How reliable is PS audio equipment?

I'm getting deja vu. Wasn't this question posted recently?

"BHK preamp is only good for 20 years due to the design."

There is a built-in timer. When the clock strikes 20, masked audio henchmen break down your front door and take it away.

Electrolytic capacitors are the default reason a component made today would only last "20 years" or so. BUT those should be readily replaceable for a renewed service life, unless there’s something weird about the component design to make this much more challenging than usual. 

I have a hard time believing a properly designed preamp would only be "good" for 20 years. It should outlast most of us here. I’ve owned PS Audio components in the past, with no problems so far. There is nothing that indicates to me they’re not properly designed for good longevity.

The BHK amps might throw around more heat than average, but 20 years still seems absurdly low for a preamp. It reeks of misinformation. 

Well, Paul told me that

@tablejockey +20 

Mike

I would think in 20 years, the advancement in technology would necessitate the want for a new preamp. I would like to believe that is the direction that Paul was coming from. 

When the clock strikes 20, masked audio henchmen break down your front door and take it away.

Yes, watch out for henchmen wearing masks.

No issues with PS Audio. Own their phono stage and some power products. Have visited their facility in CO. Occasionally watch his Youtube videos. Nothing but good vibes. YMMV.

I have been happy with their P10, P20 and Stellar Phono Stage no problems of any kind.  Before that I had an integrated on loan for a while that was several years old at the time.  It worked fine too.  Maybe all of this stuff had the 20 year switch turned off. 

PS Audio is end game gear for me. I love my preamp, DAC and transport. Heck, I'll be lucky if I last another 20 years. 

Have alot of ps audio equipment including fr30.talked with cris and paul took the tour in Boulder was treated with royality.ask where and what was made.saw many prototypes they were not afraid to disclose secrets and sources. It is true it have bought some of thier refurbished equipment so they must have a rare failure like all electronic equipment everywhere.paul has been involved in alot of development and history. His vidioes are informative.i wish more engineers would do educational videos and answered the common man's questions. There new product is designed by a nasa engineer.great customer service. Highly recommended.thanks for the memories paul and chris.

PS Audio did have some build issues in the past when their gear was assembled in China. My Chinese built Premier Power Plant failed within a year of purchase. PS promptly replaced it.  The P5 Power Plant that replaced the Premier is made in the US and was built like a tank as is the P12 that I bought to upgrade from the P5. I see no reason to believe that PS gear has any specific life span.

i just replaced my 31 year old Conrad Johnson PV-12L with a new Backert Labs Rhumba Extreme 1.4.  The CJ was not built to the current PS standards but the only work I needed to have done to the CJ was cleaning contacts on the Selector knob.

Perhaps the "20-year" clock is when PS thinks it needs to be serviced and recapped. Which, in the greater scheme of things, if your hi-fi component only needs to be serviced once every 20 years, I'd say that is pretty damn reliable, especially if it means another 20 years of performance after said "tune up." 

I would say the great thing about a company like PS Audio is that they're made in the US, and you call them up and get someone on the phone, and they can fix it. However, this isn't the case with many companies these days, as we all know.

I have a broken down Sprout. Any suggestions?

No, this is not a question for my GP!

They have a great service department if needed....   Good company, good stuff

The only issue I’ve had with my BHK preamp is having to replace the tubes at about 5000 hours. 

Whomever informed you there is a 20 year usable life is misinformed.   I have a vacation home with a 45 year old Pioneer SX 828 producing excellent vintage sound.  Usable life depends on the design, especially heat generation and dissipation, the type of usage (pro, home, hours, stress conditions), and the care given to the equipment. I had in the past 20+ year old Krell separates that sounded new  because, suffering from OCD, I had Krell service them every 5 years.  The is admittedly excessive.  Your preamp is well built and low heat output.  I recommend having it checked by a good tech every 10 to 20 years and it will live on past any humans life expectancy.  The limiting factors are parts obsolescence and abuse. 

I have a PS Audio Stellar Gold Preamp, a pair of M700 Monoblock amps, and a Directstream DAC Mk1 (modified by APS Transformers.) In the past I have had a Directstream DAC Junior, and a Stellar DAC. I had one issue with the Stellar DAC (failed right channel); even though it was out of warranty, PS Audio fixed it for free. The Stellar Gold Preamp had one problem when brand new (triggers didn't work), but in all fairness, I was a beta tester on that unit, so some issues were expected. All in all, I have had PS Audio components of various models for about 10 years, and found them to be very reliable. On the rare occasions that a problem did ensue, they were very responsive and great about solving the issue with fast turn around times. I would certainly not hesitate to purchase their products.

The Directstream DAC's are built to last.  We upgrade them currently and are hard to beat at any price. They simply sound awesome with the upgraded nickel transformers and power supply.

I have lots of PS gear now, and have had various PS gear for 35 years...never a single problem...and if I have questions it's always very easy to actually talk to someone...

I did have problems with the "card" that accepted the internet input on my DirectStream Mark 1 DAC.  It gave me fits. I complained to them (politely) and was given a retail trade-and a discount on a new DirectStream II and and AirLens.  Not only have they been a trouble free performer, the output quality is really excellent. They punch WAY above their price point IMO.  Someday I'll swing for the fences and get a WADAX or maybe a Playback Designs unit but for now and for the foreseeable future I'm thrilled with my PS Audio DAC and streamer. 

@yesiam_a_pirate

If you want less distortion and a more realistic sound experience replace them cheap Edcor XS4400 audio transformers with custom nickel transformers and replace the cheap IEC AC inlet.  Major improvement in sound quality.

I'm not sure about longevity but I assume they last as long as other gear. They have an outstanding service department.

I have bought several components from PSA but I will never do business with them again due an extremely dissappointing experience with their CD transport.

I bought a Perfect Wave Transport (the original CD only version) around 2019. I found out after I bought it that the unit I purchased was "B Stock" and came with a diminished warranty. Note - buyer beware. I was not told by the dealer that this was anything other than a brand new unit.

I used the transport regularly but not excessively. It spun about 10 discs per week. Within less than a year (about 10 months I think) the CD drive began acting up. It wouldn't open or eject sometimes. I contacted PSA and they offered to replace the drive. The new drive lasted about a year and by then the unit was out of warranty. I paid about $500 to have the second drive installed. Then, this drive failed within less than a year.

When the third drive failed I began researching the issue and found out that PSA put in a cheapo computer grade CD drive that costs about $15. This is in a transport that retails for $4000! I found out that I could replace the drive myself but I needed some special all-thread screws that PSA could provide. I called them and they refused to sell me the screws and they would not even tell me the specs so I could find them myself. I now owned a $4000 boat anchor.     

A reputedly high end audio company that puts a $15 computer drive into a $4000 transport cannot be trusted IMO. It showed me that PSA will not only put in the cheapest parts they can find, they will even scrimp on the most critical components in their gear. 

Goodbye, PS Audio. Hope you have a nice life.   

@8th-note if I were you, I would have went on the PS audio forum, Paul's post, and Ask Paul to complain in a nice way about the problem, sometimes Paul will take care of you with little to no charge. I do agree with you that some of PS audio equipment could be much better with what they charge.

My one and only PS Audio purchase was a power bar/surge suppressor about 20 years ago.  Two of the 5 outlets failed.  I sent it to PSA and they repaired it.  Within a few months, the same two outlets failed.  I just left it, I use it as is.  I won’t buy any more PSA gear.  I don’t have time to deal with unreliable equipment.

PS Audio's best products are the Directstream DAC’s with exception to the Bridge cards (not good) and any of the BHK products.

The power plants are not good for power amps. They do help on front end gear however they are not very reliable. 

I have a power plant 20

Phono Amp

BHK pre and 250 

3 of the DAC’s including MK2

wonderful people to work with AFTER the Sale they stand behind what they build like Pass Labs

I inherited a DLIII digital link dac about 8 years ago. The owner told me he got it in 2006. So coming up on 20yrs. It's worked fine for me.No problems.

Table jockey- what a silly response

I had a power plant premiere after 12 years it started have smoke come out of it, so glad I was in the room when it happened or could have started a fire.   Unfortunately PS audio said it was too old to fix, offered me a discount for a replacement.  Meanwhile I have a Panamax surge protector that is even older, still works fine. 

I have a PS Audio Directstream DAC, version 1 that I am still happy with , I think this DAC will probably be the next upgrade to my system 

I have had a BHK preamplifier and a BHK 250 power amplifier for probably six or seven years now. Zero problems! I turn 68 years old in August and I will not be surprised if they outlast me.

I have had a PS10 for over 10 years without a problem.  Amps sound better straight to wall, though.

@1kw 

Just upgrade your Directstream MK1 DAC with nickel audio transformers and all the other power supply upgrades (vocm mod ect...) 

I have a P15 Powerplant and used it almost everyday for the past 7 years and it has been rock solid. Love the unit and build quality, it is built like a tank, and backbreaking to move but the stereo sounds amazing with it in. The quality of life improvement of being able to start up and shut down all the equipment in the correct order is a luxury. I called customer service early in my ownership and they answered all my questions quickly and were really pleasant. I also love that one cord is unplugged and the entire system is disconnected from the outside world, I had it hit by lightening prior to my P15 purchase. 

Like every brand, they have occasional issues. I’ve had a BHK pre, BHK 250 amp, Stellar P3 power regenerator, M1200 mono amps, and a P300 regenerator.

The BHK preamp and BHK250 both had issues that required a trip back to the factory. The BHK pre’s first repair was a reasonable $300 flat rate and included new tubes and a new remote as well. After the BHK pre’s second failure PS Audio repaired it for free.

After many years the capacitors in the P300 leaked and I had Cullen Circuits rebuild it (before they went out of business.) Worked fine since although retired from service now.

The P3 regenerator and M1200 amps have been rock solid and reliable after years of service.

From reading PS Audio’s own forum posts, one gathers they’ve had occasional issues with being unable to repair certain older products that used outsourced parts that were no longer manufactured. This problem isn’t unique to them, any manufacturer can have similar issues.

While they might not be 100% reliable (nothing is) they provide reasonably quick repair and stand behind their service. That’s worth a great deal IMO. I've have poor service related interactions with some manufacturers.

I have not owned PS products, however I do own McIntosh products AMR have had no problems.  The staff at McIntosh always answer my questions.