How well respected our EAR products

FWIW, I owned an EAR 834L line stage. Sounded good but build quality was very poor and service/information from dealer and manufacturer were non-existent. It had a piecemeal death and I finally pitched it!

I've owned a lot of EAR products - - guess I resonate with their idea of good sound. Started with the V20 Integrated, added an Acute CD player (closest to vinyl at that time that I had heard), added a 324 phono stage, short flirtation with the 868 preamp with phono, added an 890 amp (long love with that one), and a pair of the 509 amp monoblocks. I would agree that Tim's attitude about parts selection and build quality is evident in the gear, but listening to his gear you can hear that he knows quite a bit about getting great sound.

I had zero problems with any of the gear listed above, so I don't know how the service side of the organization performs. But I have spoken many times with Dan Meinwald, the importer/distributor, and he was always helpful and forthcoming in advice (about tubes, possible mods, etc.).

FWIW I no longer own any EAR products, now prefering VAC gear and Lampizator. But I do have high respect for the EAR line for sonic reasons.

Just a bit more: I think the EAR products are some of the best sounding gear I've heard, sometimes, regardless of price and Dan Meinwald was (and I assume is) a helpful and conscientious gentleman.

TVA1. I wish I could drop it on Paravicini's head. All 90+ pounds of it.