steveaudio
Responses from steveaudio
| Cary SLP-98 vs. other high end preamps--C-J, etc. I actually bought an SLP-98 (no phono) a week or two after my original post--I found a virtually new one for a great price. (And the day after I got it, I received the new S'Phile issue with a review of the SLP-98!). Wow, what a nice pre-amp! Any ... | |
| VTL IT-85 integrated vs. Cary SLI-80 integrated I always keep thinking that it would be better to spend a little more than the IT-85 & get (even the least expensive) VTL separates, if you're going to go VTL. For 2 reasons: the IT-85 doesn't have a lot of power; if you need more power, what ... | |
| Upgrade from Cal CL-15 ? Having owned a CL-15, I don't agree that the *Cal is at the bottom of your system*. I think it might pretty be hard to better it for $1000, & it's probably a real bargain for what they sell for used. You might check out the Ah! Tjoeb 4000 tho ... | |
| Conrad Johnson SS amps I own both a MF2250 ("non-A"), & a MF2500A. They are both excellent amps. The MF2250 is surprising in it's power given it's compact size, & sounds very clean & smooth with excellent dynamics. Of course, the 2500 sounds just that much b... | |
| Upgrade to new Conrad Johnson Premier 140 ? I don't know what your budget is, but have you considered used Premier 12 monos? And I don't know how efficient the AP Virgos are, but, I'd think you're on the right track getting a larger amp than the 11a for them. For what it's worth, I'm using ... | |
| B&W 801 2or 3 Jjmali, apparently I was unusually ignorant when i bought my M802's -:), so didn't really comprehend the need for a lot of power until recently. I have a 240 wpc C-J MF2500A coming this week, which I'm hoping will "do it for me". I also agree with... | |
| Cary SLP-98 vs. other high end preamps--C-J, etc. Thanks, Cmach, for your feedback on the 17LS, it sure sounds like a great pre-amp, from everything I've read. But I have another question for SLP-98 fans: are the oil filled caps worth it? thanks again, steve | |
| B&W 801 2or 3 I've also noticed the used price of M801's--not that much more that M802's. My theory is their relative low price is due to their huge, heavy size, & how much power they need. And it must be very difficult to ship them, which limits their resa... | |
| VTL ST-80 EL 34 Feedback and experience I had an older ST-85 that VTL told me was more like an ST-80 than an ST-85. It wasn't perfect, was a bit noisy, & bass wasn't very tight, but then a somewhat loose bass may be characteristic of small tube amps in general. It also had some funk... | |
| tube phono stage under $1k? I agree with Inscrutable; why buy this expensive of a phono stage to use with a receiver (this does not compute, at least to me)? I'd put the $$ towards a nice used integrated, like a Plinius, & get one with a built in phono stage. A Creek (53... | |
| People who are Irrationally Afraid of tube amps Thanks for all the great responses! And for letting me rant (I figure Dennis Miller is not on HBO anymore, so maybe I can take up some of the slack :-) I just wanted to say a couple more things: 1. I have absolutely no problem with those who prefe... | |
| VTL Service ?? Well, I have an earlier post on this thread regarding my experiences with VTL, which have been at least 90% positive, so I won't repeat that here. I'd just like to say, they are apparently a 2-person company. And I got a very positive & fast r... | |
| Sorting out the various C-J MF series amp models randomness, thanks for that great analysis! Everything I have read about the PF-R--both user reviews; as well as the Oct. 1996 S'Phile review by Martin Colloms, indicate that it is a truly great pre-amp, worthy of pairing with even much more expen... | |
| Pathos Twin Towers with B&W N805 Signatures In my experience, B&W's generally like quite a bit of power. The S'phile review of N805's a few years ago tried both a Bryston 4B-ST, & a Mark Levinson amp with them--they really liked the Levinson. I'm not saying necessarily to go with a ... | |
| low cost integrated amp for newbie Don't be afraid to go with used, even 10 yo. NAD or Adcom separates if you find a used pair for cheap ($300-$400 for both amp & preamp I'm guessing?). I have a 12 y.o. NAD 2400 power amp, with a 1600 pre-amp/tuner. They both look good, sound g... |