Differences between Accuphase C-2820 and C-3800?

Classact..I have heard the C-2810 but not the C-2820. The C-2820 is a far superior design to the 2810 and is definitely in the same league as the C-3800. The whole idea behind the C-2820 was to make a Preamp that comes within inches of the C-3800. Arturo with Axiss
in CA. is the Accuphase Distributor in the States and listened to the C-2820 at a show in Tokyo in late 2011 and told me its 90% of the performance of the C-3800. Jonathan with Perfect Note Audio in Mass. who is one of the top two Accuphase retailers in the country says the same thing. The C-3800 does not sell well for Accuphase so they decided to dump all their C-3800 tech stuff into the C-2820. The C-2820 has a newer and better designed volume gain control that is superior to the one in the C-3800. If you can afford it, the C-2820 is a steal compared to the C-3800.

Audiozen, I do not agree with what you are saying. Firstly, with Accuphase (and any serious manufactures for that matter) there are no quantum leaps in performance from one generation to the other. The new generation is most often "only" a fine tuned version of the previous one. Sometimes this is for the better other times is not. In my experience, to talk about significant advancements in Accuphase products one has to compare products that are at least two generations apart. Secondly, in the hope of selling a C-2820 any dealer will tell you any kind of crap, e.g. last time we talk about Accuphase preamps you said that Arturo from Axiss told you that the C-2820 puts out 98% of the performance of C-3800. Now he things it is only 90% there…

Bvdiman, what has happened with you virtual system page? I've just looked for it, hoping you had a chance to test the DG-38 and the PD-1220 but I was not able to find it. I also do not see it anymore next to your avatar.

Nvp..you obviously haven't read the technical changes on the Accuphase website. Just one of many major changes is using superior circuit boards that were not in the C-2810 such as glass cloth flourocarbin resin boards. The power supply in the 2820 is larger with bigger toroidal transformers and larger capacitors. The multiple circuit boards have a larger amount of small caps and components.
This is a major upgrade not a minor one and Accuphase has a reputation when putting out new models to put them on a higher level than the previous one. I was off the mark saying 98% but it is accurate that Arturo did state 90%. Again, the reason for the 2820 is that the C-3800 is a slow mover for Accuphase since it sells for over $40K and the 2820 will capture greater buying power since its almost half the price.

Audiozen,

First, I have actually read the user manuals of the C-2810 and C-2820 (also of C-2800) pre-amps, and also compared the guts of these pre-amps based on what it is written in the manuals. The three pre-amps are part of the same family and share very similar circuits layout and circuit boards. However, unlike you, I know that teflon is - a polymer made of fluoro-carbon. (Teflon is also known as PTFE, i.e. polytetrafluoroethylene.) Now if you read the manuals of the older Accuphase premium preamps, e.g. C-2800 and C-290V, you will learn that Accuphase is using flouro-carbon resin (sometimes referred in the manual as "flourocarbon" resin other times as teflon) for its circuit boards since 1999. Thus, not such a new thing!

Second, Japan is the most important market for Accuphase. They sell more than 50 percent of their production locally! The second largest market for Accuphase is Germany, and chances are that USA represent a very small (if not insignificant) percent of the Accuphase market. Since in Japan the C-3800 is only 50 percent more expensive than the C-2820, I am very sure Accuphase sells enough C-3800 in Japan, and that it is not at all worried by the low numbers of C-3800 sold in USA. In fact, if you would know anything about Accuphase (e.g. how arrogant and pride their owners are, or the fact that the important Accuphase international distributors are chosen among relatives of the Accuphase owners) you would not for a second claim that Accuphase dumped they top of the line technology into the C-2820 preamp just because the C-3800 was too expensive to be sold in USA. That is dealer talk!

Third, unlike you, I find it silly to express my opinions here when I do not have first hand experience with a product. (A year ago you told me and Dave that the C-2820 gives 98% of the performance of C-3800 but admitted that you have never listen the C-2810 and the C-2820; now after you have apparently listened the C-2810, you say that the C-2820 gives only 90% of the performance of C-3800. How do you come up with these numbers?). Moreover, I find it very wrong to give advice to somebody based on what you were told by your dealer, or on experience gain only by reading reviews and/or user manuals (which you obviously do not fully understand)!