I am new to this group, so I hope I do this right. I have a Phase Linear Andromeda III Motion Control Unit. About 7 years ago in Seattle, I ran into a gentleman who worked at Phase Linear for 10 years, starting less than a year after Bob Carver started the Company. Turned out he had a storage unit, with the usual household items, and about 25 pieces of Phase Linear gear, mostly amps and preamps, one of their big cassette recorder and one set of the Andromeda speakers. (He said he got all the equipment in lieu of pay. Toward the end Mr. Carver - always a better engineer than businessman - had serious trouble making payroll. These pieces were his "final paycheck,") He had everything at his house for about a year, and then put it in a storage room, the first of three he used. He never did anything with any of the pieces. Just kept them in a storage room.
Unfortunately, he told me he had not been in the current storage unit for 15 years. It showed it. Some of the electronics had been covered, but not the Andromeda system. The wood on the panels was covered with mold, and badly pitted. About a two condition wise. None of the plastic pieces for the tweeters were there. The base unit - including the drivers - was also covered with mold and the metal frames of the speakers were badly rusted and pitted. The mid range speakers had also been attacked by the elements, and only two of them seemed salvageable for re-coning. He told me he needed to get everything out of the storage unit ASAP, so we agreed on a price, $1500 for everything, and I made two trips with my van and a trailer getting everything gone. I thought about what to do with the Andromeda system. Even realizing its scarcity, resurrecting them was going to be a long and daunting task, and I felt the time was better spent on the electronics. I have a friend who owned a one man stereo repair business for 40 years. I owed him a favor, so when he expressed interest in the Andromeda, I gave them to him with the caveat that if he ever got them working, I had to hear them. Unfortunately, he never did.
Now to the question. Turned out there were two of the Motion Control Modules. I have no use for it. It has been unused for more than 50 years, and may never actually have been used at all. This gentleman showed no interest in what he had or in stereo gear in any way. tested it about 5 years ago and it worked fine. It has been in a box ever since. I would say its condition is solid 8.5 - 9. None have ever been sold on either EBay or Audiogon, so I have no idea of its value. Seems like one of those items that has a very minute number of people who would value such a piece, but to the few who do, it must have some real interest. I would like to sell it. I am not looking to break the bank or hold out for some big price. I would rather see it go to someone who can really use it. If there are no members interested in it, can someone give me an idea of its value, and where you might go to sell it?
