Send it to Binghampton...either Mac or Audio Classics. Not fixing it shouldnt be the option b.
Happens all the time in every industry. What he is actually telling you is quite useful: he doesnt know wtf wrong and needs you to pay him to figure it out on the fly.
Move on but much like anything in life, there is no free lunch. If you send it to either Mac or Audioclassics, you will have an amp that has been checked out by honest, knowledgeable and forthright people who know what they are doing and more importantly, a receipt for repairs from them will enhance the value of a not so new amplifier.