I'm not sure about the failure rates but I just received my M3 that I bought on ebay during one of their $15 off 50 coupon deals and I absolutely love it. I just downgraded from the Schiit Modi 2 Uber & Vali 2 combo. My ears are just not good enough to discern the differences and I listen to my Swan M200MKIII's much more. So the M3 was a better value for the money for me.