I have owned a pair of Lamm ML2.1 mono blocks for about 6 years now and have given me much enjoyment driving a set of Avantgarde Duo Grosso horns. As a matter of contrast to the 18 watts the Lamms produce, the AG's were originally driven by an AG Model 5 integrated amp which put out a whopping 0.5 watt. The AG power was a bit harsh by comparison but I digress...
When I originally purchased the ML2.1's they had a full set of supposedly new tubes. My mode of listening back in those days was dictated by my travel schedule and restricted to weekend only listening. I would typically turn the units on Saturday afternoon or evening and leave them on through Sunday evening. After about 3 years in this mode, one of the V2 6C33C tubes began to become very unstable and I measured high voltage spikes that eventually would cause arcing in the tube and blow the fuse on the circuit board.
Ordered up a new set of tubes from Lamm and the listening schedule was initially much the same. In the fall of 2015 it retired and changed my habits. Since that time I generally will power up the amps an hour or two before listening and then turn them off in the late evenings. The system was now being used almost on a daily basis. A couple of weeks ago, I noted that arcing/voltage spikes resumed on one V2 (BTW, the same amp) so I installed the V2 from the previous set to get me through until the next set is ordered.
Long story short, what behaviors have others experienced with their amps when tubes began to fail? How about tube life? I know that Vladimir is very explicit about using matched sets, especially the V1 and V2 so not sure there are many options other than tubes sourced from Lamm.....
When I originally purchased the ML2.1's they had a full set of supposedly new tubes. My mode of listening back in those days was dictated by my travel schedule and restricted to weekend only listening. I would typically turn the units on Saturday afternoon or evening and leave them on through Sunday evening. After about 3 years in this mode, one of the V2 6C33C tubes began to become very unstable and I measured high voltage spikes that eventually would cause arcing in the tube and blow the fuse on the circuit board.
Ordered up a new set of tubes from Lamm and the listening schedule was initially much the same. In the fall of 2015 it retired and changed my habits. Since that time I generally will power up the amps an hour or two before listening and then turn them off in the late evenings. The system was now being used almost on a daily basis. A couple of weeks ago, I noted that arcing/voltage spikes resumed on one V2 (BTW, the same amp) so I installed the V2 from the previous set to get me through until the next set is ordered.
Long story short, what behaviors have others experienced with their amps when tubes began to fail? How about tube life? I know that Vladimir is very explicit about using matched sets, especially the V1 and V2 so not sure there are many options other than tubes sourced from Lamm.....