This has been an excellent topic and discussion. We’ve got both customers and PS Audio looking at this and clearing the air. A little confusion, but in the end, PS Audio takes a second look at their repair fees, and the buying public eventually gets important information that factors into buying decisions, for both new and used gear. Win-win.
4 Likes
I have a different take on this thread.
Let’s just say I find it to be a bit disingenuous on the whole (and I am not referring to any of the posts by PS audio employees).
To each his own…
No. That would lower the resale value for everyone.
It’s been previously shared people could get a deal worked out by calling in – that would change.
I agree that the popcorn guy has it out for ps audio.
For the record. I don’t think anyone should buy into something they can’t truly afford. Including the after warranty costs. You’ll pay time and materials for a third party repair. That could be thousands depending on how much time is spent.
2 Likes
I mean, at a minimum it is important for customers and potential customers to know that this is PSA’s policy so that they can use the new information in forming future purchasing decisions.
If the policy changes to become more consumer friendly (as was suggested it might) that’ll be important info also.
The way the YT vid laid it out made sense as to why he moved to Electrocompaniet for him anyway. I’ve heard that dac and wasn’t too impressed tho…
I would be he, the popcorn guy. I have owned over $6000 worth of PS Audio gear and have respect for both the gear and the company. I watch Paul’s YouTube channel on a near daily basis. Have participated in this forum for many years. I do enjoy a spirited discussion and absolutely frown upon fan boy type perspectives because they substitute frat style back slapping for basic intelligence.
I shared the original YouTube video because I thought it would make for an interesting discussion for all sides. It has clearly benefited PS Audio as they’re taking a second look at their service fees. Companies approach this differently. Decware offers a lifetime warranty to the original owner and a transferable warranty available for purchase. Others seek to make the service side a profitable enterprise. Others have it as a break even, or even at a loss. Each company must decide for themselves which is right for them, and so must each consumer.
And PS Audio became alerted to a fairly hard hitting YouTube video and have been able to address it directly. And even that controversial video was made by a fellow who owns tens of thousands of dollars worth of PS Audio gear and who thinks highly of Paul, and the gear.
No one involved is out to get PS Audio. Quite the contrary. This discussion has struck a chord within Paul McGowan and is the sort of thing any competent CEO would embrace. The last thing running a company well involves is becoming fixated on everyone telling you how great you are. It’s the ones who appropriately question that present the true support.
Now, please, pass the popcorn
3 Likes
Thanks for clarifying.
@vee I like to joke around. The 
emoji means laughing… the salacious scandal part is a joke… I live on Maui, we take nothing too seriously…
2 Likes
That was genuine appreciation.
2 Likes
forgot the emoji.
3 Likes
What does McIntosh charge for repairs?
Being a DSSr. owner for 18 months now and only once (now a second time - I’ll get to that in a minute). Back in January, I’d sent the DSSr. for a check of the I2S inputs and as I figured, no fault found. But it was worth the $30 piece of mind to ship it back to them. I had no other I2S sources nor did any of the AZAVClub folks (for them WTF is I2S ?). Everything was back up and running once I’d replaced my external I2S devices and it’s still working to this day. Until yesterday when the S/PDIF (RCA Coax) went on the fritz for the first time.
As happened to me last year (and this year back in January, when the DSSr. boots up, it does a reboot within 10s and I hear a relay click. All other inputs work like a charm (always has). A phone call to Morris today in Customer Support and my recollection while talking to him about leaving the DSSr. off and AC and all inputs unplugged may miraculously fix the boot up problem. Yes, I’ve tried earlier loads and the emegency boot file with Pike loaded on it. Problem’s still there.
Maybe I’ll get lucky in the morning and things will be back to normal again.
When my Warranty runs out in 1.5 yrs., I’m sure it will still be running fine. But if something does run a foul, just like your Car, expect to pay a fee. But due to the modular build of the DSSr., would they be willing to stock fully stuffed PCB’s for the antiquated DSSr. that the user can replace at their own risk. Or will we be forced to upgrade (not a cool option IMHO).
I’m sure as Paul mentioned, there will be options to those of us who budgetarily challenged. High End Audio is a Rich Woman’s/Man’s Sport. I don’t care what any YT reviewer says. So if you can afford the Goods, you can afford the fixes. Sorry, but having worked in electronics manufacturing and engineering, folks need to eat and a warranty is a warranty and PS Audio has NEVER let me down when I had/have an issue.
6 Likes
Well, most of the Audiophiles/phools I know (myself included) belong in this category 
2 Likes
@Baldy My Nephew just had the onboard Car Computer literally ripped out from under the hood. The Dummy knew not to leave his car out on the street in front of my Mother-In-Law’s home in Mexico City. But he did it anyways even when she told him to park it inside and lock the gate as one normally does. Replacement new from the Dealer is the equivalent of about $1500 - $2000, risky used around $500 - $1000.
1 Like
Can’t help, but ask some questions here.
- Is the quote price the final price, or it can be higher or lower? (Yes. I read that could be lower on a P10 repair above.)
- Questions on hifi gear repair ability.
a. Is 10/20 year old gear worth repairing? (take into account that other parts might be working ok, but they are old, could die too)
b. These days new gears , especially DAC, built with chips on, maybe, multi-layer PCB board. They just like computer (and behave like computer too). If chip die, how to repair it correctly? (Repair tech guy needs to take out the chip, find a new one, put it back? I guess this will take many hours just to do that…). So, the solution might just be replacing entire Board ($$$) which effectively a new gear.
c. Where can I find good 3rd party repair shop, if sent the gear back to manufacturer is out of question? And can they repair it? (e.g. can they repair DSDAC? I guess not.)
I had a 1990 Cadillac somewhere around the year 2000 that the engine would shut off randomly and then restart after a short period of time. I spent two years and roughly $4000.00 on a car that I paid $3000.00 for trying to fix the issue. After visits to several well known mechanics the last one found a corroded wire terminal in the distributor harness.
That was after the distributor, ignition module, spark plugs, spark plug wires, cap, rotor, fuel pump, fuel tank and lines, and engine computer had been changed out. Unfortunately all of those repairs required the distributor to be unplugged to set the base timing and then plugged in again for the computer to take over. That action of unplugging the distributor and plugging it back in again made the connection good for somewhere between 3 and 6 weeks before it would fail again. Talk about a nightmare on elm street!
2 Likes
From my and friends experience, I’d say the question of whether 10/20 year old audio equipment is worth repairing depends on the type of gear. Companies like DeHavilland Audio and Decware construct their equipment without circuit boards, all point to point wiring and no proprietary sealed control units. They proudly proclaim they’re old school and their gear is meant to literally last a lifetime. When a capacitor eventually goes bye-bye, no problem soldering in a new one. On the other hand, most modern audio equipment has circuit boards (often multi-layered,) the circuit boards are wave soldered, and more than a few of them have proprietary or specialized parts that are unobtanium from other sources. In the case of gear like that, I think it’s wise to expect a finite life span and you accept yearly depreciation to zero as the cost of ownership.
There are other grey areas too. Class A & A/B amps, basic pre-amp line stages, and phono stages have pretty stable technologies. Engineers aren’t reinventing the wheel every two years. Established companies like Conrad-Johnson and Audio Research can often repair older gear like that for you. Multi-channel audio gear, DACs, preamps that incorporate dacs or other subject to change technologies, etc. would be much more likely to become rapidly obsolescent.
3 Likes
If I lived on Maui…I wouldn’t even own a stereo system… 
4 Likes
@mark-d Beach by day, Village Vanguard by night 
Out of an abundance of curiosity, I called McIntosh. For all their out of warranty products, they charge $120 per hour labor + parts & shipping. There is no bench fee. You can receive an estimate first once the unit has been received and evaluated.
Having never sought out of warranty repairs in my 20 year audiophile career, I have no idea if this is reasonable or not. I’m also not sure how to compare this the PSA’s rates.
I do appreciate how clearly McIntosh stated their rates.