Opera Gear Discussion

[Mike L]

You can throw me into the unsatisfied Opera customer camp.

You are right about one thing in that they are some very nice sounding gear at very modest prices.  However, their reliability is just total garbage at best as of late. 

Between failed transports (droplet, cd120linear - have experienced) and hybrid timebombs waiting to go off (Calaf, 120a linear - currently sits under my bed) it is very difficult as a consumer to put any confidence in any of their products.  In addition, who would want to give a company that operates itself in this manner any money.

Apologies to AN and Charles as it is off topic...something was mentioned about something I have a lot of experience with so I felt like chiming in.

Regards,
Mike

[iGrant]

Hi Mike,

We are here to help, we ordered in some transports 2 years ago from Opera and have only used one. Opera doesn't make them, they are either Phillips or Sony transports, they test them as well as they can in the factory, which I have witnessed. Anyone who contacts me about transports I always tell them to go to your local basic electronics tech for servicing, they usually have a flat fee around $60 and can easily repair the drive. No need to go to a high-end exotic shop or ship back to the factory at multitudes the cost if out of warranty, most transports (drives/pickups) are basically the same thing and have common issues, alignment being the main one typically from shipping or mishandling.

I've read about the problems with the Calif in NA and that was part of the reason the last distributor was fired according to Opera, we have helped repair two of them to date, you can contact us directly to help get it out from under your bed.

Cheers,
Ian

[Mike L]

Mr. Grant, repairing something that is designed to fail isn't really a viable solution.  There is a reason why the Calaf is now completely solid state vs. the tube preamp section it once was (a very impressive sounding unit it was though).

I put a little system together at my sister's request whom is not really an audio enthusiast like us.  The system included the 120 linear hybrid integrated amplifier that now puts her speakers in jeopardy whenever it powers up.  It started as a spitting at startup that eventually led to some major woofer excursion.  After several months at a very highly regarded local repair shop it was diagnosed as being flawed in design.  They concluded that the circuit that mutes the tube at startup doesn't fully mute it..thus the excursion at startup.  They said that they can fix it but it will eventually happen again until it completely fails.

I told them to not fix it but I will pay for their labour as they put a lot of time and effort into the repair.  I cannot say enough good things about them as the labour charge was virtually nothing...basically donating his time.  So now I feel obligated to find another viable replacement at my expense because I feel it is my fault...not that it failed of course but that I selected the unit in the first place.

Regards,
Mike

[iGrant]

It is now the Reference 150 Linear Hybrid, brought out in 2007, again no reported issues to date.

Cheers,
Ian

[Mike L]

Not really sure what you are trying to say here.

Because they redesign a new product it makes it okay to previously bring to market a piece of garbage?  I guess as a consumer you should not buy anything new from a company because you may get burnt as a result.  One should wait several years and see if it blows up on someone else first?

If a company unknowingly designs a product that is likely to fail in a very short period of time it should be their obligation to compensate customers that have purchased the bad design.  I mean how many recalls have we seen in the last little while in the auto industry?  If they make a mistake they should make every attempt to make it right. 

Wow this may be the biggest thread jack I have ever seen.

Regards,
Mike

[iGrant]

Wow this may be the biggest thread jack I have ever seen.

Regards,
Mike

Hi Mike,

I am just correcting your statement that they don't make the hybrid anymore.

This thread title is 'Great Service from Grant Fidelity', in case you missed it, I am Ian Grant of Grant Fidelity and am trying to offer you assistance in getting your amp repaired by an authorized repair tech if you can show a bill of sale from an authorized North American retailer.

I am now assuming by your responses as you just aren't interested anymore and based on your statements I am now not interested in helping you anymore either, so I have nothing more to say to you on this. Enjoy your Opera Cyber 800s.

For everyone else reading; Opera has made many tens of thousands of award winning high-end audio products for happy customers worldwide, searching for problems with their gear only seems to come back to this forum, there is only a few disgruntled customers from the past distributor it seems.

You just can't help some people

Cheers,
Ian

[Mike L]

I think we have just found the root of the problem here.  I think you have a problem reading and interpreting peoples statements.

In no way have I discredited nor attacked Grant Fidelity anywhere in my statements.  I have had no dealing with you so I cannot judge one way or the other.  I personally don't lay any blame on any dealer for the sale of a bad product as I feel they are the victim as well. 

Secondly, I never said they don't make hybrid integrated amplifiers anymore.  They discontinued the hybrid version of the Calaf because of the high failure rate.  I also notice they do not produce the 120 hybrid as well (which is under my bed not the Calaf - reference first sentence of this post) likely for obvious reasons as well.  Consonance should be doing right by these bad designs not make consumers nor dealers eat these problems.

Nowhere in your posts have you offered assistance nor compensation in any way for my sisters amp...nor would I expect you to as it is not your fault nor your obligation to do so.  The amp certainly can be fixed to stop what it is doing but it is just going to do it again in a short period of time.  Some have suggested I fix it and sell it but I just don't operate that way.

Awards are won based primarily on sound and  somewhat on build quality.  They deserve their awards for this as I am very familiar with how good their stuff sounds.  However, what can't be judged by any reviewer is longterm reliability and that is where the problem lies with some of their gear.

You just can't communicate with some people

Regards,
Mike

[Carlman]

This is the kind of discussion that should be had in person or on the phone.  I don't know any of the details of the design or how Grant Fidelity is to blame.  And yes, you are blaming Grant by posting that the stuff he sells is junk (basically) and you're an unsatisfied customer in a thread about service experience with Grant Fidelity.  I don't know if GF was selling Opera in '07 but he did offer for you to contact him outside the forum yet the discussion continues of how you're unhapy with your gear, with some detail but not enough to link it to Grant Fidelity's service.

If you want to start a thread bashing Opera, go for it.  If it comes up that you've been wronged by a dealer or distributor, that makes sense.. but to start bashing gear based on a design flaw from a manufacturer in the middle of a thread about service from a distributor does not.

edit: I have moved this to its own discussion.  That way anyone that wants to discuss Opera gear design flaw can do so without threadjacking another discussion.

-C

[Mike L]

Where or when have I ever blamed Grant Fidelity for anything here...I have not nor do I.  I clearly stated that I do not expect them to do anything especially since the amp was purchased well before he ever got involved with Opera Audio.  If I would have expected him to I would have contacted him at some point..I have not because it is not his responsibility.  I also see no point in fixing an amp that is going to fail very shortly..doesn't make much sense to me.

The only reason I chimed in on the original thread is because he asked in one of his posts where are all the dissatisfied Opera customers.  Had he not asked the question I never would have stuck my nose in it.

Regards,
Mike

[Carlman]

The only reason I chimed in on the original thread is because he asked in one of his posts where are all the dissatisfied Opera customers.  Had he not asked the question I never would have stuck my nose in it.

Why didn't you just say that in the first place, Mike?   
It's tough to figure out (for me) what the heck people are talking about.. Hopefully you can see how it could've come across differently.  Either way, there's a thread here for folks to talk about Opera gear.. and a separate thread to talk about Grant customer service.

Thanks,
Carl

[allenzachary]

Perhaps then there is no irony that the etymology for "opera" is from Latin for "work."

[Mike L]

The only reason I chimed in on the original thread is because he asked in one of his posts where are all the dissatisfied Opera customers.  Had he not asked the question I never would have stuck my nose in it.

Why didn't you just say that in the first place, Mike?   
It's tough to figure out (for me) what the heck people are talking about.. Hopefully you can see how it could've come across differently.  Either way, there's a thread here for folks to talk about Opera gear.. and a separate thread to talk about Grant customer service.

Thanks,
Carl

I thought that the chain of events did make sense but maybe I should have quoted the part that I was responding to in order to make it clearer...my bad.

I also would like to say that my tone in writing is not with anger or bitterness but more with a normal conversation as this is often misinterpreted when put in print.

Regards,
Mike

[richidoo]

You're doing fine Mike. Sticking to the facts, making your points. Hang in there.
Rich

[iGrant]

Hi Mike,

(Thanks Carl for splitting the thread up do that it is more focused, good thinking

I am not familiar with the amp you have, as you are the only person to ever mention to myself or Grant Fidelity that it has had a problem in the two years we have been assisting customers get service from Opera if they are having issues.

You have made the statement the amp is garbage based on some techs inspection. Where from what you have described as being the issue it sounds like it could be nothing more than a wonky tube, resistor or cap to me. Am I correct in assuming the amp works fine after what ever pre-heat method they are using completes it's cycle? If we were to call every amp or pre-amp that moves the woofer or spits on start-up garbage, the list would be endless. Let alone gear that has no pre-heat stage at all. By turning the volume to zero at start-up are these issues still present?

Once a request is made to GF for any service issue, questions are asked, like what speakers and their efficiency, what spike/surge protection is being used, what did your dealer say (is it a common problem, etc.), when did the issue start etc., etc., we then try to trouble shoot by phone, we gather all the information then go to the designer and ask what he suggests should be investigated next. If a tech is required we give people the option of shipping the product back to us for repair or working with a local (to you) tech to resolve the issue. I know on the the 2 SS Calif amps we have helped be serviced where there was a channel drop issue, that a new board was shipped direct from Opera, completely pre-built for drop in replacement at a nominal fee from Opera. Opera stand behind every product they make, if the previous distributor who we assume you purchased from does not stand behind his sale to you, that is out of Opera's or our control.

On top of this we offer this service for free (except our costs for techs and parts), we do not mark up any parts cost nor charge for our time consulting or arranging. We really like Opera, they are wonderful people with amazing gear. They have nearly 100 products that I would love to carry (too much on our plate right now), which seem to have zero issues.

Your tone is clear and I understand you perfectly, you have stated others should have no confidence in their gear nor should anyone purchase Opera gear, you have used the term garbage a few times, IMO based on what sounds like an amp that is working fine past start-up, and that you are the only person to mention this model having a problem that I can find or have heard of. You have stated in all your wisdom that Opera dropped the model because it was had a high-failure rate (where is your data on this high failure rate?), sorry didn't know you worked at Opera and have such inside information. Your information seems to come from a disgruntled distributor that was fired by Opera and an unauthorized repair person, who may or may not  be correct in his diagnosis. If it was a design issue, then it would have been present the first time you used the amp, not something slowly presented it self over time, that is a part issue, not a design issue and any good tech would understand that basic concept, I have very little faith based on the information you provided so far that your local tech has made a correct diagnosis or that he has done you any service. Who says a pre-heat stage even needs to fully mute or mute at all the pre in an integrated amp, there are many ways to start an amp. If your tech is correct, then Opera will obviously be aware of this already and will have a fix already for any design flaw.

You mention car manufacturer recalls, I hope you do understand the basic concept of a recall, you don't go to Joe's Garage (love that song to get your problems solved, you go to the dealer you bought it from. If you did not buy it from a dealer then you go directly to the factory to see if you have any recourse, in your case Opera would have sent you to us for diagnostics and to see if you have any recourse, if with in the last two years. If there is recourse it is up to your dealer to provide such service in car land.

I do appreciate you jumping in to mention your problems, that is why I make such statements as I do, I would like to know what issues there are out there. If anyone else wants to jump in on an issue with their Opera gear please do. We do have our own forum for this, but gives me an excuse to hang out here.

Of course I do some things for a reason, 4 of the 5 people needing service from us on their Opera gear have ended buying more gear from us after seeing all we have to offer and the kind of service we provide

Mike, give me a call toll free and like you said, the written word (especially in audio forums) rarely comes off as it does when chatting live on the phone or in person.

On a side note, based on what Opera told me the last distributor was fired because they refused or didn't have the ability to do any repair or warranty work and Opera's reputation in NA was suffering for it from the bad mouthing the distributor was (and seems still is) spreading. I have many dealing with Opera's UK distributor, who has never had an issue either with Opera in over 10 years of being their distributor. Opera just hadn't had much luck with their US based distributors. Everyone else is doing just fine and their worldwide sales grow every year. Not many other brands have the worldwide sales volume of Opera in the high-end full line up audio world.

Cheers,
Ian