Tube Research Labs Dude vs. Shindo Labs preamps

Tthean et al - I am enjoying this thread and hope to see more responses. I have 4 systems, each with a different preamp: Shindo Masseto, Leben RS28-CX, Audio Research Ref 3, and Quicksilver linestage. That is how I rank them musically. I hope someday to upgrade the Leben to a Monbrison and the Ref 3 to an Aurieges, so the comments in this thread are of interest to me.

@Grannyring - The characteristics you associate with the Dude are the same ones that I experience with Shindo preamps and to a lesser extent the Leben. I have not heard the Dude.

Eventually all 4 systems will have a Shindo preamp. The Shindo sound is, for me, that seductive, because it delivers the musical goods like no other preamp I have heard.

@Grannyring,

I understand your point and already realized from your comments and review that you believe the Dude punches way above its price point. I suspect many of us have that belief about one or more components we have used and enjoyed.

Case in point is the Shindo Aurieges, which costs ~ $3.3K now. When I get the Aurieges, for me, in my experience (I previously owned one for nearly one year before upgrading to the Masseto) and IMHO, it will be a significant upgrade over my ~$10K Ref 3 in terms of sheer musicality. When I had both the Ref 3 and the Aurieges I A/B'd them in 3 different systems and the Aurieges was far better musically. Of course, the Ref 3 offers many more features and conveniences than the Aurieges.

Grannyring - Shindo uses no circuit boards; they are 100 percent point to point wired. The interior of a Shindo component, like the exterior, is literally a work of art.

I try to keep an open mind about all things audio with one exception - Shindo preamps. For 2-channel audio and if there is no need for a remote, Shindo is THE preamp for me. Case closed! ;->

All The Best,

Steven

Getting back to the OP's original questions, in particular - "Better yet, has anybody compared them side by side before?" - has anyone made a side by side comparison of the Dude and a Shindo preamp, and are you willing to share what you heard?