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BEL 1001 amp...does it deserve the hype?

i read periodically about this amp (usually in The Absolute Sound) and the reviewer practically soils himself/herself about the near if not "absolute" perfection of this amplifier. yet i've never seen one, never known somebody who has owned one of the versions, never known a dealer that has carried the product...what gives? anyone care to comment from personal experience?

gregg
greggtrgi
bobheinatz
737 posts
 
I owned one for about 12 years. It performed perfectly that whole time and the sound was fantastic. I have owned many highly rated SS & tube amps since and wish I had kept the BEL. It was that good.
devikamahesh
1 posts
 
I have one for sale. Had it for twenty years. Still perfect. Hearing loss now.
Anyone interested?
mem9
1 posts
 
Just thought I would be crazy and ask, do you still have it?
nedhoey
14 posts
 

Just came across this thread. I bought my 1001 mk II new back '92 or so. I used it on and off with other amps coming and going. In 2004 I made it the permanent amp for my living room system. Since it's a solid state amp it also does my TV-A/V sound. I have SET tube systems in other parts of the house and it does make sense to use vintage rare triodes for daily A/V work.
At that time, the power switch became noisy and since replacing it was a little problematic, BEL had closed, and this was minor, I simply left it on all the time. I don't flip that bad power switch. It's been on except for power outages since 2004. Sounds the same as ever, never the slightest problem or sign of one. Many, many thousands of hours of use. An excellent match with the Proac Response D 2 speakers that have been connected to it since 2010.

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