What is Audio Researches best preamp period

Bbaxley2

Here is a great website for ARC material:

http://www.arcdb.ws/

Nah. I just dismissed the Ref3 after 2 weeks in the system. Same way I dismissed the LS5mkIII/Ref1/Ref2. To my ears they simply don't have the bloom the L5mkII has. Maybe it's because I'm driving two ARC SS amps (D-400mkII). It started with the LS5mkIII when they changed out the 6922 input stage tubes for JFETs. The Ref1/Ref2 were very similar circuits to the LS5mkIII. The Ref3 has a new basic circuit that to my ears sounds closer to the Ref2. Very clean and very good but not in a way that made me want to swap out my LS5mkII. But I definitely can see the appeal of all the Ref series pres. They are certainly outstanding and I'm glad you're enjoying yours. Although I can't imagine anyone NOT enjoying one of them.

Well tempers go here and there, ARC is not on my list anymore after hearing others either,, I did own the LS3 and a 7, one tube one solid state, both built very well and well just not the most emotional sounding or musical in a sense, but to be fair these models are only the mid grade, kinda dry to be honest, would I buy again?? Not sure but if it made magic in a given system sure, but I find the ARC sound to finicky and yes in my opinion a somewhat "House sound", really have found much more universally friendly preamps myself and even at far less money, but the big names will alway raise a fuss in the audiophile community, basically if we all believed that a Mark levinson amp is the end all be all for every situation and price then it would be a perfect world, so expand the horizons and use your experiance to tilt the tone of the system the way you want it. Go for ARC if you are simply happy with the unit you have and want to get more of it out of a model up the food chain, nothing wrong with it.

Why does it have to be ARC?? That doesn't make any sense.

Bbaxley2

I have owned several ARC preamps including: SP6C, SP9 MKI, SP9 MKII, SP14, LS2B MKI and LS2B MKII. I currently own the LS25 MKI, which I am using with NOS 6H23 6922. With better tubes the LS25 MKI (sans the 6H30, and FET input) is an extremely musical performer. With the NOS 6H23 it equals the LS25 MKII in bass articulation and extension and exceeds it in terms of liquidity and musicality. The LS25 MKI can be purchased for under $2000 used. It is highly recommended.

Note:

I never experienced that "brightness" in the LS2B alluded to above. The MKII version was significantly more natural sounding than the MKI. I used the LS2B MKI/II mainly with an ARC D115 MKII, which had a rich (not overly warm) tonal balance. I used the previous preamps with an ARC D76A (which had the classic tube sound) as well as the D115 MKII.