ARC: Out of receivership

[cleeds]

ARC has posted this to social media. It sounds like good news:

Audio Research Corporation was acquired by AR Tube Audio Corporation, a privately-owned Delaware-based corporation which includes Valerio Cora of Acora Acoustics Corporation as a director. Audio Research will operate independently from Acora Acoustics, an Ontario-based high-performance loudspeaker corporation. The acquisition was approved by a judge after an asset purchase agreement was made with Lighthouse Management Group.

Private equity and venture capital investment groups are not involved in the new corporation, it is comprised of passionate audiophiles devoted to great music reproduction.

Audio Research was founded in Minneapolis in 1970, and will remain in its Maple Grove, Minnesota facility where it designs, builds, and supports the hand-made products that have established it as the preeminent manufacturer of vacuum-tube audio electronics. The loyal and long-term staff of employees will remain unchanged, but is expected to grow alongside the company. Audio Research’s network of select dealers and distributors will remain stable and continue to receive the full support of the company, as will the many thousands of loyal Audio Research owners.

This acquisition is set to provide the financial stability required to resume the growth that Audio Research had achieved over the decades. There are exciting new products on the horizon, like the Reference 320M amplifier, which will fuel Audio Research’s growth. The product line remains, and will continue to develop over time in the tradition you have come to expect from Audio Research.

Valerio Cora, with his extensive business experience and ownership of Audio Research components for many years, is the perfect person to be at the helm. "I am thrilled to be joining the fantastic team at Audio Research on their journey towards a very bright future. As someone whose audio journey has been built on the foundation of Audio Research, I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to contribute to such an innovative and forward-thinking brand. I can't wait to work alongside these amazing people and help drive Audio Research's success to even greater heights!"

[PeterMusic]

Super!

[knotscott]

Good news for ARC and it's fans

[Formerly YB-2]

Yes. Hopefully, ARC will not just survive, but will prosper. And maybe get back to their roots and stop using the 6H30 tube.

[djcxxx]

I had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Suggs when my 1 year old 6SE produced nothing but hum and static. My dealer returned it to ARC and about a week later the dealer gave me Mr. Suggs’ cell phone to call. FWIW it was clear he cared about ARC and its customers. He thanked me for being a loyal ARC customer over 40 years. He said the volume microprocessors on the 6SE were prone to failure and I would be sent a new 6SE with an improved microprocessor. I asked about repairing my unit but that was not a consideration. I told him I was on my third 160S due to faulty meters. He said that the meters were now made in house. I did not mention that they still did not light evenly and I just turn them off. Again no consideration for repair of a $20K amp.
IMHO the Fine Sounds liaison along with the death of Ward Fiebiger in 2017 damaged the company. Then Mr Suggs took over and likely was undercapitalized which management cannot overcome. The styling brought first to Galileo and then to the Ref amplifiers provided no added value. Styling was not going to broaden the ARC market niche, nor is going downmarket, nor is doing your own coating of parts. The loss of key technical design and bench technicians halted new design and severely hampered warranty and repair services. At heart ARC was an audio electronics company where technical people were in the saddle. The sonic quality of the design was primary, functionality was key and styling only followed. All this was backed by a firm commitment to service of components including offering upgrades. There were triumphs and duds along the way, but the approach to design and production remained true to WZJ’s philosophy.
If ARC cannot restore these basic tenets for their production going forward they will not succeed.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by djcxxx

I had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Suggs when my 1 year old 6SE produced nothing but hum and static. My dealer returned it to ARC and about a week later the dealer gave me Mr. Suggs’ cell phone to call. FWIW it was clear he cared about ARC and its customers. He thanked me for being a loyal ARC customer over 40 years. He said the volume microprocessors on the 6SE were prone to failure and I would be sent a new 6SE with an improved microprocessor. I asked about repairing my unit but that was not a consideration. I told him I was on my third 160S due to faulty meters. He said that the meters were now made in house. I did not mention that they still did not light evenly and I just turn them off. Again no consideration for repair of a $20K amp.
IMHO the Fine Sounds liaison along with the death of Ward Fiebiger in 2017 damaged the company. Then Mr Suggs took over and likely was undercapitalized which management cannot overcome. The styling brought first to Galileo and then to the Ref amplifiers provided no added value. Styling was not going to broaden the ARC market niche, nor is going downmarket, nor is doing your own coating of parts. The loss of key technical design and bench technicians halted new design and severely hampered warranty and repair services. At heart ARC was an audio electronics company where technical people were in the saddle. The sonic quality of the design was primary, functionality was key and styling only followed. All this was backed by a firm commitment to service of components including offering upgrades. There were triumphs and duds along the way, but the approach to design and production remained true to WZJ’s philosophy.
If ARC cannot restore these basic tenets for their production going forward they will not succeed.

I could not undergo what you have been through. I am glad that your gear is working properly now. I hope that ARC will right themselves. 50K is too much to pay for headache and frustration.

Best

Charles

I guess what I cannot comprehend is if the microprocessors are prone to failure, why use them to begin with???

[Formerly YB-2]

Originally Posted by Charles

I guess what I cannot comprehend is if the microprocessors are prone to failure, why use them to begin with???

Feel sure ARC did not know that going in. Only when they started failing did they become aware of the problem.

[djcxxx]

I believe outsourcing has been an issue, particularly for a small lightly capitalized company like ARC. In 2014 Porsche had a major outsourced connecting rod issue in the then brand new 991 GT3. It was several months before production resumed. Engine fires required a stop sale/recall and around 700+ engines had to be replaced. The magnitude of safety and liability demands such action. Although not GM or Toyota, Porsche has deep pockets and an image they jealously guard. ARC by contrast can only afford to address outsourced component failure on a case by case basis. But replacing rather than repairing, particularly if the hope is that only a tolerable fraction of components will fail, is a costly and risky approach. Reliable technical personnel and quality control have been a problem for ARC in recent years. My Ref Phono 3SE was delivered new with the R channel of input 1 non functional. My CD9SE upgrade was delivered after 4 months at ARC with L/R channel reversed. I chalked all this up to COVID related problems, but the receivership suggests deeper structural issues as well. Hopefully Acora and company can address these issues successfully.

[cleeds]

Originally Posted by djcxxx

... Although not GM or Toyota, Porsche has deep pockets and an image they jealously guard.

Porsche is part of VAG - the world's largest carmaker.

[Charles]

For me personally, the high end is much like real-estate which is location, location, location. I recently purchased a new home for my son and daughter-in-law in Magnolia Farms in Hermitage, TN. I would as soon live there as in my present location. It was extremely expensive but has already appreciated in less than one year over 10%.

For me regarding the high end: it's reliability, reliability, reliability, and after that functionality and appearance and after that does it measure and sound good. I don't buy McIntosh because it's cheap. Mac solved the issue of a volume control many years ago, ditto for their switches, and basic amplifier design, etc. McIntosh has a core of basic technologies that never change, although parts may improve. And I can't have any hum or noise at all, period, with volume set at 100% ear next to speaker.

My MC3500's will be manufactured unchanged for twenty years, longer than I will be alive. I am quite surprised to understand this about ARC and at present would never purchase one of their products. I wish you the best of good fortune and hope that ARC can right itself, but you must be much younger than me. I don't have 5 years to wait.

Best

Charles

And more patience and money.