CJ CT-5 vs. CT-6

I guess I would qualify as a owner of both the CT6 & CT5 so I will comment. I owned the CT6 with a pair of Harbeth SHl5's and it was an outstanding performer. I then switched to a very revealing speaker and with the CT6 something was missing. I then bought a CT5 and with my new speakers the magic was back. Moral of the story if you have really revealing speakers the CT5 will shine otherwise the CT6 will sound great with a less revealing speaker.

I owned the CT-6 and listened to the CT-5 quite extensively when I was thinking of upgrading. No comparison between the two IMO. The CT-5 is much more refined, with more extension at both ends, particularly the bass, again IMO. But unless your looking for the more "modern" transparent CJ sound, do yourself a favor and look/listen to a Premier 16II. Hand's down the better pre.

Ah, the one of the joys of being an audiophile... the luxury of arguing over which great preamp is "better".

I have heard the Premier 16 (not a MkII) on several occasions, and I concur that it is a great amp. Without having heard them together, I would say that the Premier 16, Premier 17 and the CT-5 all share a very similar sound. I will leave it to each person to decide which is "best".

But I will add again that, IMO, the CT-6 has very a very similar sonic signature, just not as much of it. It is really a remarkable Preamp for the it's price on the used market. If one can afford one of the more expensive models, then please do so.