Well; ARC and CJ don't sound all that great to my ears. Truth be told I'd rather have an Eico HF 86 anyday than either of them. I think ARC is too regulated and sounds dry. CJ has too much old tube sound. To all contemplating building kits; take a look at this site; DIYCLUB.Biz. You may be surprised. There are three guys already on the DIYTube forum that have very favorable reports on this stuff. These reports are from respectable sources. At the price there is no going wrong. I think the future of DIY lies in this direction. They have the enthusiasm that is now lacking in the kit scene. Thats why; I think the GC's are so big. More fun at not bank-breaking prices designed to provide the money to send someones kid to Harvard. Kits in this country seem to be at the point the high end was at 15 yrs ago. Except Pi Loudspeakers of course. Still reigning best bang for the buck.