Hi All,
I've decided to sell my Mk I. Before you get really excited about the price there are some issues you should know about. First off, it plays and it sounds great! But it will sputter and make a bit of noise until it warms up fully (10-15 min), then it's nice and silent. This probably is something simple like dirty tube sockets or the like. The balance function does not work properly. I've had the trim pots cleaned in the past and it has worked but they've gone back to dirty and non-functional. I haven't needed to use this function anyway. One of the sockets has been replaced with a non-matching socket. In shipping to me many years ago, the amp sustained a bit of damage to the wood trim. A bump caused the corner joints to come apart a bit and a sliver of oak trim to come out of the back left corner (tried to get a pic - see below). I glued/clamped it all back together and braced the corners internally. The sliver missing really isn't that noticeable. Aside from this trim the amp is in good condition with only minor scratches/dings.
Now, I've gotten in touch with Roger about repairs for all this. He offers a "full bench test" where he goes over the entire amp and repairs what needs repairing. This costs $500. In addition, he can upgrade the power supply to "better than new" condition for an additional $200 ($700 inc. full bench test). If the wood base really bugs you, you can put a Mark II base on the amp. Roger also offers various other modifications to this amp. The sky's the limit!
Someone on Audiogon is currently offeing a Mark I upgraded to Mark II (the $700 option) for $1,695. You could do the same to this amp for cheaper.
I've thought long and hard about sending the amp to Roger for all this work but the amp really is overkill for my current setup. I am keeping my eyes open for some of Roger's 12 watt SET monos (wanna trade?!?!) but they seem to be quite rare on the used market.
If you have some DIY skills I'm sure you can repair all the issues yourself. Then you would have one of the best amps ever made for well under a grand. I, unfortunately, am not knowledgable enough for that.
At this price I cannot include power tubes. The amp runs 6L6, KT66, 6CA7, EL34, KT77, 6550 and KT88 tubes, maybe even KT90 - I don't know for sure. I do have two quads of Mullard reissue EL34 I can include for an additional $100. But in all honesty, you'd get a better deal by 'bidding' on Mariusz's two octets currently in the accessories section of the trading post.
What's included: Amp, tube cage, driver tubes (Sovtek 6922), input tubes (RAM low-noise 6DJ8s). No original box, no power tubes, and no manual.
$750 + shipping OBO. The amp is in the Boston area and I would welcome a local pickup.
Thanks for looking!
