Cary SLP 98 vs Benchmark LA4
Looking to replace my preamp. I used a Parasound PLD 2000 for 20 years or more and have no complaints. It lost the right channel and the culprit seems to be the balance pot. I have searched high and low and cannot find one. Parasound dealers have been no help. Most won't even answer. I have tried half a dozen different preamps from the used market and not been delighted with any of them. Nakamichi, other Parasound units, Forte, an Audio Valve (which got damaged in shipping and ended up going back). I really wanted to hear that last one.
Anyway, I drive two Parasound HCA 2200 II amps into Teledyne AR9 speakers, biamped. I have a Cary PH 301 phono pre. I listen to vinyl much more than I do CD's probably 80% of the time. I do not stream any music. I know it's all "old school" but I am mostly very pleased with what I hear. Does anyone have any thoughts on these two preamps? I think the Cary is made to drive more than one amplifier. No idea on the Benchmark or whether one of these suits my needs more than the other. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks,
Bill
Yes, these are very different. Cary is musical and natural sounding... a bit warmer than Conrad Johnson and quite a bit more than Audio Research. Benchmark highly detailed and somewhat sterile sounding. Long term, I have found the highly detailed and sterile sound to be very unsatisfying. If you want a musical satisfying preamp, I’d recommend looking at Conrad Johnson, Audio Research, Zesto, Cary or VAC... not all are well regarded tubed preamps. |
To @billpete for the Cary SLP-98 it also depends on how old it is, and which version of factory upgrades it does or does not have. Some of the older version caps installed are quite different sounding from newer version 98s with totally different coupling caps, different 6SN7s. I can make my system sound more neutral by just swapping in neutral detailed tubes and less rich sounding caps in the 98. Its also super responsive to different type interconnect cables depending how transparent the rest of the system really is. |
I had the Benchmark LA4 and there were things that I liked about it, but in the end I replaced it with a Pass XP-12. This was a nice change and added some character back to the music. If you are limited to these two choices, I would lean towards the Cary. But my advice is to expand your choices if you are not convinced it is the barest solution. |
I think that the SLP-98 is a work of art. How long has it been in production? I keep it as a regular search item, because I enjoy seeing them in their different iterations. I've never heard one, but maybe one day. I tried a bit of Dennis Had's Inspire gear (two preamps and a power amp) with my Omega system for awhile before going to an Aric Unlimited II preamp. Nowadays I'm thinking I might like to try a 6SN7 based preamp. So I'd love to pair an SLP98 with the Aleph 5. There's a sweet Jaguar red F1 version on the lists right now. On the other hand, I might like to hear the Benchmark as well, because I appreciate yyzsantabarbara's system choices. I had an XP-12 briefly, and felt that it would require a system-wide makeover. I felt that my then current sources were not up to the resolving potential of the XP-12. I found an X2.5 which I found to be quiet and musical, and still overbuilt. It has the infamous brick of a remote. I see two for sale today. I suspect that you might like the Cary, given your existing phono pre. They both do seem to change hands often enough with continued interest. And if you would consider at some point, I'd enjoy a picture of the AR9s. |
