Pre-Amp for Class D Amp

Bel Canto dealer here...

I have had great luck with matching up Cary SLP98's or 05's with the BC 500m's and 1000m's. Really nice match.

Rogue Hera/Athena also do well with them.

Cary, Rogue, Bel Canto dealer disclaimer***

Hey Goldprintaudio. I have an cary spl 88. I have the stock eh tubes and I also got sylvania gta's. The eh sounds a little boomy in the bass otherwise ok and the sylvania a little bright/hard in the treble. Would you have a suggestion on which way to go neutral/refined top end, articulate but not heavy lower frequencies. I wouldn't mind lightweight bass and a great mid-range and treble. Thanks

I use a cj et3se with first version of bel-canto ref 1000 driving b&w 802d with good results. cj recommends using preamp with amps having min 20k input impedance & older version are 10k unbalanced & 20k balanced so i use cardas adapters with single ended cables on balanced inputs. seems to work good. mike

I have a Cary solid state class A-B amp. Would that also mate well with tube preamp? I'm waiting for delivery of a new Cary SLP98 but I'm afraid it all might be too laid back.

I just picked up a pair of used Bel Canto REF1000m monos on Agon. Plugged them into my First Sound Presence Deluxe mk III pre amplifier with the most recent two 'S' upgrades performed by Mr. Emmanuel Go of First Sound here in Renton, WA. Both pieces (actually all 4 pieces given the pre amp has a separate power supply and there are two amps) sound remarkable. I've owned a number of amps and pre amps, solid state and tube, SET, push-pull, integrateds, by Cary, Electrocompaniet, DK Design, Parasound, Jungson, Precision Fidelity, EICO, Doge, and my current combo bests them all, to my ears. First experience with class D amps and I must say they don't take a back seat to anything I've owned or listened to.