integrated tube reccommendations

FWIW, I got a good deal on the Cary SLI-80 signature, about a year ago.

I decided to give it a try, and man, it is the best looking, most quality-exuding piece I'fe ever owned. IT is beautifully made, that is for sure. I put the Rogue in the corner, and just listened to the cary for a while.
I documented the whole affair in a thread here. If you don't feel like reading it, the Cary, even with $500 worth of NOS tubes, some, the best or certainly within the top 5 tubes of their type, ever made, still wouldn't out "real" the Rogue.

I WANTED to love the Cary, its so damn pretty, but in the end, the rogue won out.

Next, I had Unison SR-1, very pretty. GREAT sound, for a hybrid. THe sound is almost tubelike, the bass is a bit flabby, and there is a bit of Solidstate haze on the top end, but for the money, a damn fine amp. The Cary's major flaw, lack of depth of soundstage, and lack of a believable illusion that the sound wasn't coming from the speakers, was a strength of the Unison. It had a great stage, but, with that slight SS haze, the ROgue wins again.

Anyway, I realize people are biased toward what they own.
But, since I've owned all 3 of these, I think that I'm not quite as biased as someone who hasn't. The Rogue, at least in my system, was the best, and surprisingly, not the most expensive.

IF you can live with a 2-D soundstage, the Cary will never fail to elicit a "wow" from a friend upon seeing it. Plus, tehy are another small company that has good customer service.

Try to listen to the Rogue if you can, it just might save you some cash.
You should try to listen to one.

Manley would be my pick. Audio jewelry too.

I've heard the rogue stuff, and think the Cary stuff smokes it. How's that for different strokes for different folks! The two problems you have with Cary have been strengths in my past systems.

Agreed, audition in your system is mandatory...

Keith.

Hit my thread link in the above post.
I agree that the Cary SE stuff probably does.
But, from the sound of your post, it isn't clear that:
A) you were comparing Tempest to SLI-80 SIG, and not just some Rogue you heard somewhere, some time ago, to some Cary you heard somewhere else, some other time.
b) you tried several combinations of tubes with each to maximize their potential
C) THis was done while you had both pieces in your home, or side by side in a demo system, at once.
D) You had a long time to make up your mind.

Like I mentioned, I had the Cary for several months, and for the first few weeks, the only question was, how much was I going to start the bidding at for the Rogue.

I'm glad it wasn't a "home audition" for the weekend, as I would have definitely bought the Cary.

Anyway, just supporting my opinion. Cheers to all, and happy Thursday.

Hi,

As a dealer I like the Consonance MI00Plus that recently received an excellent review from Soundstage. An overall musical,natural and emotionally involving amp that like all the Consonance products connects the listener to the music.The difference between hearing and feeling the performance.

Enjoy!
audiolon.com