fljohn77 Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 Saw these puppies for sale on eBay and so very tempted to give it a try. Saw a lot of good review on these and these amps are one of their benchmark products that put the Krell name on the map. My only concern is, these amps were manufactured in the early 80's, how's the wear and tear on them after 30years? And do they worth $3000 to spend on? Would really appreciate it if anyone want to share their 2 cents .
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 Saw these puppies for sale on eBay and so very tempted to give it a try. Saw a lot of good review on these and these amps are one of their benchmark products that put the Krell name on the map. My only concern is, these amps were manufactured in the early 80's, how's the wear and tear on them after 30years? And do they worth $3000 to spend on? Would really appreciate it if anyone want to share their 2 cents . I heard a pair driving a pair of Duntech Soveriegns at Duntech headquarters in Adelaide about 25 years ago. Excellent sound quality. Outside the ME1400/1500, the big Krell monos were the only amps that could kick the Duntechs along very nicely. Krell used first rate components back then, so a long life should be expected.
Paul Skillicorn Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 Saw these puppies for sale on eBay and so very tempted to give it a try. Saw a lot of good review on these and these amps are one of their benchmark products that put the Krell name on the map. My only concern is, these amps were manufactured in the early 80's, how's the wear and tear on them after 30years? And do they worth $3000 to spend on? Would really appreciate it if anyone want to share their 2 cents . The continuous power draw on those puppies would be enormous !
TheThingy Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 There were my first ever Krells and they were lovely! I had them driving Apogee Scintillas, they were unburstable. I think I paid about £4k/$6k for mine back then (1999). They had pretty noisy fans in them, which could be an issue for you. Also - they would cost a fortune to service if the capacitors have dried out, as they were enormous and possibly quite rare or difficult to replace. Very nice amps indeed, not so sure I would buy them now, even at $3k though - they generate a lot of heat. Regards
analog brother Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 how many years do amps like these go for before having to be re-capped?
TheThingy Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 Probably more likely to depend on how hard the amp has been driven over its lifespan, rather than a specific period? The point is that the older Krells can be costly to service so just tread carefully so you don't end up with a 'boat anchor'.
fljohn77 Posted January 7, 2013 Author Posted January 7, 2013 Cheers for the input guys, looks like I might gave them a pass then. 30yrs is a pretty worrying point where most of the components are in dire need to be replaced, and not to mention what it will do to the original sonic characters of the amps .
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 Cheers for the input guys, looks like I might gave them a pass then. 30yrs is a pretty worrying point where most of the components are in dire need to be replaced, and not to mention what it will do to the original sonic characters of the amps . 30 years is a walk in the park for a well-built, well treated amp. The big caps should still be OK and the smaller caps are not too expensive to replace. Everything else is pretty much bullet-proof. 1
Sub Sonic Posted January 7, 2013 Posted January 7, 2013 The seller's feedback is 96.7%, quite low for a big purchase. Regards, SS
fljohn77 Posted January 10, 2013 Author Posted January 10, 2013 Lolz, $500-$1000 would be an ok figure to take one of those outback adventure but for $2500, I'd be expecting a bit of 4star resort by the beach kindda experience .
Audionutz Posted January 10, 2013 Posted January 10, 2013 FWIW I've dealt with the seller in the past. Our transactions were honorable with no issues whatsoever. Nice guy too and I know he's babied these amps since buying them. Cheers 'nutz
djb Posted January 10, 2013 Posted January 10, 2013 Thoughts generic 1 total risk avoidance = total inaction 2 from time to time even misers like me have to invest big money in a key component ( for me it was Tannoy turnberry's dual concentrics) 3 would this purchase lift the SQ considerably and allow other components to 'shine'? 4 is the price good based on condition and original RRPrice ? 5 are you only person financially stretched by purchase? Will kids have shoes for school in Feb?
Toma Audio Posted January 10, 2013 Posted January 10, 2013 Good morning all, One of local's here in Tweed has an original KSA50 (the first one) internally it is very good the only thig I have ever had to do for him was a couple of very minor services. IMO the early Krells are built to last a lifetime. Another client in Brisbane bought a pair of Mono's from ebay(can't remember which ones) and I looked over them for him, same thing inside, no signs of heat stress or swelling caps etc. I have never sold any of them but I know that if these two oldies are anything to go by they should last you a lifetime (well depending on your age now that is). 3
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