It will be a cold day in hell before I buy another piece of audio gear made
anywhere in Europe. About 18 months ago, I replaced a failing Meridian
(British) D/A converter and ailing Meridian (British again) CD transport with a
do-everything Philips (Dutch) 1000 SACD/DVD player. This thing originally sold
for $2000. I hope no one bought one at that price. I paid $999 at
model-change time. The POS gradually died. First, it wouldn't do this, then
it wouldn't do that, and soon it wouldn't do a ****ing thing. In my opinion, a
slow and lingering death is just what it deserved.
There's a Philips repair center not far from me. Since the thing is out of
worthless warranty now, I may drive by and either see if they can fix it for a
reasonable amount or maybe just throw the thing through their window.
In the last five years, I have had three European-made pieces of audio gear
crap out, each one slowly, a bit at a time, never with the decency to go all of
a sudden, with a bang and a puff of smoke, like they should. Except for an
easily replaced fuse or tube on a few occasions, I have never had a piece of
American-made audio gear fail, not ever, not in 40 years, and only one made in
Japan, and that was my fault, but that's another story. No more from "over
there," not ever!
I have replaced the Philips with a $600 Denon (Japanese) which is twice as good
as the Philips ever was. Now, except for the Denon, a Rega (British) RB-300
tonearm on my AR ES-1 turntable, and a Tandberg (Norwegian) FM tuner, both my
audio set-ups are all American, if not by manufacture, at least by name and,
hopefully, design: Acoustic Research, Adcom, Ampex, Conrad-Johnson, Dyna,
McCormack, P.S. Audio, Vandersteen, V.P.I., et al.
I should have known better anyhow by virtue of experience. I've owned an MG
and a Jaguar, and I'm putting an old TR-6 back together for the second time.
Cars, I can fix. Dead audio gear goes to the landfill. Why I continue to
punish myself with old British sports cars, I'll never know. It's kind of like
this OM thing, I suppose. I love them both, maybe less for what they are than
for what they are not.
Still, I can't help but wonder, is there some lack of understanding of the
fundamental principles of electricity over there? Do American electrons commit
unnatural acts on European devices?
Walt
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