It is an excellent preamp! I'd prefer to pay a bit less for it though. Say, $1500.
Audio Research SP17
Fellow Gear Fans,
I have the opportunity to purchase an SP17 in very good condition, gone over on a bench, for around $1,700. I'd appreciate any comments, pros or cons. I have two Pass Camp Amps that I can run as Monoblocks with it, if that would be a good match. Other suggestions welcome. Speakers I can use are Klipsch Forte II's with Crites upgrades or Heresy's -- both sets of speakers are from 1985 and 1987. I also have Polk Audio 10B's from 1988. Phono Preamp is KC Vibe, and turntable choices are Dual CS-5000, Rega P8, or Linn Sondek LP12. Thanks!
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@skucie -- Here are the tech specs from the Pass Camp Amps. I believe your answer is 10 kohm.
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@jasonbourne52 -- Yeah, I would like to get it for a little less. However, it is not a private sale, it's being sold by a friend who owns a High-End audio store (reps Vinnie Rossi, SME, Dynaudio, KEF, Octave, Dr. Fieckert, Naim, etc.), so I know he has high overhead costs. He did spend the money having it completely cleaned and gone over on a test bench, and it comes with the original box and functional remote. I'm a softie with friends, LOL. In his defense, he has cut me some good deals in the past -- and he always drives me to concerts within an hour and half radius so I can get "music prepared" and have a designated driver. THAT'S worth an extra $200! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
@dekay -- Pardon my newbiness, but why do you say this? Does this AR use a type tube that isn't made anymore, is access to the tubes difficult, etc.? I'm not sure what you mean and I don't want to go into something blindly. Thanks in advance.
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OP, Audio Research has chosen relatively new, made specifically for high end audio tubes. So these are not tubes made decades ago and have all sorts of variations. Personally, I buy Audio Research to sound like they intended it to sound like, not all sorts of variations. But their are lots of folks that love playing around with the sound by changing the brand of tube… to something made in the 1940’s or some new gold plated thing out of China. Personally I am not looking for greater variability, I am looking for the right sound for me and Audio Research with the tubes that come with it are what I like. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
@ghdprentice -- Thank you very much for that bit of information. I was not aware of ARC's use of "specific" tubes that may limit "tube rolling". However, with this type of gear I'm in the same boat as you...I would be happy to stay with the "sound" ARC intended the piece to sound like. When it comes to other tube gear that I have that is Chi-Fi (such as Reisong A10 or Willsenton R8), however, I do enjoy playing around with different tubes to change the sonic signature. Again, thanks for the info. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
From the SP17 manual:
It seems your amps may not mate well with the SP17. I don't know the extent of the implications in the real world. The SP17 is still a fantastic preamp. |
