Jdec,
It will be a sad mistake to abandon looking into this amp based on others opinion. Find a local dealer and audition it for yourself and make a decision. |
Unfortunately not enough people know about Cary and how good they really are. They blow away amps costing 10-20 times more, but who would admit it if they spent that kind of money on something? I love the one I have, and would not take less than 4750 for it. People need money for things right now, and there will be a lot of things sold cheaper in the not too distant future. As I stated before, I haven't worked in 27 months, or I'd buy another just to have it. I just don't want to sell my gold right now. Guess it's time to look for a job. |
Newbee, thanks, I just read that thread. Too bad to read those comments regarding this amp as I was very interested in it. |
They are good for the price you can get them for. Powerful yet tubey. There are several authorized dealers who let them go new well below msrp. Cary knows this and lets their best dealers cut great deals. |
Jdec, Visit Audio Asylem and read a recent thread by a couple of users and you will see that their views are in contrast to the posters in this thread. I have no idea which set of views are representative of the sellers on A-Gon. |
Sorry, I meant "resale" value, not "reseller" value. |
If this amp is really good, why is its reseller value that low? there are 4 of them posted right now here at agon selling for less than half the MSRP! |
Another CAD 120S fan here. As i write they hooked up and driving a pair of ESL speakers. These low sensitivity speakers have an impedance of over 100 ohms in the bass and less than 2 ohms at 20 KHz. That the Cary can make music at all is simply amazing. This amp has guts. |
Everything said about this amp is correct. I actually two that I tried to bi-amp, but concluded that there was no significant improvement in sound. Excellent amp overall and for how much a fairly used one is going for these days, you cannot go wrong. I had a CAD 500MB that I did an A\B with and the bass on the 120s gave the 500 a run for the money. |
I traded my beloved Cary V12R in on a new Cary CAD 120S and hear a major difference in sound quality. It is hooked up to a Cary SLP98P with all Linn sources. I've had amps that cost lots more and have heard amps costing 20-50 times the price and they are all hype, even though they sound good. This amp runs a lot cooler than the V12R did. Get one if you can, you'll love it. I haven't worked in 27 months or I'd have bought another and left it in the box for the future. |
How does the modern cary compare to old-school cary sound such as a sli-80? |
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I'm pretty interested in this amp as well, now that a little time has passed does anyone have more of their thoughts they can share? Thank you.
Sincerely,
John |
I now own the 120s and am happy to report that the sound is excellent. I agree with the above that it is open, fast and still has that sweet Cary sound. Biasing is easy with the meters on the front. If you get one, I would highly recommend getting the Gold Lion KT88 tubes to replace the EH tubes that come with it. I liked this amp with the EH tubes but with the Gold Lion...WOW!! I run it in triod mode most of the time. I think the triod mode using the balanced inputs sounds best. The amp is currently running an easy load (Coincident Total Eclipse II's) but I have tried it with other speakers and it has the power to deliver. To sum it up, I am very happy with this purchase! - Kevin |
We have the SLP-05 hooked-up to it, but the SLP-03 is also a great match. |
Are you using the SLP03 preamp with the 120s amp in your store? |
Full discloser...Command Performance AV is a Cary Dealer.
That said, we got the 120S in about a week ago and we are breaking it in. To me, this amp has a very open sound, with fast response, and deep base. Dennis has produced an amp that will rock (especially in ultralinear mode), while still maintaining the smooth Cary sound. We have used the 120S to power the fairly large Usher BE-10s with no difficulty.
Hope this helps...Jeff |
I would like to know also!! Anyone?? |
