I just purchased an X350.5 with dynaudio 5.4 and I need a preamplifier to make these babies sing. I have looked at so many and don`t have the time to audition. Has anyone ever heard of Zanden line stage 3100?, NAT? Primare A32? Lamm, Any input would be appreciated. I listen to mostly 90 rock, alternative,some country no Jazz.
Audio Research Ref. 3, Ref. 5, or the Ref. 5se.
I am looking to add a Audio Research preamp. Looking at the Ref. 3,5,5se. The 5se is a bit high in price.
I have a Wadia S7i CDP up front with Pass Labs XA100.8 amps. I am using Vandersteen Quarto Wood CT speakers. Witch Audio Research would make the best sense to go with.
Thanks for the help Russ.
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I just bought a used ARC Ref5 SE! The improvement from my previous LS17SE is great especially the balanced in for my home theatre setup. Concert sounded so good now! The used preamp stated about 2600 hours of usage. I read about tube life for Ref5SE, the 6h30p tubes for the preamp part can last 4000 hours while the tubes for the power supply part can only last 2000 hours... does it meant that I should change the tubes already? I was thinking of ordering a set of tubes from tube store... there are 3 options... Original, Premium and Ultimate Package. Original cost $185.70, Premium ( Electro-Harmonix 6H30Pi Gold) cost $209.70. The Ultimate (Reflector 6H30p-DR) cost $1609.70... more than 8 x the price of original tubes! Should I change the tube now and which tube package should I go for? Thanks for the Advice! |
I do not currently own any tube gear in my main stereo (living room). I do have a little tube integrated in my bedroom though. I have been curious about tube gear for a couple years now after having been a solid state guy my whole life. I finally broke the other day and bought a ARC Ref 3 and will be pairing it with my Parasound A21 and Marantz SA15S2 CDP and Klipsch Palladium P38s. Unfortunately, I will not be able to switch out pre amps (current is Parasound JC2-BP) until we reorganize our living room in a couple months. The amp should be here in two days. It is going to drive me crazy to have it and not be able to use it yet. I am really looking forward to hearing this new to me pre. I always hear great things about this amp. |
I keep thinking, yes, ARC make great Amps, but the Pre's seem expensive compared with other brands. I own the ARC Ref 75SE Power amp and although it is expensive, it seems great value for what it does. The Reference 5SE or 5 are well north of $10000 and the 6 is I believe, about $16000. I was planning on the Ref 3, as an ARC Pre I could afford second hand, but I compared it with a Modwright 36.5 and I preferred the Modwright by a small margin, but a big cost saving. That is as an Ex dem Modwright against a second hand Ref 3. |
I tend to recommend the GE 6550A as it is to me the best *All Rounder* its accuracy and neutrality certainly makes an excellent choice for Classical, Rock, Popular, Singer Songwriter, Film Scores etc .etc. Were I to be contemplating an evening of Sinatra, Ella, Lady Sings The Blues, Jazz, Blues, etc. Etc. then I might swap out the GE for an Tung Sol Solid Gray Plate or an late 50's Black, introducing a touch more palpability, Tonal density and Harmonic bloom |
tsushima1, Much appreciated on the tube replacement advice. In regards to the fuse replacment, I'm not going to touch the fuse, I am happy the way it is! No offense, but I am no longer OCD driven and am content with my system within reason. However, I must add I am sort of let down by the Sovtek 6550 tubes that were with the unit upon purchasing. I developed a noise in the right channel attributed to a noisy output stage tube. Not the intermittent burps tubes occasionally develop, this was constant! This only after 150 hours on the unit. I called Audio Research and asked for 2 replacements just in case I had another issue. I replaced the right channel tube and was back to happy listening when suddenly around 300 hours the left channel did the same exact thing! I then replaced it with the spare tube. I am glad I asked for two instead of the one that they were going to originally send out. Since replacing the two that were bad, I have not had any other tube noises since then. I have around 480 hours on the unit now. |
I tend to go with the 'save a little more and stretch for the 5se' advice. statman...If you haven't already? I would highly recommend replacing the 7amp Slo Blo with an Synergistic Red, and the Sovtek 6550 with an NOS or 100%er GE 6550, IMHO the Sovtek sounds hard, glassy and 2 dimensional *In comparison* |
I could not pass up the deal I received on a new inbox Ref 5SE. If you do buy the Ref 3 you will most likely be happy but still have that "what if I had bought the Ref 5SE" question in the back of your mind. It sounds like in your heart you want to buy the Ref 5SE? It has made a huge improvement in my system. The layers in the soundstaging along with amazing imaging all over the place. Instruments and voices are floating in space. The better the recording the more it flushes out. My unit has started to really give that 3 dimensional stage after 400 hours on it. The bass is very powerful and dynamic yet articulate when defining those instruments both acoustic and electric. I have always wanted a tube preamp and the Ref 5SE is the one. Not really liking the cosmetics of the Ref 6 preamp. |
Wlutke ... as a former owner of the Ref 3, let me go on record that I think and always thought it was a terrific linestage ... no qualifications. I think the Ref 3 **IS** a bargain and it still holds its value on the preowned market. There are (were) a couple of Ref 3s for sale on A'gon in the $5K range and they are, as stated, holding their value. |
the guy who designed and built your speakers thinks pretty highly of the 5 SE i believe the advice he gave me was along the lines of giant killer... 2640 hours on mine. ARC bashers for improving the product abound... if you love your model keep it. want an upgrade go that route.. my only beef was the cheap plastic remote..i sprung for metal 3 years in.... |
Asking which ARC gear is better, the cheaper or the more expensive, you're going to get these kind of responses. In defense of the Ref 3, I emphatically state that it is a bargain at the used price. In fact, with the money I saved I upgraded to (used) Nordost Frey 2 and Tyr 2 IC's. That's an upgrade I would do before jumping on a Ref 5SE any day. I would love a 5SE or Quatros - I have 3A Sigs. Until and if I can afford them I'm in no way unhappy - the Ref 3 is that good. |
Agree with David12 comments about the differences between the Ref 3, 5 and 5 SE. I owned all three and currently still own the Ref 5 SE. The only caveat I have is that all the ARC Ref preamps require that the input impedance of the amp NOT be less than 20,000 ohms. I too never heard about a Ref 3 SE model, although I understand that ARC made about 2 dozen Ref 3 LE versions, which had upgraded coupling caps. I am a big fan of ARC gear. I suspect that any of the Ref preamps will match just fine with the rest of your system, which is very impressive. Just confirm that the Pass input impedance is over 20K ohms. Btw, ARC just released a Ref 6 preamp. I surmise that the release of the new model will put a downward pressure on preowned Ref 5 SE pricing .... but in any case, if you can stretch a bit, IME, I would recommend the Ref 5 SE. Cheers, BIF |