I dug my old BAT VK500 out of the spare room recently while I did some system reconfiguration. This is an amp I bought some time ago and kept when I moved to Spectron Monos largely because it was just too difficult to ship anywhere for a sale. After several years of non-use, the left channel acted up so a quick check with BAT had me return part of the amp for repair. Now the design of the VK500 is a true dual mono in one chassis. When one channel needs attention, it is possible to take that side of the amp off and ship it separately, which I did.
BAT, to their great credit, completed an affordable repair and shipped it back promptly, giving me a refreshed left channel. Reinstalling it today, I had to sit back and admire the design of this amp and the quality of the build. Just placing the whole left side back onto the main body showed how tightly and cleanly everything fits together. Even the speaker connectors, when placed through the rear holes in the chassis, not only line up perfectly but are mounted on a metal plate that slides so cleanly onto the back of the chassis that once placed correctly, the whole side fits so precisely that screws were barely needed to complete the assembly. You can take this amp apart and put it back together like a jigsaw that holds itself together. Even the internal wiring is so precisely laid out that, taken apart and lacking any visual instructions on reassembly, the wires practically point out where they want you to make the connection. Yes, it's heavy, it's large, and it gets warm, but this amp is testimony to a form of design and manufacture that screams 'high end' in the most literal sense. Back in one piece, it sounds wonderful again. Talk about built to last, if you see one used, grab it. Well done BAT.
BAT, to their great credit, completed an affordable repair and shipped it back promptly, giving me a refreshed left channel. Reinstalling it today, I had to sit back and admire the design of this amp and the quality of the build. Just placing the whole left side back onto the main body showed how tightly and cleanly everything fits together. Even the speaker connectors, when placed through the rear holes in the chassis, not only line up perfectly but are mounted on a metal plate that slides so cleanly onto the back of the chassis that once placed correctly, the whole side fits so precisely that screws were barely needed to complete the assembly. You can take this amp apart and put it back together like a jigsaw that holds itself together. Even the internal wiring is so precisely laid out that, taken apart and lacking any visual instructions on reassembly, the wires practically point out where they want you to make the connection. Yes, it's heavy, it's large, and it gets warm, but this amp is testimony to a form of design and manufacture that screams 'high end' in the most literal sense. Back in one piece, it sounds wonderful again. Talk about built to last, if you see one used, grab it. Well done BAT.
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