Hello silverfoxvtx1800. It is easy to knock a product you have never heard or never owned. Carver is so controversial folks love him or they hate him. He pioneered open baffel speakers with lots of woofers and long flat panel tweeters, itsy bitsy box speakers with passive radiators, tube amps you can put your hands on (the tubes!) when running full blast, and a very slim (almost a pole) tall speaker (uses a sub) that will out "reality" any speaker put next to it. That speaker, driven by Bob's big tube amp, put to shame a famous company's flagship speaker in a A/B comparison at a well known LA area dealer on the edge of a canyon a few years ago. The LAOC Audio Society was there. I have been a fan (obviously) for a very long time, owned the "Mag AMp M400," tuners, tape decks, speakers, and sold them in a retail setting. My 50 year old tuner failed recently, but I don't blame Bob. His gear was always reasonably priced.
Bob is easily bored and starts a new company every 10 years. Perhaps some of the folks involved in some of those companies were not A+ material, but it's not Bob's fault. Whatever you purchase, be sure you can listen to it in your home with the rest of your gear and return it if you don't like it in a week or so. Listen to it first, let your ears tell you if it's any good. Nobody else's opinion matters. I trust Mr. Carver. Happy Listening!