PS Audio vs. Cary

Wow, you're looking at a pretty big difference in types of gear. Why did you settle on the PS Audio, and the Cary gear?

Ultimately I'd say the two are in a similar range of products, but don't have a lot in common. My experience with the PS Audio is in a poor room with lots of folks milling around so I don't know how much validity my comments would have, but given the two main choices and assuming you cannot audition them in your room, I would prefer the Cary's. Do they have an auto bias feature, or are you going to have to learn the little ins and outs of tube gear?

I must say before getting too far that I am not a fan of digital amps, so take that into consideration when weighing my comments.

I don't think you will be making a bad choice regardless of which two you choose, but you will have a bunch of people coming along and recommending thier favorite gear which you hadn't even considered, or have already decided against. Good luck, try to stay sane throughout the process.

Thanks Nrchy and Clio,

I know very little about tube gear other than the rave reviews this equipment gets on Audiogon. I am considering the tube products because the JmLabs are a tad bright and I wanted to match them with warmer components. In addition, the speakers are effiecient and will not need a great deal of power to drive them.

Thanks again

Shimanole,
The Cary's you're looking at are pretty low maintenance. They would also be a good intro to tube gear without a large investment. If you move up to a Rocket and SLP then you really are making a committment (albeit at still a small investment) to tubes that should be done with conviction. Tubes are not for everyone. Your thoughts on mellowing out the JmLabs is a good one, but I'm sure there is a lot of equipment out there that will work well with them - ss and tube.

I am a bit biased towards Cary, but in your price range you may also want to consider Anthem, Jolida, Golden Tube, and perhaps some of the Chinese manufacturers that will provide more bang for the buck at perhaps the expense of reliability.

I dont have any experience with ps audio,but i can tell you that cary make great gears for the money.I would take clio09 advice on the slp 88/94 pre over the 308..I am currently using cary 2a3 with slp98 and it s a match made in heaven..good luck with your system..

I have heard Cary, Bryston and Proceed. While they are good, I think you can do better new and on Audiogon for the money. You might want to consider an Ayre amp. For soundstage and air I don't think you can beat a V-3 amp for $1000-1200 used. If you can afford it, Ayre's new stuff is a huge step up though. I believe a simple A-B test with an Ayre amp vs any of the equipment you listed will show Ayre's strengths. I have also heard many pre/pros. Arcam and Anthem stood out over Cary and Bryston in my system.