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Audio Research REF 3

Dear all ARC REF 3 owners,
I just bought an REF 3 preamp which has replaced my LS25MKII preamp. To be honest i'm little disappointed by the result so far, but i guess tubes have to be replaced. My concern is especially on the sound image which is not precise as my LS25MKII image was.
The number of hours of used displayed by the my REF 3 is 1670 but i realized that hours counter increased only for full hours of used, so i can estimate the number of hours of the tubes inside my REF 3 to be the double i guess.
My question is the following
What do you recommend for tubes replacement and source for the replacement of REF 3 tubes.
I used sovtek, EH gold, and 6H30-DR on my LS25MKII and i was pleased with all those tubes even if i didn't find the DR much better than the 2 other brands.
Thanks in advance
ARCL60
arcl60

Showing 6 responses by guidocorona

guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
I have owned a Ref 3 for a couple of years. The lifespan estimates made by ARC for all tubes as applied in this device are extremely optimistic. The 6550C shows some sag at 900 hrs and usually needs to be replaced by 1100. In my unit the driver tubes had lost their bounce by 1700 hrs. I have tried a couple of different tube variants, but prefer the transparency/clarity/linearity/detail of 6550C and 6H30s supplied by ARC. You will find a good discussion on 6550C alternatives here:
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?aamps&1201144495&openfrom&1&4#1

Before any serious evaluation of your Ref 3, give it fresh tubes and break them in for 100 hrs or so.

G.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Yes, Ref 3 is much more dynamic and quieter than LS25 Mk2. The old ARC silver-gray sheen is gone completely. The sound is very focused, has loads more authority, and harmonic complexity than LS25 Mk.2. . . . but it is not at all leaner. On the other hand, Ref 3 is in general not an idiosyncratically 'tuby' sounding linestage. . . it is rather linear instead, at least for a tubed device. If anyone were interested in giving their Ref 3 a golden glow, try to put a new production Tungsol 6550 in the power supply. I personally prefer the linearity of the factory supplied SED Winged 6550C. G.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Hans, the bypass caps installation is apparently a simple matter that can be done by any technician. ARC supplies instructions/schematics with the caps. Best to contact ARC directly and speak to Leonard. Guido
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
According to ARCDB.WS, only 1 revision was ever made to Ref 3, and this was about 6 months after release. . . the 6G6 in the power supply was replaced by the SED 6550C, and 4 bypass caps were added. . . the bypass caps were apparently planned since day 1, but were not available from the supplier at first customer ship date. See:
http://www.arcdb.ws/REF3/REF3.html
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Laurent, I do not have direct experience with 6L6GC. . . however, according to ARC, the SED 6550C is supposed to yield greater extension, linearity, and authority than 6L6GC. G.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Michl, you need to contact Audio Research directly. Here is the ARC page on Audiogon:
http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/manu.pl?audioresearch&1&showmanu&Audio+Research
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