Audio Research VS110, VS115?

The VS110 may sound good too, but the VT100 has more of everything. More detail, more tigher focused bass, deeper bass, more midrange bloom,more subtal nuances to notes, more quite space between the actual music notes etc, more soundstage. It takes me quite a while to really notice these things. I need to listen to allot of recordings to really hear and notice. It takes a while to really get to know the sonic signature of gear. I need to live with it for a while and try different speakers, cables etc.

Adrian, I currently own a D70 Mk2 and your memory of your old amp is accurate.
In fact, with current gear this amp is IMHO still very close to SOTA. I have actually AB'ed the D70 ( Ok I did roll in some NOS tubes) against a VT 100Mk3 and our group all preferred the D70 that night! The VT has more power and can drive the speakers a little easier in the bottom end, BUT that is were the superiority ends... The D70 Mk2 has one of the best midrange reproduction and ability to portray air and space of any amp that we have had in my system, easily outpacing the VT 100Mk3 that night!!
In fact one of my 'phile friends is selling his VT 100Mk2 to replace it with a D70 Mk2.
Amazingly, another 'phile friend who owns the Ref110,and who raves about that amp, likes the D70 Mk2 enough that he is planning on using one as a swap out with his Ref 110 on certain music!
So, since you can acquire a D70Mk2 at a give away price right now, you might want to re-acquaint yourself with an old friend.

Many kind thanks to my fellow audiophiles on Audiogon and your very helpful submissions!(6550C, Bjesien, and Daveyf)

Hi,

Once again, thank you for all the great insight you provided!

If I were to once again, purchase a D70, how difficult is it, not to mention risky, to bias this amplifier.

You see, the D70MKII I bought years ago, from a friend, had the bias performed on it just prior to me aquiring it. The friend I purchased it from told me as much. He also stated that with average use it would not need to be biased again for quite a while as the tubes were fairly new.

Long story short, I regrettably ended up selling the amp before it needed this sort of attention. This aspect of it I no doubt, found "somewhat intimidating", to say the least. This, in a large way, was probably responsible for its sale.

Please respond,

Many thanks,

Adrian

Adrian, That's a very good question about the biasing of the D70..
Frankly, this is perhaps the only real drawback to the amp. The procedure is NOT for the faint of heart..:0(
I just re-tubed my D70 with rolled in tubes and there was NO way I was going to do the biasing myself. According to the ARC manual it is a procedure that any 'phile can do....BS!! Who ever wrote and thought that at ARC back then,must have been smoking something!! Nonetheless, once my tech had the amp biased, it hasn't wavered since and the sound is to die for. Luckily, i have a couple of very good tech's near me; if that isn't the case for you, then perhaps an auto-biasing ARC amp would be more appropriate. (Although, I think that the sound of these is inferior)