Melos Audio MAT 1000 or Audio Research VT 200?

melos audio restorations is out there to service & upgrade melos components.

http://melosaudio.com/

i would not hesitate to buy *any* used melos equipment - i bought a music-director preamp used from the audio outlet, but they agreed to ship it to m.a.r. for inspection & any tweaking needed. i only *wish* i could afford to buy a pair of their stereo mat180's - i *do* want to bi-amp. but, due to known reliability issues w/older melos product, i would *not* buy a melos amplifier unless it went to m.a.r. for updates to known achilles heel problems they had. they also have sonic upgrades, which would be very tempting, if i had the money...

so, fbi - buy the amps - you'll love 'em! but, have 'em shipped to las vegas 1st... and, ttl2000, if your amps have not been to m.a.r., pack 'em up & send 'em, before something *does* blow up! ;~)

for solid-state amps, i love my electrocompaniets, but... anyone wanna trade me their melos amps for a mint pair of aw60ftt's? :>)

regards, doug s.

Melos had a history with quality and reliability problems just like Pls1 had indicated. However, when they work properly they sound very very good to my ears. I actually prefer their sound over Audio Research VT100mk2 which I used to own. Be very careful when buying Melos used. I like mine (402 Gold monoblocks) very much but everytime I turn them on, I always have this feeling that something is about to blow up. If you like tube sound and do not want to mess around with them, buy Audio Research. Audio Research makes very good and reliable equipment.

Sorry if I am screwing up someone who is unloading the Melos amps but after watching what a friend of mine went through with his I would warn strongly against anyhting that this company manufactured. I am happy there are some out there who are satisfyed with units that they already own, as this has nothing to do with the sound of the amps when they are working. It's just that my friends rarley did(I know of at least three occasions that they went down and one where he got them back after a $500+ repair charge that they still did not function) and he got hammered by the changing hands of the company. I don't know if it is the same folks in Las Vegas or not but he had to go thru hell to even get his Amps back from them after they were sent in for service. If you get these amps you are on thin ice! The amps could get hot and melt that ice and your experience could be very chilly!

There were many versions of the Melos 400 watt monoblocks, the MAT1000 was towards the end but not the very last one.
I have the last production model (probably the last unit)before the final bankruptcy. The MAT 1000 is an earlir version with a smaller capacity power supply. I love mine and directly compared them to the VT-200. BIG WARNING the company is no more, they had recurring quality problems and reliability problems, there is no way to tell what exact configuration or condition the amp is in. Melos Restorations is a group of ex Melos folks who do repairs and upgrades. You should call Melos Melos Restoration in Vegas for upgrade info. Again I love mine.