Goldenear….recent experience and lesson learned

We hear spot stories here and there when people have a problem or not with products, but sadly there is not much to go on statistically regarding reliability of various products in this domain out there.  

Personally I have had very good luck over the years with few product failure issues knock on wood.  So my best advice is do your homework and take your chances where you must.  Stick with vendors that have a good reputation for service and support in general, though that in general seems to be an increasingly scarce thing these days.   Otherwise, be ready to move on when something finally reaches its end.

I always keep plenty of spares around just in case.  Can’t be going for weeks or months without my hifi.  That’s right out!

Also when it comes to reliability, also good practice to try and keep it simple. In the end, most everything we buy is replaceable eventually when the time comes.

I used to work in a store that sold mostly refurbed gear, mostly made in Japan, back in the 1970s, all the best known brands of the time.  They all had issues from time to time but the very popular Advent 300 receiver seemed to have the most, probably because they were very popular and certainly not the most reliable, which seemed to be the pattern.  Lots of refurbed Pioneer, Marantz, and Sansui gear there as well.

Regarding Goldenear specifically, they offer very good sound value out of the box, so that is a plus to factor into the equation.

Worst case is questionable value out of the box + no support/service available when needed.

Did you know the average lifespan of a modern now  Chinese-made top rated name-brand water heater is only 8-12 years?  They do not make those like they used to, thinner metal, etc.  to keep the price down of course.  Same for most household appliances.  We will see about the higher end hifi gear, which likely has a very bright future these days in regards to offering good overall TCO and value.

The good news:  I’ve had many Class D amps over the years (Bel Canto Icepower, Fosi, Hypex, GanFET) including no less than 9 currently, 4 in a single pair of active speakers (Vanatoo).  All still going strong.  The only issue  was a bad IC in a Bel CAnto ref1000m amp, the most expensive amps I have ever owned,  acquired here second hand.  Bel Canto fixed for me for a reasonable price within a few weeks.  Well done!

@dynacohum Dang! I wish I would have known. Thanks for the insight. 

Well, good luck to Paradigm. 

@mapman Well put.
Pretty amazing a lot of McIntosh gear makes it 50+ years. 

@deep_333 I bought the GE speakers as an inexpensive option for my basement home theater. With that said, I assumed they would last longer than a year and a half. My 2 channel rig is all McIntosh and Bryston.
Hoping to land the Fynes this spring!

BTW, I’ve had a few hiccups with McIntosh over the years. However, I’ve always had great luck with them troubleshooting, sending parts or simply replacing equipment. 👍🏻

I have owned 3 pairs of Golden Air speakers, the Triton Ones, The Triton Twos and presently own the Triton Reference speakers.  I never once had a problem with the built in amps of the speakers.   Perhaps the volume was a bit too much in your home theater?  Golden Ear was sold a few years ago to Audioquest and now to Pardigmn.  Changing hands twice and with the Triton Three+ disappearing from the line up a couple of years ago, it is unrealistic to expect them to have spare amps, especially since the amps were outsourced to a separate company.  They are taking care of your problem so I don’t see the need to vent.  You won’t die without the speaker for a month or whatever time it takes. You will enjoy the HT much more when you get the speaker back. Furthermore, the speakers aren’t cheap Chinese Junk, they are very well made and if used properly, will last a lifetime.