Tube Pre-Amp Recommendation


Im new to this forum but have spent few months reading into posts. The more i read the more i get confused on my first purchase of a Good quality Tube Pre-amp. At this very moment I have always used Solid states pre-amp but after hearing the Audio Research Arc Ref 5 and 3 I am on the upgrade bug. Considering these units cost allot of money I need some suggestion if there are other Tube Pre-Amp which can either match similar levels to the Arc Ref 5 or better it.

I am not bothered about name brands or looks of the unit rather on how it presents the music to me.
I have not own a Tube Gear before in my life, and not sure on how to go about it. BTW I am in Indonesia (A British Expat Working and Living Here)

Demoing unit is out of the question here, even buying a unit here is so much more expensive then back at home In the UK. I prefer to Buy from USA (Will use a Power converter if needed)

My Current Setup is:
Speakers: Philharmonics 3
Amplifier: Audio GD Master 2 Series Mono Blocks (Will Upgrade Later to Krell, Macintosh or Pass)
CD player: Oppo 95 Using on Board DAC for the time being. Looking to upgrade later on for DAC
Room: Heavily treated, with Foam, Acoustic Panels, Bass Traps in all 4 Corners.

Budget less than 6000 Dollars.

Need Performance Level Matching that of Arc Ref 5Se or better.

Need suggestion and opinion on how to go about this. I prefer fasting sound more to neutral. Slight warm but not too much. I did find Cary SLP05 Pretty Warm, however on Ebay it slipped my fingers otherwise I was going to pull the trigger on that. I will being pairing this with Solid State Amplifier don’t want to get into Power Amps using Tubes for the next few years at least.

Any advise would be appreciated. Thanks Guys
dragon_vibe
Dragon. See my feedback and understand I am a seasoned, experienced and rational aphile. The forum you speak of is a joke and the whole thing just not worth the time given to the keystrokes in this post.

The input impedance is 147k and call the builder Paul for whatever spec you must have. Paul has sold many, many of these Dudes and most just enjoy and don't spend time on posts etc....

These are built like a tank at just shy of 70 pounds with Duelund CAST caps, Shallco attenuators, solid core copper wire throughout, hard wired by Paul one at a time, a forest of large can computer grade capacitors in the power supply, high quality resistors, ceramic tube sockets, an incredible circuit developed by Paul, and a power supply more robust then most amplifiers regardless of cost.

The unit uses 6sn7 tubes and is also tube regulated. No fuses to muck up the signal, rather a very high quality circuit breaker as the on/off. Top quality Cardas connectors throughout. An absolute tank and glorious preamp.

Paul makes every one and he does not have a marketing department, web page consultant etc..... You pay for him, his design, his circuit with no pad for middlemen or marketing. That is why it is reasonably priced.

He can and will tell you more should you call him.

Lots of us Agoners own his stuff and would not deal with or be bothered with dealing with anyone or any piece of gear not top notch.

I hope to only be sure you look at all your choices in an educated manner. Some prefer to deal with large companies with no wait time and many people behind the scenes. I happen to like buying from small companies of one or two people. I find this is where brilliance and incredible value and be found. If I need to know something, I ask the man to designed and built it. No need for a fancy spec sheet or whatever.

In terms of seeing or hearing a unit you can call Paul to locate an owner near you. Lots of Dude pics on the net by the way. Even internals.

Have fun!
They are also good preamps as you know Rx8man, but the Dude is so special I sometimes must let others know. I realize a potential buyer must be comportable buying from a small operation.

Dragon, forgot to mention that Paul makes Dudes to suit whatever needs you have. So Dudes have different inputs, outputs, tubes types etc... to fit what you want. This makes it impossible to print one set of specs as you can imagine. For example my Dude has two 6sn7 tubes per channel instead of one for more gain.....
Grannyring,

Will have to find and research into this, spending 6000 grand on a pre-amp from user rave reviews on here is a some anmount of risk taking.

I am finalsing my list to the following:

Dodd (Used this with my Theatre Setup)
Coincident Statement
Dude
VAC

I will try to find pictures of the internal of dude. I did request it from Paul. If yuou guys can share pictures i would like to see them.
Does The Dude offer a free home trial period? That may work for you Dragon_vibe.