Good SS amp for Cary SLP98?

I've used it with a Plinius SA-102 with great results.

I ran the SLP98P with the Cary V12R and currently run the CAD 120's/ You can't go wrong with the CAD 120's. Even before I upgraded the caps to Cardas it was a match made in heaven. No need for the MarkII upgrade since there is more than enough gain in the preamp.

A point to be aware of is that the output impedance of the SLP-98 rises to a very high 6800 ohms at 20 Hz, according to John Atkinson's measurements. So you should avoid amps having relatively low input impedances, and low input impedances tend to be much more common among solid state amps than among tube amps.

Personally, I would avoid amps having an input impedance of less than 47K, despite JA's mention of 20K. Although how critical that will be will depend on the deep bass extension of both your speakers and the source material.

Also, I would particularly second the last sentence of the post by Hanaleimike.

Regards,
-- Al

Cary V12; skip the SS trial and error

I've owned an SLP-98 twice now, usually used with tube amps. The only SS amp I remember specifically was the Cary CAA-1 class D (which I happen to have listed). It was quite detailed, mids more forward than what I was used to, great bass, but did not sound as natural to me as my EL34 amp. I needed to have a cool running amp for a while, which is why I bought it. The Cary mated fairly well with the Cary, but alas not my cup of tea. I'd recommend sticking with tubes if can. I was considering a class A SS amp, but when I put the tube amp back in the system I decided to stay with tubes. BTW, price range and what speakers it would be driving would help narrow down the choices.

I was very happy with the CODA Model 11 amp (100 wpc pure Class A) I had running with my SLP98P. I recently switched to a VAC tube amp, which I slightly prefer, but the CODA comes really close.

For 2 channel I used a McIntosh 7270 SS Amp, but if you can use a tube amp CAD 120's or Cary monos you'll get much better sound.