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Tubed Preamp


Macallan

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I am in the market for a Tubed preamp and have narrowed the choices to the JM Peach, the new Cary Audio SLP 03 or the Rogue Perseus. Any suggestions? I have RF-7s and a B&K 200.2 amp at the moment and use a Rotel RSX-1056 as a preamp. I am looking to improve soundstage depth and achieve a more 3D sound. The Peach looks perfect but so does the Cary SLP 03, the Rogue also has everything. Thanks.

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"Cary SLP 03"

I had one of these....nice pre-amp...person who I sold it to also liked it.   the cary SLP 03 I had uses a tube rectified power supply.


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Rogue Magnum 99 tubed preamp (used on Audiogon, or new) is the best way to go. I use one and the four 6SN7 tubes are some of the best tubes you can use for signal and are highly tweekable, depending on how you like your music. The customer service with Rogue Audio is great, and they're well-made in Pennsylvania. Their integrated amps are terrific, too, and worth considering if you want an all-in-one package. I also have the Atlas, but got one custom-made to operate in triode mode, 4-ohm outputs, and all the component upgrades from the other better products in his inventory. I've also owned the Magnum M120 KT88 tubed monoblocks. Fantastic company, great quality. If their prices are high, find them on Audiogon preowned. Cary will be too laid back with excessive tonal shift. Rogue is only slightly laid back from neutral (although many tube lovers find that their KT88 push-pull triode-mode amps sound too much like solid state), but have a huge, wide, and deep soundstage.

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seaster,

where are you in Central Florida? I live in Oviedo and would be interested in listening to your rig. You are also more than welcome to come by and hear mine as well. I have a Juicy Music Audio BlueBerry Xtreme and there are no complaints here...

Mike

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Tone controls just add more stuff in the signal path and make it less pure. It's easy to muck up the sound. Tonal balance is best performed through system matching (which can take some trial and error until you can get the feel for what goes well with what). Tube amps are perfect for this because you can easily swap out a different set up tubes and shift the tonal balance,... IMO, of course.

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Tone controls just add more stuff in the signal path and make it less pure. It's easy to muck up the sound. Tonal balance is best performed through system matching (which can take some trial and error until you can get the feel for what goes well with what). Tube amps are perfect for this because you can easily swap out a different set up tubes and shift the tonal balance,... IMO, of course.

Never missed the tone controls.

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Another thing about the Peach besides the Home Theatre bypass.... (Not that I'm the Peach cheerleader or anything - it's just that I have it, know it, appreciate & like it).... And IDK about the other preamps you mentioned or if others do this , but the Peach is interesting in that it can essentially be 2 preamps in one. You have Hi-Z and Lo-Z mode. Hi-Z uses one of the 3 main tubes. Lo-Z uses 2, a pair. If you wanted, you could put one brand/feel of a tube in the Hi-Z slot, and 2 of another brand/feel in the 2 Low-Z slots. Switching between Hi & Lo-Z, you can attain 2 different vibes at your whim with the flick of a switch. Again, excuse my ignorance of other preamp designs cuz for all I know, many do that. I just think it's an interesting feature of the Peach.

And last I heard, he's working on a remote. I personally think that's a big deal.

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Another thing about the Peach besides the Home Theatre bypass.... (Not that I'm the Peach cheerleader or anything - it's just that I have it, know it, appreciate & like it).... And IDK about the other preamps you mentioned or if others do this , but the Peach is interesting in that it can essentially be 2 preamps in one. You have Hi-Z and Lo-Z mode. Hi-Z uses one of the 3 main tubes. Lo-Z uses 2, a pair. If you wanted, you could put one brand/feel of a tube in the Hi-Z slot, and 2 of another brand/feel in the 2 Low-Z slots. Switching between Hi & Lo-Z, you can attain 2 different vibes at your whim with the flick of a switch. Again, excuse my ignorance of other preamp designs cuz for all I know, many do that. I just think it's an interesting feature of the Peach.

And last I heard, he's working on a remote. I personally think that's a big deal.

He is and it's supposed to be out in the very near future. I'm probably gonna purchase one!!
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