Sad to say I need a new amp…

Thanks again everyone. Eventually will bring the Mesa to a local repair for an appraisal, though it was really smoking and chugging when I pulled the plug perhaps it’s salvageable. Still looking for SS amp.. Van Alstine 120 really sounds interesting…..

A repair shop warned me against Rogue amps. 1) They see more than their fair share in for repairs. 2) They're difficult to work on because they use proprietary boards, not universal parts. Supply can be an issue, because they're imported from China. Rogue may sound good, but they advised against them. 

@hiendmmoe 

Yes, David has had/has some supply chain issues, as many others, but bottom line he is simply swamped for a 1 or 2 man operation. I waited several weeks for my Signature preamp, and it seems the wait has not gotten better. Johnny Rutan only has the Aria Integrated in stock, at least that's what he told me last week.

@hilde45 

Yep, as @tomic601 mentioned, I'm in Lakewood, attached to Cleveland on the west side

Yes, noticed the hybrid trend when reading up last week. The Croft hybrid is $1895 with a phono amp and certainly gets great reviews. Not sure about reliability or heat issues since it will often be on 24/7 and doesn’t have a “ sleep” mode. Don’t really need a phono amp as I have an Allnic 1201 that I use with my other set-up..

What about a hybrid? while you look into repair.

+1 @rocray 

I would not let what is happening in the world sway you away from tubes. There are plenty of tubes out there. What you are seeing is knee jerk reactions. Yes,prices will probably go up as a result.  Unless you can only use Russian tubes, hardly an issue. IMHO.  Live your life. 

with today's tube shortages strongly recommend to get solid state. I've got Fisher with blown caps and couple of weak tubes and thinking if I should continue with project or just sell it as-is.

@hilde45 BK is on the front range of Lake Erie…. Cleveburg…

@wb27 

Maybe it’s a supply shortage the reason for 6-8 week wait on a new amp. Give belles a call.

The Mesa is a cool amp, see about a repair. 

@bkeske Not sure where you are, but if you're along the Front Range, I have a tech I'd recommend to you.

Wish Audiogon had a thread for hooking up customers with local techs.

To tell the truth I was a bit stunned for a few days. Very much appreciate your idea as I really haven’t heard any other amps (or speakers) in many years. The Belles Aria has a five year warranty which has extra appeal given the circumstances. My other system includes old Coincident Conquest Speakers which are fairly efficient..

@wb27

I feel for you. I lost my old Belles 400A last week. Power section somewhere failed and ’went up in smoke’. Dragged it into a local shop who used to be a Belles dealer, and he won’t touch it, saying I have to send it to David. Damn. Well, new equpment is 6-8 weeks out for David, let alone an old 400A showing up at his shop for possible repair.

So, for the time being, I picked up a B&K ST3030 that arrived Monday (was also advertised here). Actually sounds pretty good. But, have already talked to Johnny Rutan about getting a new Belles Signature amp (6-8 weeks out) and perhaps looking into the 400A repair down the line....or not. The Signature is a bit more money than the Aria, but Johnny seems pretty ’high’ on it, and it would match well with the new Belles Signature preamp I just got.

Or, just relax, enjoy the B&K, and think a bit about my next move.

You might want to get a good ’beater’ amp as well until you make a final decision, it could always serve as a back-up in the future. I bought the B&K for $325 shipped, not bad for a musical 200 wpc Mosfet amp. I knew I should have had a back-up in waiting with an old amp like the 400A. Lesson leaned.

You have a good short list of SS already. If I were in your place, it would depend on the ability to get some test drives with some candidates and my willingness to eat some shipping costs in the process. The Music Room would give you two weeks with gear they're selling.

As far as names go, if I were to just add a few used options to your list, I'd look at this list : https://tinyurl.com/3hvtcdrt

at PS Audio, Bryston, Parasound A21+, Peachtree GaN400, Balanced Audio Technology  

Keep it and find a competent, tube amp tech. Mesa probably doesn't support it any longer. If a shop can get the schematic, there may be hope.

You may get lucky and the replacement of a costly transformer(maybe not) or whatever isn't too cost prohibitive.