ARC Ref 5se VS ARC Ref 6

When I got my Ref6, I compared it to the new Foundation LS28, as my shop didn't have a Ref5SE on hand.  I was actually intending to get the LS28 or find a used Ref5SE, but my dealer, who I've worked with quite a bit, had a Ref6 that a good customer had traded in to upgrade to D'Agostino.  The price was (relatively) not too much over the price of the LS28, and there was only about 400 hours on the Ref6.  My research at the time indicated that people thought the new LS28 was pretty close in sound quality to the Ref5SE.

The LS28 was good, but the Ref6 was immediately noticeable as being better.  Everything was more transparent, and there was a definite improvement in the quality of the bass.  When I notice a difference so easily after the several minutes it takes to switch out cables, I'm confident that it's not a small improvement.

I'm going to offer another observation, though.  When the new B&W 800 D3 series came out, I went in to upgrade from my 804 D2's to the new 803 D3.  I ended up selecting the also new Wilson Sabrina instead, and have been very happy with them.  Last summer, though, my dealer offered me almost what I paid for the Sabrina's to upgrade to the new Yvette.  I spent a couple of hours listening to them side by side, through the same gear I'm driving my Sabrinas with at home, and there was no question that the Yvette is a significant step up from the Sabrina.  BUT - once taxes were taken in to account, it was still going to be around $13,000 for the upgrade.

I spent a few days thinking about it, and realized that I was still very happy with the Sabrina's, and if I weren't listening to them so close together I'd be hard pressed to say how big of a difference there really was.

The upshot?  I probably would have felt the same if I got the LS28 instead of the Ref6, especially if I could only get the Ref6 at the new price.  My recommendation is go with a used Ref5SE, get used to its sound in your system, and figure out if you really want the Ref6 when you come across a used one that's more affordable for you.

Agree with most of the posts here. Had a 5, uogrded it to a 5SE > wow, much better. Upgraded it to a demo Ref 6. Could not beleave my ears: much better and more gain. Have always used them with the Shunyata Sigma power cord. Advise: wait till you see a used Ref 6 for a good price. (I paid 7k8 and sold the SE for 5k9). Good luck, Jaap Linde (NL)

I would purchase a Foundation series LS28

I do not have the ref5 or 6 but I have the ref2, the anniversary, the 38s and the krell fpb 600. Generaly the arc preamps  are a much better match to the krells compared to the 38s which is not very good pre anyway. However you also have an even bigger problem in your setup with the amp which is the worst amp produced by krell. To make a big difference to your system I would suggest you buy the cheaper ref3 and spend some money upgrading the krell. I did that with mine and the difference was impressive. I had 128 caps replaced with nichicon gold caps as well as the power supply caps replaced with new ones of the same type. There was a very big improvement in clarity and speed. Ofcourse the sound is not as good as it comes out of the mcx or the krs monos but if you cannot afford them its the next best thing you can do. 

^^^

Panprot19
However you also have an even bigger problem in your setup with the amp which is the worst amp produced by krell.

My personal opinion panprot19; is that if one fails in their attempt to set up a component, especially a popular one, and this component is still in good shape and not in need of a rebuild; well, do not be so hard on yourself. I mean really, this thing weighs 200 lbs, and one needs a dolly to move the box. You could throw more than your back out. Also Mono and Stereo amps both come with their own set of pros and cons. The room itself is the bigger influence. Show us a picture of your room with speakers. For seasoned audiophiles, pictures tell the whole story behind people’s posts and have meaning.
Now I know a number of people that made that amp you seem to hate, one of their final ones. Meaning its staying put not going anywhere. Maybe because it weighs so much ? But who owns just one amp anyway ? that can leave you with no music, if it goes down.

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back to the thread. couple comments that were made

The REF 10 is the standard bearer.

Then suddenly I was offered a chance on a factory Ref 10 demo unit in black and that was too good to pass up.

I have always equated company flagship preamps, you know, the ones that really showcase a company’s talents, to preamps with isolated power supplies and adjustable gain. These features separate the men from the boys, imo.
The Ref 10 checks both these two boxes; but why did it take ARC so long to figure it out again after the flagship models of the past that had these features ? A change in people that do the thinking ?

I do see there is room in the REF 10, to put a phono stage. So why did they not do it; I mean if its a quest for the best sonics ? IMO, A separate additional box, and more cables to hookup phono when dealing with that tiny vinyl signal is not a good thing; except maybe in business and profits.