Audio research REF 5 SE / REF 40th Ann compared ?

You might want to look at the Ref 40 review in the January 2011 issue of TAS, by, IIRC, Jon Valin. He did refer to the Ref 3 and the Ref 5 in the review.

But not the 5SE.

The 5SE is a lot closer to the 40th AE. But like with most things in hifi, the laws of diminishing returns applies.

If you have the dosh for the AE, by all means get it. It's a limited edition device and is still the reference standard from ARC.

The 5SE makes sense if you already have the 5. The incremental cost IMHO makes it a no brainer to upgrade.

Let's change the Q. Has anyone critically compared the Ref 5 to the Ref 5 SE version? If so, please share comments. I ask because I am on ARC's wait list for the SE upgrade. At this point, because of component supply issues, ARC will likely not get to me until late summer. Btw, the upgrade isn't cheap: $2500. Is it worth it?