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Shindo Auriges vs. Cary SLP98

Hello! I have an opportunity to purchase a Shindo Auriges preamp at a great price, but will have no opportunity to hear it in my system or compare against my existing Cary SLP-98 F1. I have heard great things about the Shindo, so I am tempted to pull the trigger on this deal. Rest of the system is Cary V-12i, Audio Physic Virgos, VPI Scout w/Blackbird, Shanling T-100 CD through modded EAD 7000 DAC, Audience AU24 cabling.
I know this is pretty subjective, but any thoughts?
slaw3
tholt
552 posts
 
One thing to keep in mind is the relatively high output impedance of the Auriges of ~5k ohm.
macdadtexas
1,794 posts
 
Never heard the Shindo, but I have the same Cary as you, and it's the best preamp I have ever owned.
aronsss
110 posts
 
I have had both units in my system and currently on a Monbrison. the Cary has a more romantic sound (even the F1) than the Shindo's. The Aurieges and the Monbrison excel at providing the tonality and musical flow. I believe the Shindo's are the better product to my ears, but the ultimate decision is yours in that your may like the flavor of the Cary better.
The only reservation I would have with the Shindo is that you should not use and interconnect from it to the amp more than 3 meters, the sound will seriously degrade.
Finally, I found Jonathan Halpern the importer of Shindo to be honest and ethical -- a true gentlemen.
vinyljh
46 posts
 
Slaw3,

The Blackbird is a 2.5 mv output cart, this will not work so well with the Aurieges. The Aurieges is a MM preamp which means 3mv minimum.
lars
90 posts
 
Is your slp-98 direct coupled and have you upgraded the 6sn7 tubes? Coupled with my v-12 r, the system seems more dynamic and detailed than it did stock.
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