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AES/CARY Sixpac Mono Amps,Anyone have these?

I started to re-discover tubes and came across thses amps in The Absolute Sound and noticed there are only a few places where these can be purchased.
My Cary dealer here in Arizona can't even get a pair for me to demo.
Seems like the internal company(AES)within Cary itself just wants you to buy them and like them.
I did hear the Cary V12,and really liked it alot but can't afford the amp.These seem to be on the same structure as the V12.For the money they are probally pretty good.The only few reviews on them are (old) and from the origial debut of the amps.
I never see any of them for sale from private owners.
Is there anyone out there that have these amps and can give some more personal input on them?
Likes/Dislikes..anything??
I am demoing a pair of (Manley) MAHI amps and they are sounding not bad for a low wattage amp.I am enjoying them in Triode mode @20wpc...Hence the couriousity of the Sixpacs running Triode mode @ 50wpc....plus some of the extra upgrades offered them.Looking foward to hearing all comments.
Gordon
dgordonl
mattybumpkin
590 posts
 
FYI - Rolling the stock 12BZ7 for a RCA or GE NOS 12BZ7 is a nice improvement.

Regards,
sburton
29 posts
 
Trelja,
Sorry to have to disagree. The Sixpacs are very comparable to the V12R. I have heard both back-to back at the Cary factory. The Sixpacs and V12R share the same circuit and parts (per Kirk O. at Cary). Dennis H. indicated, in his interview on Positive-Feedback, the sixpacs sounded better than the V12i and it was "embarrasing." Therefore, he had to upgrade the V12i to the "R" specification by adopting the 12BZ7 input tube (like the pacs). Both amps make great music, that's for sure.
nrenter's avatar
nrenter
766 posts
 
Love the Sixpacs....and love the AE-3 DJH pre-amp as well.

Very under-rated hardware.
trelja
3,224 posts
 
Thanks for your perspective, Sburton.

Were I at the Cary factory, perhaps my experience would have paralled yours. However, with the Cary CDP, preamp, and DeVore Fidelity speakers I heard them with, the sound between the two amplifiers was markedly different. I am not sure if the statement quoted to you was 100% true, as the only component changed out was the amplifier itself. Perhaps they are more load dependent via transformer and coupling cap differences, etc., and the speaker I listened to showed that more than what you one heard? Again, nice to have your insight.
sburton
29 posts
 
Trelja,
When you compared the Sixacs and V12R was the V12 by chance running in UL mode? That would definitely sound different. I did not get to hear the v12r in UL so I can't offer opinion, but it should sound less tubey with tighter bass as you described. If triode vs. triode then I can't account for the difference you heard. But then again I only got to compare them for a short time. Perhaps they do indeed sound less alike than I thought during that brief comparison. Makes me want to hear the v12r again. Thanks for your thoughts. Happy listening...
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