rzdz@fluke.UUCP (Rick Chinn) (02/22/85)
Everyone has brought up some good points re buying a stereo system
on a budget. I don't believe I saw one thing on the topic of reliability. I
firmly believe that if a given piece of equipment is'nt going to be
reliable in my application then it isn't worth my time (or $$) to own it.
Save yourself some future grief...Call the local warranty station for the
model that you intend to buy. Try to not ask the dealer's service tech,
they're caught in the middle. Find the local independent who does the
factory warranty work. Ask him/her if they see many of model xyz or
whatever. You might ask them which brands they see the most of. Now just
because they see a lot of some brand doesn't necessarily mean that the
manufacturer is making lemons. It could be because there is a hyper-active
salesman in the area, and there are simply more of these units around. On
the other hand, it could truly be a lemon.
Beware of units that use a hybrid IC for the amplifier section. If it croaks
when the unit is out-of-warranty (don't they always?), you'd better be
sitting down when the fix-it guy tells you how much it's going to cost. Some
of the larger receivers are doing this now. It's great for
manufacturing...only a few parts, not too much testing to do, etc. When
those big IC's croak, they're expensive**2.
re: headphone amplifiers
I think Old Colony sound has something. I seem to remember a circuit being
published in the Audio Amateur.
Rick Chinn
John Fluke Mfg. Co MS 232E
PO Box C9090 Everett WA 98206
{ihnp4!uw-beaver, ucbvax!lbl-csam, microsoft, allegra, ssc-vax}!fluke!rzdz
(206) 356-5232
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