Successful ARC models

I have owned a number of Audio Research preamps in the last 25 years. I currently own an LS25 mk2. You should be able to pick one up used for a little over $2000. My other choice in that price range would be a LS17. ARC preamps have come a long way in the last 10 years. Far more so than their amps. Borrow an LS17 from a dealer and try it in your system. The LS17 is a stunning preamp for the price.

I second the LS 17.

"Prior ARC stuff had cheap caps, cheap RCAs..."

Audio Research never used cheap parts. I have owned many Audio Research preamps including the SP-3A-1, SP-8, SP-8MKII, SP-9, LS-1, LS-2, SP-14, SP-11MKII and SP-15. All of these preamps were made with high quality parts.

If I remember right the SP-15 is actually a solid state line stage with a hybrid phono stage. The SP-15 is all about phono and when it was manufactured it was one of the best phono preamps money could buy with plenty of gain and flexability for whatever cartridge you wanted to use.

Keep in mind these hybrid preamps need to be left on to sound their best. It takes them 3 days to come around. If my memory serves me well the 3 tubes in the phono stage are rated to last 10,000 hours and they are not expensive tubes. It is well worth leaving the preamp on for the improvement in sound.

The gold Tiffany style RCAs used on the SP-15 were also used on the SP-11 which was introduced 1985 and the SP-9 in 1987. Audio Research amplifiers were also using the Tiffany RCAs before the SP-15. Not that the previous RCAs were bad. They were very good also, it's just that the Tiffanys were not available.

All of the Audio Research preamps are good in their own way, but do not try to evaluate one of the hybrid or solid state preamps without sufficient warm up or you will be disappointed. After a good warm up they become a different animal.

I have been using my ARC SP-15 preamp for about 9 years now. I am very pleased with it. The phono section has good bass and sweet highs and it has great flexibility with switchable impedance loading.

In 2004 I sent it back to ARC for a check-up and they recommended freshening it up by replacing all the electrolytic capacitors in the Power Supply section. I did and so I am good for at least another decade. It has always been a very reliable preamp.

I think an integrated phono section is better than a separate box, but I use the balanced outputs to my Amp and I sometimes think about trying a fully balanced preamp with my CD player just to hear the difference. But with one son in college and one in High School, that experiment will just have to wait.

I am running a ls16mk2 with and have been very happy with the performance of this unit; I bought mine here on audiogon for 1500.00
and consider it to be well worth the price.

Sorry , I have forgotten to write that is wanted balanced preamp, because Genelec has a XLR input.

http://www.genelec.com/products/3-way-monitors/1037c/

I am looking new for an Audio Research LS-5 MkII.
Whats the opinion on ?

If I have to choose among ARC LS5 MK2 , Sonic Frontiers Line 2 SE, Mark Levinson No. 380, Aesthetix Calypso , Accustic Arts Preamp1 Mark 3, which one is better and why?
Awaiting your response.
Thank you.