Haven't tried the Cary, but love my RM9 mill with el34's. A great value and excellent sound quality.
Cary Audio Design CAD-120s mkII or Music Reference RM-9 MkII?
Looking at these 2 amps as a upgrade from my Dynaco Mkiii's, both the Cary and M R are listed on 'gon for about the same price around 2K, hoping for any input on SQ and experience on either of them.
Would be going to into my 2nd system:
Altec 604's
primaluna dialogue premium preamplifier
Source for this mostly digital and music is classic rock and Jazz.
thanks for your input
Would be going to into my 2nd system:
Altec 604's
primaluna dialogue premium preamplifier
Source for this mostly digital and music is classic rock and Jazz.
thanks for your input
10 responses Add your response
Dog sport, My vote is for the rm9,I've owned both but not at the same time.I'm just not a fan of the kt88 tube in general and much prefer the sweetness of the el34. I also think the rm9 would be a better match to the 604's Are the 604's stock or have they been upgraded by Great Plains audio along with the crossover networks. Best of luck to you, Kenny. |
Recently, one of my PSE Studio V solid state mono blocks failed. While considering whether to repair, a dear friend loaned me his (idle at the moment) RM-9. I've had hybrid pre-amps from Audio Research for many years, but never owned an all tube amplifier. So far, after just a couple serious auditions, I don't know if I'll be going back to solid state. The RM-9 is really bowling me over; awesome micro detail with that beloved rich mid-range. And the bass control is better than I expected. |
@spe Glad you lucked into the RM-9 experience. I love my RM9 MK2 with vintage RFT "Siemens" EL34 tubes. Also sounds great with Gold Lion KT88's. It's a great all-around amp that's difficult to beat in the $4K price range if properly maintained and tubed. |
Fortunately, my friend, who I bought it from, had just retubed it with EL34's; so, I have a lot of time left before I need to invest in new tubes. One tweak I am considering (though I will speak with Jim first) is having a port installed on the amps' power cord end (currently hard wired), to enable the use of an upgraded cord. But, I still love the amp. |
Don't count out the Cary. While I've never heard the RM-9, I did get a long audition of the CAD-120. It was a wonderful sounding amp, that I think can take a bunch of different power tubes with a bias adjustment (probably like most amps). With the meters on the front, it's easy to keep an eye on the bias. |
I think you meant to say balanced inputs … Steves RM-9 was lovingly restored by an awesome Music Reference tech at Brooks Berdan. It sports RAM EL34 but I also have a set of RAM 6550 I owe him. All of Roger’s designs are very neutral. The Cary also an excellent amplifier is more lush and romantic in my experience. I miss Roger, RIP genius! jim |