New Fella - 1st Amp

[67ih4x4x4]

Welcome. Good luck and be careful, the used market can be a minefield.

[vigotone]

Thank you! Actually, along those lines, I have a quick question for anyone out there that can offer some advice...

I have the opportunity to purchase a used Sunfire Cinema Grand amp in great condition from a trusted source (not cheap, but a fair price). However at one point in this amp's lifetime, one of the capacitors began smoking. The owner replaced both caps himself, and now it is apparently working fine.

I'm only posting this to the board because I don't know the first thing about the inner-workings of amplifiers, and as I said earlier, this will be my first dedicated amp. Could it actually be a good thing that the capacitors were replaced in that caps are bound to fail on 10 year-old gear sooner or later and this more or less makes it "good as new"? Or could this be an indication of a greater problem and I would be better off finding a unit that has never had such an issue?

I want to reiterate that the seller is extremely sincere and I have no doubts about his integrity. He has offered a 30-day guarantee, less the cost of shipping (which would still mean I'm out over $100 if it fails), however I'm worried about the chances of this happening just outside of that 30-day period, as well as safety given that this unit had begun smoking once before from it's blown capacitor (I have two little ones, so of course safety is of the utmost importance).

Thanks in advance,

Lee

[OconeeOrange]

All used amps are used.
Many here will tell you not to buy.
I say if the guy is as good as you claim and the price is right, good deal.

[vigotone]

Thanks, OO. But do new capacitors actually bode well for a used amp, or are they an indicator of bad things to come?

[TNRabbit]

More likely it's a good thing than a bad thing.

[Don]

Thank you! Actually, along those lines, I have a quick question for anyone out there that can offer some advice...

I have the opportunity to purchase a used Sunfire Cinema Grand amp in great condition from a trusted source (not cheap, but a fair price). However at one point in this amp's lifetime, one of the capacitors began smoking. The owner replaced both caps himself, and now it is apparently working fine.

I'm only posting this to the board because I don't know the first thing about the inner-workings of amplifiers, and as I said earlier, this will be my first dedicated amp. Could it actually be a good thing that the capacitors were replaced in that caps are bound to fail on 10 year-old gear sooner or later and this more or less makes it "good as new"? Or could this be an indication of a greater problem and I would be better off finding a unit that has never had such an issue?

I want to reiterate that the seller is extremely sincere and I have no doubts about his integrity. He has offered a 30-day guarantee, less the cost of shipping (which would still mean I'm out over $100 if it fails), however I'm worried about the chances of this happening just outside of that 30-day period, as well as safety given that this unit had begun smoking once before from it's blown capacitor (I have two little ones, so of course safety is of the utmost importance).

Thanks in advance,

Lee

Lee,

If your trusted source is Brian, I would not hesitate. He is a stand up guy and is to be trusted. He is a well respected member on this forum.

By the way, welcome!

[vigotone]

Thanks everyone. My trusted source is indeed Brian, I just wanted to pose the question about capacitors as more of a hypothetical, since I know nothing about amp "innards".

I went ahead and purchased the CG Sig Architect's Choice Series II from Brian, and I hope he does not mind me stating publicly that I have never had an individual go so far to put a buyer at ease. Not only has he sent me several pics of the unit with each scratch circled (and there are barely any), but he has generously offered a 30-day full warranty and a 60-day 50% warranty at Bob's Repair Shop. And all this for an amp he doesn't really want to sell in the first place!

All in all, this is a great experience for both my first purchase of used gear, my first dedicated amplifier, and my first foray into the world of Bob Carver. I can't thank all of you enough for your support. I'll report back when I have the unit in hand and set up.

Now there's the little matter of my Pre/Pro. Brian seems to think my Denon AVR-4308ci won't cut it as a Pre/Pro. But Sunfire's most recent Pre/Pro (TGP-401) has gotten mixed reviews, and I don't think it does all the HDMI processing I need for my home theater. Any thoughts?

[TNRabbit]

That Denon is a very good processor. If you need HDMI I'd stick with it.

[jjptkd]

Congrats on the amp! The higher end Denons are very nice units, I'm sure you're gonna be very happy with that combo!

[helicopterpilotdoug]

Bill.

No problems on that. at work I still make contracts on a hand shake. (the purchaser gets freaked out)
I make deal, I stick to a deal, a few times I have lost out but thats the way I am.

Brian

Thanks everyone. My trusted source is indeed Brian,......

I went ahead and purchased the CG Sig Architect's Choice Series II from Brian, and I hope he does not mind me stating publicly that I have never had an individual go so far to put a buyer at ease. Not only has he sent me several pics of the unit with each scratch circled (and there are barely any), but he has generously offered a 30-day full warranty and a 60-day 50% warranty at Bob's Repair Shop. And all this for an amp he doesn't really want to sell in the first place!

All in all, this is a great experience for both my first purchase of used gear, my first dedicated amplifier, and my first foray into the world of Bob Carver. I can't thank all of you enough for your support. I'll report back when I have the unit in hand and set up.

Brian That's the way it should be. I can remember when a hand shake was all that was needed. Each party would stand by the deal made, and IMHO what a wonderful world we had. Thank you for being one of the "Good Guys"!

Vigotone, Glad you were able to get the advice and help you needed from the forum. Also glad you were able to find what you needed here. I've bought several things through other forum members, and have always been very pleased. Keep us posted on your audio journey!

[vigotone]

Thanks for the well wishes! Yes, I'm going to keep the 4308 as a pre/pro for the time being, and wait for the next generation of pre-amps from Marantz or Denon or Integra before switching. The tGP-401 just won't cut it for what I need, and truthfully, I can't really get excited about a Sunfire product that Bob had little/nothing to do with. Does he have the resources to create a home theatre pre/pro independently? Or does he strictly do amplifiers these days?

[TNRabbit]

Thanks for the well wishes! Yes, I'm going to keep the 4308 as a pre/pro for the time being, and wait for the next generation of pre-amps from Marantz or Denon or Integra before switching. The tGP-401 just won't cut it for what I need, and truthfully, I can't really get excited about a Sunfire product that Bob had little/nothing to do with. Does he have the resources to create a home theatre pre/pro independently? Or does he strictly do amplifiers these days?

Bob is strictly a tube amp guy these days.

However, since he's taken over Rita's repair (doubtful he'll be doing day to day work, but I'm sure he'll stop in on a regular basis), a few options have been added to their list of repairs available.

Personally, I think Sunfire was right to stay out of the HDMI war. It was constantly being upgraded and you could always use 8-channel analog or composite digital for sound. Still can.

[vigotone]

Is there a comprehensive write-up of Bob's history, which companies he was a part of, and what went down at each place?

[vigotone]

Also, are Bob's amps strictly sold on ebay?

[OconeeOrange]

Also, are Bob's amps strictly sold on ebay?

I don't believe you mean to offend.

Some here - (me) believe Bob is the audio guy.

You seem to be a good guy,so try to see it from time to time from our side and soon --

Bob Carver is ---------------

http://I'm a Fucking Asshole.typepad.com/I'm a Fucking Asshole/20 ... today.html