That is a old picture, he has had it repaired since, probably several times.
Aesthetix Io Users Group
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Yes, this time the smoke came out from the main unit, apparently one of the caps in there blew! At the time, all the tubes in the PS were stock, but the 12ax7 in the first 2 gain stages (ie 8 tubes) were Tele, and the 6SN7 were Ken Rad.
I bought it not long after they introduced the Eclipse version, so may be around 2012 or so !
Actually, our group bought 3 units at the same time, and had a party! Happy time before all 3 units went bad within 40 hours of operation
Apparently, Aesthetix got a bad batch of caps then！
Cool pictures !Yes, this time the smoke came out from the main unit, apparently one of the caps in there blew! At the time, all the tubes in the PS were stock, but the 12ax7 in the first 2 gain stages (ie 8 tubes) were Tele, and the 6SN7 were Ken Rad.
I bought it not long after they introduced the Eclipse version, so may be around 2012 or so !
Actually, our group bought 3 units at the same time, and had a party! Happy time before all 3 units went bad within 40 hours of operation
View attachment 143425View attachment 143426
Actually, our group bought 3 units at the same time, and had a party! Happy time before all 3 units went bad within 40 hours of operation
Are you sure that there was no user error involved , due to high levels of Whiskey in the blood stream ;0}
Maybe this is the issue. They probably due more QC with the US transformer and the EU transformer and related changes is experiencing failures
Maybe if you get a couple of kids and a mortgage you will be less tempted by these ridiculous prices in hifiToo much money, i don't mind spending €50 K - € 100 K on a large speaker system, but € 50 K on a phonostage, no way !
Is that the Frank Sinatra limited I see in the background? I have a few bottles of that.
I really can remember, as that was over 10 years ago, and we had a high concentration of alcohol in our blood that day
What did Aesthetix do to address the failed capacitors?
As I mentioned, before, no amount of step up/down AC transformer can fix part failures.
In the past, there were some resistors in the phono stage that went noisy. Aesthetix fixed those at no charge. Seems decent and respectable.
Please explain the rationale behind this type of comment.
In my experience, all parts and repairs were burned in and tested before shipping the units back to the customer.
They have not expressed any bias towards any geographic area.
Those transformers all came from Mercury Magnetics. Some of the issues mentioned would not emerge for 20+ years. How can that be detected in advance?
Most of the issues reported on this thread are non US/230v users. Kong reported he changes transformers for it. Do you have another reason why this is no non US focused
I was trying to point out that Kong cited a defective part from one of Aesthetix’s suppliers. He reported that the smoke was from a defective capacitor. That doesn’t seem to be transformer nor AC line voltage related.
If he and two friends acquired their Io at the same time and had the same issue, then the next question is whether their capacitors came from the same batch.
Let's not forget that he has had plenty of problems since that original breakdown.
It was right after the initial purchase when all the 3 units went bad. No smoke at the time, just noise and channel imbalance then. Since it was in the warranty period, the agent took care of the repair. I noticed at least one of the caps in my main unit had been replaced, so I just assumed it was cap problems. If I remember correctly, it took something like 3 to 4 months for the repair, so we asked for a 6 months extension on the warranty period. Shortly after that, maybe 6 months or so, one of the 3 units went bad again, this time black smoke came out of the main unit, and again the agent took care of the repair! That was over 10 years ago!
During the past 10 years, one of the owners got out of audio, and another packed up his Io, worried that it might blew again! I also took a four years sabbatical from audio, so my Io was also packed up for that period.
It was around 3 years ago I got back into audio and set up the Io again. It had no problem for first 18 months, then the nightmare started!
As an end user, I don’t have the technical skills to diagnosis the cause of the problem. I only know smoke came out from my unit under normal operation condition, and I have never encounter such problem in any of my audio equipment!
Yes, I know lowering the input voltage may not solve the problem, it is just my last ditch effort to keep my Io operational. I probably will give up on the Io if problems persisted!
I think there is no denying or defending that the Io has problems, at least for those 220/230V units! From postings in this thread, it seems most of the reliable units are in the US, and most of the problematic units are in Europe and Asia with 220/230V, so it is logical to question whether the transformers made a difference. Actually, I am very interested to know if any of the European or Asian members can report having years of reliable service from the Io !
Don’t get me wrong, I love the sound of the Io, and if Aesthetix guarantee the problems can be fixed with the new in-house transformers, I will be very tempted to have the upgrade done!
I have the same feelings, i love it's sound and would probably send it to the US for a third time and spend the $5K on a tranformer swap, if i was sure it would solve problems and prevent future repairs guaranteed. But i just don't trust it anymore and half of my last warranty period was spent with the Io in transit or waiting for repair, i was not smart enough to ask for additional warranty time
I took all my IO tubes and some back ups to a friend who recently purchased an Amplitrex AT1000. While we tested with both Fixed and Auto bias settings, there seems to be differences of opinion as to which setting gives the most accurate account of the functionality and "quality" of a particular tube as it would be while in an actual circuit. Most would seem to say that the fixed bias mode is best and creates test conditions closest to that in a live circuit. That is what Glen at Aesthetix and Oldvinyl, a close friend of mine, agreed with.That said, I was communicating with someone who builds their own amps and preamps and they made the following statement:
"Most tube preamps are designed to use tubes with auto-bias, also known as cathode bias or self-bias, which automatically adjusts the bias voltage on each tube to ensure optimal operation and minimize distortion. "
"I think whether fixed or auto bias on the Amplitrex will do a better job depends on the circuit that the tube will be used on. Most preamps are designed with the tubes used in auto-bias so I would probably use that for a preamp tube."
I do not know if any of the circuits in the IO utilize an auto or cathode bias. Do any of his statements sound right? I have no reason to question Glen's or Oldvinyl's thoughts on this, as they are both quite knowledgeable about all things IO, but I am curious. I have seen one other article from a well known tube retailer in Germany suggesting that the Auto-bias mode is best.
Hmmm??
"Most tube preamps are designed to use tubes with auto-bias, also known as cathode bias or self-bias, which automatically adjusts the bias voltage on each tube to ensure optimal operation and minimize distortion. "
"I think whether fixed or auto bias on the Amplitrex will do a better job depends on the circuit that the tube will be used on. Most preamps are designed with the tubes used in auto-bias so I would probably use that for a preamp tube."
I do not know if any of the circuits in the IO utilize an auto or cathode bias. Do any of his statements sound right? I have no reason to question Glen's or Oldvinyl's thoughts on this, as they are both quite knowledgeable about all things IO, but I am curious. I have seen one other article from a well known tube retailer in Germany suggesting that the Auto-bias mode is best.
Hmmm??
It is really hard to extract from what you are stating regarding auto-bias vs fixed bias as it relates to the Io without an emphatic, i.e., factual statement from Aesthetix (Jim or Glen) as to the tube backbone construction parameters of the Io.
I believe the endorsement to use fixed bias for the tube testing equipment only adds credence to the fact that there is to some degree, certain tube equipment that uses fixed bias, and that using tube testing parameters around that methodology emulates the operating environment. I have looked at the Internet's end to see if there is anything published about the type of tube bias mechanism is in the Io and came up with nada.
Perhaps, someone can extract from previous test reviews and design objectives of the Io to come to somewhat of a conclusion to that question.
Jack Roberts, posted a review on Dagogo (Jan, 2010), with some good information about the inner workings of the Io. Although, I believe this information is already published on the Aesthetix website, I have highlighted portions of that review here:
"The Aesthetix has a high gain/low noise, all-tube circuit. It is capable of amplifying low output moving coil cartridges. The phono stage contains three main amplification sections with an output buffer stage. The first section is a high gain, low noise, zero feedback single-ended amplifier consisted of two specially selected low-noise 12AX7 vacuum tubes per channel. They feed a high-gain, low-noise differential amplifier which uses two more 12AX7 tubes per channel. The signal is then applied to the third amplification section, nearly identical to the second which also uses two 12AX7 tubes per channel. The RIAA filter is next in the signal path, a purely passive design that uses very high grade capacitors and non-inductive resistors throughout. The back panels reflect true dual mono circuit boards and balanced circuit topology.
The Power Supply Chassis of the Io has a high voltage insulated transformer and both transformers utilize special damping material for lower mechanical noise. It uses custom Wima bypass capacitors to replace the standard film caps.
The Signature versions use custom-made inter-stage Teflon coupling capacitors, replacing the polypropylene units, which cost over 15 times more per capacitor. There are some specialized applications where very small-value Teflon capacitors are used in the Io Signature. All of the input and output wiring is Cardas Teflon coated signal wire."
https://www.dagogo.com/aesthetix-io-signature-phono-preamplifier-review/
I also wonder if the fact that the Io needs a good hour or so to warm up to stabilize before sounding really good and that it also needs something like 20 minutes after being shut down before disconnecting the umbilical cords has something to do with the tube topology as it relates to auto bias or fixed bias.
I believe the endorsement to use fixed bias for the tube testing equipment only adds credence to the fact that there is to some degree, certain tube equipment that uses fixed bias, and that using tube testing parameters around that methodology emulates the operating environment. I have looked at the Internet's end to see if there is anything published about the type of tube bias mechanism is in the Io and came up with nada.
Perhaps, someone can extract from previous test reviews and design objectives of the Io to come to somewhat of a conclusion to that question.
Jack Roberts, posted a review on Dagogo (Jan, 2010), with some good information about the inner workings of the Io. Although, I believe this information is already published on the Aesthetix website, I have highlighted portions of that review here:
"The Aesthetix has a high gain/low noise, all-tube circuit. It is capable of amplifying low output moving coil cartridges. The phono stage contains three main amplification sections with an output buffer stage. The first section is a high gain, low noise, zero feedback single-ended amplifier consisted of two specially selected low-noise 12AX7 vacuum tubes per channel. They feed a high-gain, low-noise differential amplifier which uses two more 12AX7 tubes per channel. The signal is then applied to the third amplification section, nearly identical to the second which also uses two 12AX7 tubes per channel. The RIAA filter is next in the signal path, a purely passive design that uses very high grade capacitors and non-inductive resistors throughout. The back panels reflect true dual mono circuit boards and balanced circuit topology.
The Power Supply Chassis of the Io has a high voltage insulated transformer and both transformers utilize special damping material for lower mechanical noise. It uses custom Wima bypass capacitors to replace the standard film caps.
The Signature versions use custom-made inter-stage Teflon coupling capacitors, replacing the polypropylene units, which cost over 15 times more per capacitor. There are some specialized applications where very small-value Teflon capacitors are used in the Io Signature. All of the input and output wiring is Cardas Teflon coated signal wire."
https://www.dagogo.com/aesthetix-io-signature-phono-preamplifier-review/
I also wonder if the fact that the Io needs a good hour or so to warm up to stabilize before sounding really good and that it also needs something like 20 minutes after being shut down before disconnecting the umbilical cords has something to do with the tube topology as it relates to auto bias or fixed bias.
The fixed bias will allow the tester to compare tubes against a consistent grid bias voltage that matches the tube’s specification. This mode allows comparisons of various tubes - to determine how well their gain matches and deduce how much wear they have.
Auto-bias will let you know if the tube will work well in a circuit that has auto-bias.
Auto-bias will let you know if the tube will work well in a circuit that has auto-bias.
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