# Richer Sounds Supercare



## mat

A couple of days ago I went to Richer Sounds in Preston to pick up my Arcam amp, which was being fixed under the supercare warranty. Now, having unpacked it, it looks like it has been dropped down a flight of concrete stairs







The case is all caved in, especially where the binding posts are on the back and theres a big gouge/dent on the side of the case.














Supercare my arse!









I've bent the case back into shape as best I can and plugged it in.... and surprisingly, it works. I was planning on selling it on ebay, I don't think its worth it now though.

If I try to take it back I bet they'll only say that as long as it works theres nothing they can do. Maybe I'll give them a call in the morning anyway.

Ah well, at least its only my spare amp and I never did really like it. It sounds dull and boring next to my Naim.

Stan, I think I read that you have a QED A240, superb sweet little amps







I've got the lower powered A230, which my sister is borrowing at the moment. I want it back but its in serious need of a recap, one of the big 'uns had started to leak last time I looked (and that was 4 or 5 years ago!







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## MIKE

mat said:


> I want it back but its in serious need of a recap, one of the big 'uns had started to leak last time I looked (and that was 4 or 5 years ago!
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Hi Mat,

Any chance of a translation into to the Queens English









MiKE


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## mat

> Hi Mat,
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> Any chance of a translation into to the Queens English
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> MiKE
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Sorry Mike. The capacitors (caps) in amplifiers only last about 10-15 years at most, kinda like the ones in kinetic watches I guess. My QED was made in 1983 and hasn't had its capacitors replaced (recapped). Some people even recommend that they're replaced every 8 years or so.

Its not just amps though, worn out capacitors in the power supplies of old computers can kill them, especially if they haven't been used in a while.


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## MIKE

mat said:


> Hi Mat,
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> Sorry Mike. The capacitors (caps) in amplifiers only last about 10-15 years at most, kinda like the ones in kinetic watches I guess. My QED was made in 1983 and hasn't had its capacitors replaced (recapped). Some people even recommend that they're replaced every 8 years or so.
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Click to expand...

Thanks Mat, why didn't you say so first time


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## Mrcrowley

Sorry- i'd hammer the b'starrds into the floor. You surely have a case there.


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## Stan

Hi Mat,

I'd certainly complain, to the shop and to trading standards if they won't help.

Yes, I do have a QED A240CD. And no I haven't looked inside to see if there is any leakage from the capacitors, I thought it was only five years since 1984.









Time flies when you're not looking.









Good luck getting the Arcam sorted.


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## mat

Stan said:


> Hi Mat,
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> I'd certainly complain, to the shop and to trading standards if they won't help.
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> Yes, I do have a QED A240CD. And no I haven't looked inside to see if there is any leakage from the capacitors, I thought it was only five years since 1984.
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> Good luck getting the Arcam sorted.
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Cheers. What do you think I should ask them to do about it? Isn't it pushing my luck to ask for a brand new one? I don't think theres much they can do to make this one look much better









Its probably not worth going all the way back to Preston on the train just for a Â£9.99 refund of the Supercare.

I was in Macdonalds the other day (I don't usually go in there, honest!) and I got a MacFlurry. Right at the bottom of it were little bits of mangled, hard plastic. I'm sure I must have swallowed a bit... I took it to the counter and they asked what I wanted them to do about it. I didn't know what to say, so I just told them not to sell anymore of it before they'd checked it out. Maybe I should have asked for some freebies.... On second thoughts, maybe not!


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## rhaythorne

I really liked the QED range. I used to have a T231 tuner before some sod nicked it







A really strange tuner; no tuning knob, just six presets and a bunch of yellow LED's on the front panel









I need to buy a new budget amp for my PC sound set up as my NAD3020 is now getting a bit too long in the tooth. Any recommendations? I was thinking of a C320BEE. Doesn't have to be NAD though.


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## Stan

mat said:


> Stan said:
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> Hi Mat,
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> I'd certainly complain, to the shop and to trading standards if they won't help.
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> Yes, I do have a QED A240CD. And no I haven't looked inside to see if there is any leakage from the capacitors, I thought it was only five years since 1984.
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> Good luck getting the Arcam sorted.
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> Cheers. What do you think I should ask them to do about it? Isn't it pushing my luck to ask for a brand new one? I don't think theres much they can do to make this one look much better
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> Its probably not worth going all the way back to Preston on the train just for a Â£9.99 refund of the Supercare.
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> I was in Macdonalds the other day (I don't usually go in there, honest!) and I got a MacFlurry. Right at the bottom of it were little bits of mangled, hard plastic. I'm sure I must have swallowed a bit... I took it to the counter and they asked what I wanted them to do about it. I didn't know what to say, so I just told them not to sell anymore of it before they'd checked it out. Maybe I should have asked for some freebies.... On second thoughts, maybe not!
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Click to expand...

If you didn't unpack it in the store they have a get out.









How much did you pay for the amp? Is it worth the cost of traveling to the store a couple of times?

I would 'phone them and complain, if they refuse to inspect it call their customer liason department at HQ. Moan like a blouse but don't shout or become abusive.

Threaten to go to the HiFi press but only as a last resort.

I doubt that refunding the cost of the warranty would hold up in court, if you paid for it it becomes a contract.

It all depends on how much they value their company image.


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## Stan

Forgot to add:-

Shop locally, even if it costs a bit more. The lowest price can cost more than the highest if the meat hits the fan.

Trust an old shop assistant.


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## mat

rhaythorne said:


> I really liked the QED range. I used to have a T231 tuner before some sod nicked it
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> A really strange tuner; no tuning knob, just six presets and a bunch of yellow LED's on the front panel
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> I need to buy a new budget amp for my PC sound set up as my NAD3020 is now getting a bit too long in the tooth. Any recommendations? I was thinking of a C320BEE. Doesn't have to be NAD though.
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Thats a classic.. Want to swap it for a cosmetically challenged Arcam?









My only advice would be not to trust anything that the HiFi mags say. They'll have you believe that amps have been getting significantly better every few months for the last 20 years!







I've owned a lot of amps in the past, and if theres any correlation of age and sound quality at all, its usually the old ones that sound better to me. Speakers on the other hand seem to have improved quite a lot, IMHO







Generally speaking of course.

I've just read the small print of the receipt they gave me when they took the amp. It says:

"...we cannot accept responsibility for any scratches, etc. that may occur"


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## mach 0.0013137

Transisters







the path to true musical enjoyment is valves.









My Rogers Cadet II stereo power amp was made in 1963 and is still going well









OK it hums a bit sometimes but I just have to either gently push one of the valves if its one sort of hum or again gently lift and then lower thr front of the amp to sort it









Alright its only 6 watts per channel but through 90db Snell-K`s who needs more
















As for the sound
























Best bit is they don`t cost much


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## rhaythorne

Bad luck with the Arcam Mat







I think I would follow Stan's suggestion and take it one step further by writing a letter to their HQ including a photograph of the damage. I hope you get some compensation at least!








I know what you mean about the Hi-Fi mags. It always used to make me laugh how their monthly reviews would contain loads of hyperbole about some product or other being the best they'd ever heard, how it blew away all the competition and you couldn't possibly consider any other product. My main hi-fi must be 20 years old now. It sounded good then and it sounds just as good now


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## Roger

I had a similar experience with Dixons so-called service.

My daughters portable TV stuck in standby...."engineer" visited, dismantled TV on lounge floor.....stared at it a while, produced a pair of cutters and snipped out a 1/8 watt 47k resistor and said "there you are thats the faulty bit".....so I sez "whats up with it?".............."burnt out mate" sez he............"what should it be ?" sez I...............47k sez he......

I went into my workshop, brought out my digital AVO meter and measured the resistor in from of him....sez I..." 46.85K ....you dont know a burnt resistor from your asshole"............he was flabergasted when I told him never to try and bull**** someone with an electronics background.

Two days later same guy delivers brand new replacement ( very sheepishly!"

Roger


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## Nalu

mat, I'd have to go complain just to be able to let it go. Otherwise, I'd sit and stew - not good for the old cardio-vascular system. What do you expect them to do? Better next time, that's what! The worst that can happen is you have to live with a functioning, cosmetically-challenged amp.

I'll second Stan's comment on shopping locally.

While I have a collection of SS and valve amps of various ages, there _is_ a better mousetrap in amplification (at least by the reports of my mates, whose ears I trust). That is the new digital amps. Not the "Digital Ready", bogusly-labelled amps of the last 20 years, but digital amps as produced by B&O, Bel Canto, Rowland, PS Audio, etc. They promise improved dynamics, drive capability and more efficient power use. You no longer need a Class A arc-welder to drive complex speaker loads.


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## mach 0.0013137

Mat do Richer sounds still have those cutomer satisfaction questionairs? Julian Richer made a big deal about how he read them and good customer service was important to him. If all else fails I`m sure one of the HiF imags possibly "What Hi Fi" used to have a section on customer compliants which they would take up with the retailers







Good luck and I agree with the guys its worth a go anyway.

Potz I`ve been using a pair of original Quad Electrostatics in my main system for years powered by a Croft Series VII ( I think







) valve power amp via a Concordant Exhilarant valve Preamp, EAR 834P Phono amp with a Thorens TD 124, SME 309 and Kiseki Blue Silver Spot. I have had Quad II`s and 33/303`s in the past love `em


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## rhaythorne

Mmmmmmm Quad









I use a Quad 34/306 pre/power combo; AR Legend turntable with Linn LV Plus tonearm and K5 cartridge; Meridian 206 CD Player; original Tannoy M20 Gold loudspeakers and fairly standard Japanese stuff for pretty much everything else


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## mach 0.0013137

I used to have a Quad 44 pre-amp, what an amazing design, so many ways to connect to other equipment.

I had it driving pairs of Quad II`s, Beam Echo DL7`s, Leak TL12+`s & TL25+`s each with different input sensitivities all at the same time, admittedly with a the help of a Holt Passive and Butler II splitter









I remember seeing a Quad brochure in which they actually invited people to open up the amp and see the inside







doing such a thing with any other product would imediatley invalidate the guarantee







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The other great thing about it was its versatility, you could just pull out the individual circuit boards and change them to customise the amp eg so all the inputs were for record decks







a very cool machine IMO


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