Which preamp? Audible Illusions Rogue Audio ARC


I am currently looking for a preamp to build up my system.
I've read many good reviews of the Audible Illusions M3A or L-1 , Rogue Audio magnum 99 and some Audio Research pre.
Budget on used equipment : approx $900 - $1400

Can any kind audiogon folks pls help advise on which pre-amp I should get? I think I might prefer a tube preamp.
Any new suggestions to compliment my setup are highly welcome.
Thank you all in advance!

Existing equipment:

Sony XA777ES CD Player
McCormack DNA 0.5 Rev. A
DIY Scan-speak speakers.
Mostly Cardas Cables.

Best Regards
tankaiyiap
Tankaiyiap

You probably wouldn't go wrong with any of these amps and I don't have any hands on expreience with the first two however I have owned two ARC pre-amps(one a SS pre and the other a hybrid) and I love them. Firstly, the build quality is almost to the extreme, but more importantly, is the sound. They have that beautiful combination of inner detail and all the minute nuances and the ability to project all details from the very, very soft to the extreme loud passages with ease and complete revelation of all the music. They tend to be neither hard nor soft but realistically right.

Whatever your choice, all the best and good listening.

Regards,

AEW
i havent owned rouge audio but i have owned the other 2.

the local dealer in southern cal ( wont mention thier name) but they have stopped carrying rouge because of reliablity issues, he mentioned that 1 out of 3 had to be returned. that is a 33 % failure rate.

the reliability between arc & audible is very good. the later arc version ( ss and tube) are a little more accurate than cj and audible.

alot depends on tube vs solid state, budget and remote control, etc... after living with a remote control, it is now mandatory. something to consider in looking.

i would set a budget and ask for suggestions and go from there. there is ALOT to choose from.

hope that helps !!

mike
It's hard to go wrong with Audio Research, which has very good sound, great reliability and terrific customer support. You might try to pick up an LS15, which I'd say would make you very happy. Try to get one of the later units because it would have the Infinicap upgrade.

The local audio/video shop quit carrying Rogue because about every other unit was defective. And Audible Illusions has some major customer support issues. Happy listening.