Decware and “The List”

There is a list I'm on it.  I also own 2 decware amps currently....because I sold the 3rd one.  Having a custom amp made so probabl will be selling at least one of the 2 I have.

In other words, they are available but you can't hesitate.

Jerry

Not sure why, but it appears the OP edited their original post from a longer story about being on the list and having to cancel their order to this two word version.

Buy used Decware, it's faster

Based on my analysis of "The List" by the order creation date and the average delivery date, it's a about a 2 year wait for the amp I ordered in August.  

They say good things come to those who wait. I'd rather be waiting on a nice Decware amp than speaker grilles from Tekton.  Good luck. 

@grinnell Well, if buying a used one is so easy, perhaps you can locate all of them?  Decware hardly ever shows up on the secondary market.  I had a great friend that actually died waiting on one.  If he could know that I took him off the list after he died, he would be really pissed off at me.  These are great people to deal with, they love their product almost as much as their fans (debatable).  Yes, some things in life are worth waiting on and this is one of them.  

This conversation would likely make more sense if the op hadn't been edited. 

@moonwatcher You're comment made me LOL. Been there with Tekton--I have a pair of Lore Reference speakers without grills. I ordered them but never received them. After many back and forth emails and calls, I got them--they didn't fit. We went through this three times----they never fit so I gave up. I got a refund.

I'd love to hear a Declare amp at some point.

I have had several Decware amps. Currently have their Torii Jr and Phono Preamp and also the DIY 8" open baffle speaker. Built the cabinets from their design and used their drivers. Could not be happier. Great company, great products and great support. you can even get hold of Steve, the owner, via email.  I got my last amp in 2019 before Covid, so 'only' had to wait a couple months. Well worth it. 

@hoosierinohio

there are 3 Decware Amps showing on Hifi Shark

i bought mine used after 2-3 months looking

Hoosier in Colorado

I’ve been on the list for a tube buffer stage (Zbox) for almost 10 months. 
I don’t really think about it.  When it’s ready it’ll be a surprise. Not totally sure I’ll still need or want a tube buffer by then but that’s another story.

@grinnell You, you are the man.  This is not an easy catch.  I'm just curious, you looked every day for how long and what did you end up with?  Was it what you were looking for?  Was it on Audiogon or where did you find?  This can be a grail search and you found it.  Congrats. 

@grinnell what is your feedback on what you acquired? 

I waited about 9 months+ for a ZMA. It was worth it and then some. Everything said here is true: they are great to deal with, Steve is completely reachable and Sarah in customer service is terrific. My ZMA, coupled with a Backert Rhumba 1.3 drives my DeVore O96’s effortlessly and the ZMA sounds absolutely beautiful. Lots of tube magic and yet plenty of detail  and sparkle.

I have one of the new Zen TORII MK5 amps, that I went and picked up in person back in November of 2021, I originally ordered the MK4 and they had just come out with the MK5 so I instead got the MK5 from Steve, I only waited 11 months for the amp at that time.

It is a great amp, and I converse with Steve about different tubes all the time and he has been very helpful with choosing the tubes I use.

Their amps are definitely worth the wait and I will end up giving mine to my son when I can no longer enjoy listening to music (20 to 30 years hopefully).

Sorry but the name Decware sounds like a leisure suit company.

There are orders from 2021 on that list that still haven’t been started yet. Yikes.

@eag618 Wish you and family the best!
Patience, patience, patience! Been on “THE” list for over 14 months for a Torii Jr. and i’m probably a little past 1/2 the wait. It has given me a chance to try other amps while I wait. When i ordered I was told it was a 1 year wait.  Doubt I’ll ever order another Decware product with a 2 year wait.

@tksteingraber If you notice that list is orders from all over the world, and yet you do not see many people listing Decware amps for sale on the secondary markets, that is because most people keep them once they get them, plus all of their products are hand made by a small group of people that are dedicated to making things the best that they can.

If you are ever in Illinois near Elgin, I would be happy to demo my amp for you.

You could also send an email to Steve to see about a tour of the factory, it is really small it's like a large garage like structure.

@alucard19 Thanks…no doubt Decware makes wonderful boutique components and Steve really knows what he is doing.  I am willing to be patient and am really looking forward to this amp…just doubt I want to wait 2 years again.  Their success and popularity makes it difficult for many to endure a 2 year or more wait but It is great to see such a successful business in the hi-fi audio industry.

I own 2 Decware amps. The make really good products, are very forthcoming about the list, and maintain good communication with their clients. At one point I wondered why they don’t just build a few more benches and expand - but having dealt with them for years now, I simply trust they are making business decisions with the best intentions and to preserve their quality. I’m glad to have found them back when the list was much shorter, but I would easily buy again and deal with the wait before I would ask them to change a thing. I can’t think of another company who does everything as right as they do. 

Steve Deckert is one of the nicest individuals in the hi- fi industry. His 2.8 watt integrated can be used as a 2.8 watt amplifier with my Audio GD Pre amp....Beautiful music and surprisingly powerful driving higher efficiency speakers to fairly loud db levels.

@moonwatcher @bluorion 

I too have been through the Tekton / Decware spinning wheel of death. 😂

It took several months of emails and phone calls to get my matching white grills. They mistakenly sent two pairs of black grills before they got it right on the third try. Eric was too busy to return any of my calls. So I got their receptionist who was absolutely clueless. Excuses excuses. 

I'm on the third page of the waitlist now for my Zen 25th anniversary amp. Ordered January of 22. I can understand how more people added to the list means a longer wait for those on the back end, but I was told by Decware my wait was about a year. It's looking more like 18 - 24 months. How does that happen?

I couldn't wait any longer so I bought a pair of Atma Sphere Class D mono blocks. They are GLORIOUS! Absolutely amazing. 

I know Steve makes world class amps, and so does Ralph (AS). AS started building it's fan base and introducing new advancements in tube amp design 15 years before Decware. I'm looking forward to the day I get to compare the two, but I'm going to go out on a limb here and say I expect there's going to be a brand new 25th up for sale sometime next fall. 

@69zoso69 @bluorion well, good luck to both of you getting your amps. We all know supply issues were awful the last two years and are only now getting back to "mostly" normal. At some point though, you have to wonder if Decware has that much of a backlog they ought to consider upping the number of production people to cut wait times to 1 year max. Designing a tube amp is one thing. Building one from instructions, particularly hands on instruction, is another depending on the skill set of the person doing the labor. Glad you were able to finally get grilles for your Tektons. I know they say Eric hates building them, so maybe that product would be ripe for him to farm out to someone else to speed up the process. Patience is key, I guess for specialty items.

I’ve not heard the Atma-Sphere GaN Class D but I looked at a few reviews and wow, some say they could "cure" you of wanting any tube amps, even those by Ralph himself. Interesting.

@hoosierinohio 

I bought a Mini Torii first version, second iteration ( change in the rectifier)

Love it, it stopped my search for great sound.  Its only 4wpc but my room is 12x20 open on the side but I have 92db eff speakers  Ref 3A de Capos and it gets loud but not ear splitting.  Full rich sound well made amp.  Dual mono with 5 tubes on a side so you can tube roll to your hearts content.

@moonwatcher I don't want to highjack this "Decware" thread but I can say I'm not missing my tubes one bit. Believe it or not the thought of "do they sound as good as a tube amp" hasn't crossed my mind, not once. 

Tekton does farm out their grills, I think that's the problem. 

FYI -

The waitlist is currently 2088 people long, with an approximate 20 month build time. 

I own one Decware product, the Zen Line Conditioner. As it pertains to the list, it was kind of fun to check the list to see where I was at. It helps to have something on order that is not vital to your system. The ZLC replaced a line conditioner that was three times the cost-an Isotek EVO3 Aquarius with Syncro 3 PC-and it is more effective. There is no doubt in my mind that Steve Deckert has engineering talent.

The odd thing about Decware.....check out the staff, mostly Steve’s family. Where are all of these beautiful women coming from? Why the glamor shots? Not that I mind, but it kind of reminds me of Kevin Deal putting Kate Ourlian front-and-center.

Gotta love these drive by posters. Start a thread and disappear into the ether.

15 months and counting on the list and I’m number 426…looking forward to the day it arrives!

I wouldn't offer more than $3500 even if sealed ,  warranty transfer is costly with the mandatory purchase of new tubes

I just don't see the value in buying a used Decware.   Part of its allure is the Lifetime Warranty.  To obtain a warranty transfer is going to be almost $500, not to mention tubes which there are many of in that amp. 

The UFO84 is worth sending in to transfer warranty because it's $150 or less and the tubes are cheap....   more expensive Decwares have a number of tubes that add to the cost.    Good luck

Decware is saying 20 months?    How is that possible ? They built around 650 last year , half were UFO84 which are no where near as labor intensive as Torii , 300b , etc.    Do the math, over 2100 backorders,  divided by 650 = approximately 3.25 years.  Steve G's  300b review will push that to 5 years real soon.   

Yep I was told it was a 1 year waitlist and it looks like I will get mind at the two year mark.  Appears you need to double what they say to manage your expectation. No refunds on deposits as well if you tire of waiting.  They do seem to move quickly on the used market anyway. Driven by the wait times one would think.

@riaa_award_collectors_on_facebook 

Wow, way to diss a guy’s system. Not cool.

riaa_award_collectors_on_facebook

956 posts

04-07-2023 at 05:30pm 

#ozzy62  Not concerned about what you think is cool. I offered up a brand new amp to anybody that might want one and not have to wait 2 years and he pissed all over it.

Well you sure showed him. Good job! 👍

Does it have your name on the original invoice ?   If yes, it is second hand.  

No one cares about your closet of toys that you don’t use. You are supposed to enjoy it.

You should join SteveHoffman Forum , maybe someone over there will think your gold records are cool

No one cares about narcissistic 45 year old retirees..

Actually there are some nice folks over at SHF…. Please don’t pollute another site with your elitist BS

Quite vicious on your part @riaa_award_collectors_on_facebook 

His Toolshed 300B is worth more than the Decware amp you are peddling or offering up. 

Bit of a braggard prick too. 

I am with @oddiofyl ​​​​@ozzy62 . 

#oddiofyl

Based on the value of the gear in your portfolio I can certainly understand your lowball reasoning. Most companies dont allow the transfer of warranty at all so applying your logic to the equation 95% of the Used Audio gear in the world isnt worth buying unless its 75% off MSRP.  Enjoy playing in the kiddie pool.