amps that I doubt my back would allow me to heft now - a 150 lb Jeff Rowland and a pair of Classe monoblocs that weigh 'only' just over 100 lbs. each. You can always hire help to do the job for you.