Thanks for the kind comments, Gpgr ...
I now have 150 hours on the Ref-75. My initial impressions of the amp were typical of every piece of ARC REF gear I've had ... An improvement over the equipment it replaced, but still in need of a lot of improvment. Its to be expected as the caps need a total of 500 hours to comlpletly break in, with the amp starting to come into its own at around 250 hours. At 50 hours, the midrange clarity was something I've never heard in my system ... amazing. At 75 hours, ditto for the highs. At 150 hours, the bass is still the weakest point, but natual sounding, non the less. My trusted source at ARC tells me that I haven't heard the amp until 250 hours, at which time, I will be hearing the best bass from any tube amp that he's heard, except for maybe the Ref-250s. So, at 150 hours, what am I hearing? An entirely new record collection. Old favorites have new life. Mono jazz fills the room. If you know Bruebeck's "Jazz in the USA." Desmond's sax comes alive like never before. On orchestral recordings, the soundstage is huge, and each instrument is articulated in a realistic way. Trios and quartets are in the room. Both female and male vocals have such purity to suspend disbelief. This is the very best midrange I've ever heard from an amp ... and this amp transends tubes and solid state. The sound is neither. It is the best of tubes and the best of solid state. One word to describe it best would be "grainless." Another word would be "purity." And one more ... "musical." And now, onward to 250 hours. Stay tuned. :>)
I now have 150 hours on the Ref-75. My initial impressions of the amp were typical of every piece of ARC REF gear I've had ... An improvement over the equipment it replaced, but still in need of a lot of improvment. Its to be expected as the caps need a total of 500 hours to comlpletly break in, with the amp starting to come into its own at around 250 hours. At 50 hours, the midrange clarity was something I've never heard in my system ... amazing. At 75 hours, ditto for the highs. At 150 hours, the bass is still the weakest point, but natual sounding, non the less. My trusted source at ARC tells me that I haven't heard the amp until 250 hours, at which time, I will be hearing the best bass from any tube amp that he's heard, except for maybe the Ref-250s. So, at 150 hours, what am I hearing? An entirely new record collection. Old favorites have new life. Mono jazz fills the room. If you know Bruebeck's "Jazz in the USA." Desmond's sax comes alive like never before. On orchestral recordings, the soundstage is huge, and each instrument is articulated in a realistic way. Trios and quartets are in the room. Both female and male vocals have such purity to suspend disbelief. This is the very best midrange I've ever heard from an amp ... and this amp transends tubes and solid state. The sound is neither. It is the best of tubes and the best of solid state. One word to describe it best would be "grainless." Another word would be "purity." And one more ... "musical." And now, onward to 250 hours. Stay tuned. :>)