Cary SLI-80 Signature F1 or Quicksilver Mid Monos?

I have had the F1 for awhile and have rolled virtually every tube that is possible with that amp. If you want a headphone amp and an integrated for speakers, the Cary is the real deal. You can virtually "tune" the amp to your liking.

Bwarfel, what were you favorite tubes with your Cary F1? I just bought a brand new stock SLI-80 with factory Electro-Harmonix tubes. I have ordered a few tubes that are burning in as we speak. So far I have bought...

NOS Mullard 6DJ8/6922's (A-frames, Blackburn factory code)
NOS Sylvania 6SN7WGTA (brown base Navy issued)
NOS Phillips 5AR4GYS rectifiers

Havn't replaced the output tubes yet, and still not sure about my current NOS tubes as they are still burning in. I am curious what tubes other SLI-80 owners have chosen and come to prefer.

To the original poster, I have not heard the Quicksilver Monos, but I can say the Cary is really impressive to my ears. I have no regrets whatsoever, and don't think you will go wrong with choosing Cary products, especially the SLI-80. FYI, my prior system was vintage Mcintosh solid state. It was really nice, but I was bitten by the tube bug.

I've had the SLI-80 F1 for awhile and continue to be really happy with it but can't help with a comparison to the Quicksilver.

To Dsd-7's question about tubes - I certainly haven't tried all the options but in the EL-34 family my favorites so far are the RFT tubes and vintage Tesla's, not JJ. The RFT's seem to be easier to find in NOS condition than some of the popular European tubes. You'll find them under several possible brand names since Siemens, Telefunken and many others relabeled them, even Tandy under the Realistic brand. The Teslas have gotten increasingly difficult to find and very expensive.

If you don't want to deal with the vagaries of vintage tubes the reissue Gold Lion KT-77 is an excellent tube and is what I use for 'everyday' listening. As with all tubes it's a good idea to buy from a dealer who will test them and back them up. I've had great luck with with Jim McShane.

In the 6DJ8/6922 spot there are an incredible range of possibilities but a great alternative to the very high-dollar vintage brands is to use a 7DJ8/PCC88 instead. I've found good deals on NOS 7DJ8's from Siemens, Philips, Tungsram and Ei/Lorenz that sound wonderful and are identical in physical construction to their more expensive 6DJ8 counterparts.