Brand Longevity

Back in the 70s I put myself through college by working in several different consumer electronics service departments.

Large companies that are still very much in business will often not have the part you need to service an older model! Don't think for a minute that that is something unique to high end!!

I used to really hate seeing Aiwa cassette decks as they would gun the spare parts only 5 years after the model was made. So you might need a small plastic part that had broken, something that only cost a few cents to make and the machine was unrepairable without it. I got pretty good at finding ways to put such parts back together with heat, wire and glue...

So when I started my company I made serviceability a high priority. That was because I might be gone someday but also because if we had to fix it, it would not be a nightmare :)

These days service is a lot trickier. It actually seems to me that getting tube stuff serviced is easier than solid state. Certain semiconductors that were easy to find 10 years ago are getting tricky to find! The IC industry in particular is very whimsical about what chips stay around and what don't. Try and find the ICs for a Technics SP-10 and you will see what I mean.

It's important to me, and my system reflects that. I don't really trust some of these high end companies...they're here to day, gone tomorrow.

Taters,

Thanks for the clarification. I agree 100%. You make an excellent point.

Donjr,

Going by your posts, it looks like you didn't like the Ayre 7 integrated. I'm a big Ayre fan myself and know their products well. You should absolutely demo the 5, but I think you will find it to be similar in sound to the 7, but better. Ultimately, I don't think you will choose it. As far as the Mac gear goes, I think you should definitely listen to it. Compared to the Ayre, its not better or worse; just different. Its a bit more forgiving and musical. Another integrated you may like is a BAT 300. I don't think anyone has mentioned it so far. One thing that makes it unique is that you can choose from 3 different preamp options. When it comes to build quality and longevity, I feel that any of these 3 companies are at the very top.

Zd. I loved the Ayre but it wasn't enough power for my Harbeth C7es3's. I was amazed at the detail I was hearing compared to my Rogue Cronus Magnum. Don't get me wrong, I love my Rogue and will keep it. However, the non fatiguing and detailed sound of the Ayre caught my attention. I was able to spend close to two hours listening to the AX5 with the same speakers as I own at my dealers on Monday and I've got to say, I'm totally sold on it. It's the best integrated I've ever heard. The pre amp section is so good that they had to change their other preamps to match it. Ayre actually called my dealer while I was there. My dealer is an Ayre fanatic. All I have to do now is get money together. It might take me awhile but probably this year. I want that AX5 bad.