Bad Experience with Conrad Johnson


For many years I have admired Conrad Johnson products and waited for the right opportunity to try them out.  Fortunately, I was able to get a great deal on a mint condition ET3se preamp and MF-2275 power amp. 

Overall, I enjoyed the sound of this combo but then I started to have issues with the preamp and then the company itself.

After I spent much time with the ET3se preamp I became to feel that it was a flawed product.

When I first listened to the preamp, the background noise was very loud in both channels, even at low volume.  The preamp came with stock tubes which were EH6922 at the time.

I then tried two new pairs of 6922 tubes (JJ Tesla and Mullard) and I could still hear the background hiss in both channels.  On the Tesla tubes, I could also hear a pop in the speakers every time I adjusted the volume up and down with the remote.

Another problem I had was during the power up/warm up process.  When powering up the preamp I could hear music (not source dependent) even when the unit shows zero volume. Then if I turn the volume up then back down to zero; no music was heard.

So I called Conrad Johnson for help.  The new owner of the company, Jeff Fischel, answered the phone and proceeded to help me.  From the very beginning of the call I started to feel very uncomfortable.  He was talking to me as if I was a child, in a very condescending tone, telling me what I was doing wrong and how I should operate their products.

When I described the issues I was having, he said they no longer use 6922 tubes and only recommend NOS 7DJ8 tubes from Philips and Matsushita, which are more rugged for his preamp.  I then asked him why normal 6922 tubes do not perform well in the preamp.  He said it was because they run the heater voltage to the tubes much higher than the 6922 spec, the NOS 7DJ8 perform much better.

Jeff was right.  When I tried the Philips 7DJ8, the background hiss went away in both channels.  But the question I ask myself is what happens when all the NOS 7DJ8 tubes are gone, you have to just deal with background noise?  What kind of product design is that?  Through other research I found that this preamp just eats up tubes, even the 7DJ8.  Eventually they will also develop noise over time. 

So in summation, I think the ET3se preamp is a flawed product.  It is a high-maintenance piece that is quirky and you just have to come to terms with its issues.  I am so glad I did not pay full retail for this preamp.

Now on to the other bad experience I had with Conrad Johnson, the company.  Once I had all of these issues with the preamp, I decided to sell both the ET3se and MF2275 power amp.  I did not have the original boxes so I called Conrad Johnson to see if I could purchase replacement shipping boxes for both of them.

I had the ill-fated pleasure of speaking with their shipping clerk, Jasmine.  You will not believe what Conrad Johnson wanted to charge me for shipping empty replacement boxes:

ET3 - $55 for box, $70 for shipping ($125 total)

MF2275 - $95 for box, $70 for shipping ($165 total)

That's right folks, Conrad Johnson wanted to charge me $70 for shipping an empty box.

I was willing to pay for the boxes and offered to send them shipping labels and have UPS pick them up for me.  They did not want to work with me.

Here was the final response from Jasmine at Conrad Johnson:

"Box, packing and shipping is not negotiable. I think it's best you purchase them at FedEx as it seems to suite you best."

It is clear to me that Conrad Johnson is not the same company since Bill Conrad and Lew Johnson left.

Needless to say, I will never buy (new or used) a Conrad Johnson product again.

wkass
Post removed 

@grislybutter. Your grasp of business economics and syntax is impressive. To be precise, my reference to margin and selling referred to the boxes - which the company was offering to sell to the customer.

OP purchased 10yr old used equipment then expected the company to drop everything so they could assist him.  But the company provided a solution that may lead to better longterm performance at a lower price.  7dj8 and 6h23p are cheaper, better sounding, and last longer than 6922 variants.   This information was conveyed for free.   

Heavy Duty custom size boxes cost money and paperboard prices keep going up.  Insurance, fuel costs and shipping company wages continue to rise…  But corresponding sale prices should remain at 2019 levels….

It is easy to pack a delicate item with sufficient protection to withstand the rigors of shipping   All that is needed are careful thought and time.  
 

I have shipped heavy, glass faced McIntosh equipment to the other side of the world, using my packing materials.  I have shipped 50lb speakers half way around the world, using my packing materials.  I have shipped numerous tube amps to just about everywhere, using my packing materials.   I have experienced just a single incident of shipping damage.   Large, fragile items can take up to an hour to carefully pack, and most items take abt 30min.  I have constructed a wooden case shipping case for a McIntosh MR 71 tuner, then packed the case and made it ready for shipment in abt 45 min from start to finish.  I have less than zero woodworking or construction skills.  


The OP purchased used but wanted a new and sealed purchase experience without paying for the extra support.   
 

Sorry, but no one is entitled to money for nothin’ and chicks for free.  
 

 

Sorry, but no one is entitled to money for nothin’ and chicks for free.  

How about those who play the guitar on the MTV?

Not all boxes and packing are created equal.

A proper package is designed to protect the product from damage and is subjected to engineering laboratory shock and vibration testing prior to approval.

Conrad Johnson uses mostly heavy duty double-walled boxes and die-cut polyethylene foam inserts which can be quite expensive to manufacture.

Further, CJ does not set shipping costs. These are set by UPS, Fedex, and others who have gone to a formula called "dimensional weight" for assessing cost.

This is a tricky way of saying that whether a package is large or heavy, the shipper will pick whatever is most favorable to them. So a light, empty box that is large costs basically the same as a box with an amp inside.

The CJ box and shipping prices are a reflection of the lab costs, manufacturing costs, warehouse storage costs, order processing costs, and shipping costs. So sorry, they are not cheap or free. But the proper box will insure damage-free shipping and that is a good thing.

Thx,

A Slater retired Packaging Engineer