Is ARC Updating/Discontinuing the DSi200?

Make sense, Wadia has this market covered.

Hi Cerrot,

Sounds like you've had limited experience owning property or working with or within an HOA.

As I'm an OWNER and not a tenant, I'm not subject to immediate eviction by notice.

And, while your comment was more than a bit snarky, it was similar to a home audition scenario I almost did.

I planned to contact my ceiling neighbor to let her know I was "testing" audio equipment over the weekend, and to let me know if there are any issues. This would allow for a home audition with minimal risk. But, the discounted floor demo Supernait V2 I was interested in buying actually got sold before I could audition it at home (this is why the SN2 is not one of my "finalists"). I had a sense when I checked out the Modwright that it wouldn't "survive" such a home audition, and so I didn't bother contacting my ceiling neighbor (again, since the home audition wasn't going to happen).

As noted in other threads, condos are different and often require a modicum of mutual respect and diplomacy if one is to thrive in such a living environment.

Courant, why not borrow a power amp with the 40-60 additonal watts, IE if your ayre is 40 watts - add a 100 watt powr amp (hook up ayre as a preamp) and see if Ms HOA shoots you over an evicton notice.

Hi The_rang,

The DSi200 (Auditioned with B&W 805Ds) reminded me very much of when I owned Linn Separates. Very Neutral; Very Detailed; SoundStage that was Very Good but not Awesome. Leaning towards the Analytical.

Great with stringed/piano classical; great with Coltrane & Brubeck; okay with hard rock (but great with Abbey Road). Definitely not the "typical" ARC tube sound (which I also asked to listen to briefly for a comparison).

I was on the fence, my thought being that if I wanted the "flat earth" switch-amp sound that it made more sense just to stick with Linn (who have been doing switching amps for years) or something like a Naim SuperNait V2. (I thought the Ax-7e sounded better than the SuperNait V1, but haven't heard the V2.)

The Modwright was a completely different beast... To put it mildly, this puppy had THUMP. I liked the sound, but was concerned it might be too much for the Condo HOA (the HOA President is my ceiling neighbor). Which brings me back to the Ax-7e. My ceiling neighbor LIKES my AX-7e, because she pretty much almost never hears it... I really liked the Modwright, but the allegedly "mature grown-up" in me thought I would be asking for trouble...

As per my post, I'm still kinda/sorta thinking of tempting fate, but this "mature grown-up" thing keeps getting in the way. I do REALLY like my Ax-7e, but I'd like it more if it had 40-60 additional watts.

Hope that helps clarify

Courant, how did the ARC compare with the Modwright?
I bought the latter but am considering swapping it out for the Hegel (or ARC if there are any around)

The fact that they may be discontinuing it wouldn't discourage me - I go out of my way to look for such opportunities, where things I normally wouldn't be able to afford are marked down dramatically due to dealer liquidation, or model discontinuation, etc. If it sounded great when it was a current model, it'll sound just as good as a retired model, except it'll bring you all that music joy for less money. And not to discount Dayglow's experience - he heard what he heard - but I wouldn't let comments like that discourage me either. Think of how many variables were at play, in that room, with his ears, and that setup. Attributing whatever he heard entirely as the "fault" of the amp is...not something I'd subscribe to. Audio Research makes superb equipment, and their service is excellent - you could do a whole lot worse.

If you like the way it sounds who the heck cares what some anonymous internet person is telling you. Reading the forums for years ive realized i was taking the advice of people who hyperbolize everything and for some reason others take one opinion on the internet as gospel. The one thing i do appreciate about arc is there support department so i can rest easy for the long term.

I heard an early version of the ARC DSi200 driving a Magnepan 1.7 with an Ayre cdp as the source using all Kimber Kables, no power filtering or conditioning was present. To say I was disappointed is a huge understatement! Might have been the worst sounding $6k amp I have ever heard.

I don't see it on the current integrated amps section, been gone for awhile as far as I remember. Was wondering about the vsi60 as well, seems like dealers are giving a decent discount on that, but the price delta between it and the vsi75 is pretty hefty.

Hi,

I'm in Seattle, so between Definitive Audio and Seattle HiFi, I was able to audition both the ARC and the Modwright. Reno HiFi let's you audition Pass Labs, so that might be next.

So yes, I do make a point to audition first. Speaking of which, if you want a good chuckle, pair an Ax-7e with Maggie 1.7s...

Did you listen to any of the 3 choices to replace your Ayre, or are you going to cross your fingers and hope for the best?

Late last year a dealer told me that it was being discontinued. I had one at the time and absolutely loved it.

I ended up selling it to go with the Simaudio 600i. It's the best integrated I've ever heard.

There's a demo Simaudio 700i that just went up on Audiogon yesterday.

Chuck