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Audio Research Preamp with Cary Amp?

I'm putting together a system from scratch with almost no way of auditioning everything together beforehand due to limited dealers in my area. So far I have a set of Cary 805C amps, which I plan to use with ProAc D38's.

Looking for a preamp to go with these, I've sorta narrowed my search down to the Cary SLP 98 or the Audio Research LS17. Based on reviews, I'm leaning towards the LS17 because I like the idea of matching the warm quality of the 805C's with a slightly more neutral preamp. I believe the SLP 98 has a more "tubey" presentation with slightly rolled off frequency extremes. The LS17 seems like a decent compromise, and there are plenty used ones available.

Has anybody heard the Cary 805's with the LS17 or other similar AR preamp. Is it heresy to use Cary and Audio Research together?
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Showing 3 responses by brf

brf
1,715 posts
 
Having the SLP-98 directly coupled will give you a faster pre-amp with extended highs and tighter and deeper bass, less tubey sound. Tubes that I know work well in the SLP-98 are as follows: Order of preference.

TungSol black oval (round) plates, blackglass, oval mica (very expensive)
Sylvania 6SN7GT blackplate bottom getter 1950-52 "Badboys" (expensive but can be found for a decent price if patient)
6H8C Russian Military 6SN7GT metal base (well priced excellent performance)
Sylvania Tall Boy 6SN7GT (great value, great tube)
Sylvania VT-231 (for $100/pr, a no brainer)
Ken Rad 6SN7GT - VT-231 JAN (same as above)
brf
1,715 posts
 
The Cary SLP-98 can be tailored to suit your personal taste and needs. Based on your criteria, a SLP-98 directly coupled with F1 upgrades would be an ideal match. The Cary SLP-98 uses the very versatile 6SN7 tubes which you can roll to further tailor the sound to your personal taste.

The AR17 is a fine amp and I have not heard it with the 805s, but please note that you are limited to tube selection due to the application of the 6H30 tube.
brf
1,715 posts
 
The F1 is Upscale's proprietary branding, but you can order the same pre-amp modification through any Cary dealer or send you existing pre-amp back to Cary for an update. 6SN7 tubes are not that expensive with a nice pair going for around $65/pr up to the best available at $250/pr.
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