Anyone hear/have this pre-amp? Care to give an opinion or comparison to other pre-amps? I see different versions out there (different caps/'hexefreds' (I don't know what the h* a hexefred is!!!)) I currently have a sunfire tgIII as my pre....with a sunfire signature amp.... Thanks in advance.... Tim...
Cary SLP-98 opinions
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asindc
Well-known member
Tim,
I auditioned the Cary SLP-98, ARC LS-17, Cary SLP-2002, and Cary SLP-05 in my setup, which includes Vantages, a Cary 306/200 CD player and Parasound A21 amp. Quick thought on each:
Cary SLP-05: The best in this group, but should be for twice the price of the nearest unit. Very dynamic, great soundstaging and imaging, does micro dynamics exceptionally well. Not in my price range, unfortunately.
Cary SLP-2002: Does everything the 05 does, but not as refined on the top end and much less dynamic overall. The 05 has more of a tube sound, as the 2002 is rather neutral as tube pre's go.
ARC LS-17: Widest soundstage in this group, even more so than the 05. Did not image as well as the Carys in my setup, though.
Cary SLP-98: Very good performer, closer to the 05 than the 2002 was. Alas, it does not have cinema bypass (a must in my setup) and is single-ended only. Imaged very well, good bass authority, and better finesse on the top end than the 2002 and 17. This is what I would have in my system (until I can swing the 05!) if not for the issues mentioned. I have the 2002, by the way.
I auditioned the Cary SLP-98, ARC LS-17, Cary SLP-2002, and Cary SLP-05 in my setup, which includes Vantages, a Cary 306/200 CD player and Parasound A21 amp. Quick thought on each:
Cary SLP-05: The best in this group, but should be for twice the price of the nearest unit. Very dynamic, great soundstaging and imaging, does micro dynamics exceptionally well. Not in my price range, unfortunately.
Cary SLP-2002: Does everything the 05 does, but not as refined on the top end and much less dynamic overall. The 05 has more of a tube sound, as the 2002 is rather neutral as tube pre's go.
ARC LS-17: Widest soundstage in this group, even more so than the 05. Did not image as well as the Carys in my setup, though.
Cary SLP-98: Very good performer, closer to the 05 than the 2002 was. Alas, it does not have cinema bypass (a must in my setup) and is single-ended only. Imaged very well, good bass authority, and better finesse on the top end than the 2002 and 17. This is what I would have in my system (until I can swing the 05!) if not for the issues mentioned. I have the 2002, by the way.
Yes - the bypass is a kicker - but, I saw that there is an 'F1' version sold by Upscale Audio where they turn one of the inputs into a cinema bypass....The one that you listened to did it have any upgrades to the caps? See my 'what the h*** is a hexefred' comment above....
asindc
Well-known member
The 98 I listened to did not have the F1 upgrade, and when I spoke to Kevin at Upscale about adding it (the 98 belonged to a friend who was upgrading himself), he basically tried to steer me into buying one of his F1s instead.
Speaking of cap upgrades, that's what I eventually did with the 2002, which brought it closer to the 98. It is briefly discussed here: http://www.martinloganowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5949&highlight=mundorf
I eventually with the Mundorf Silver Oil caps. I sent the 2002 to Cary to have them do the work and other minor tweaks. Even though I bought the preamp off of Ebay, the Cary people were/are great to work with.
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sounds cool... I was going back and forth between upgrading my pre-amp or upgrading my source... I have a denon 5900 and was thinking about getting a modded ps audio dac III and just using the denon as a transport... but then I saw this pre for around 1850 used...and then started wondering whether that would not be a better upgrade.....
User211
Well-known member
Awesome.... always loved the look of the SLP-98. One of my favourites.
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Bernard
Well-known member
A hexfred is a high-speed diode used in power supplies. I replaced the standard diodes in my ARC preamp with hexfreds; they made a significant improvement.
After doing some reading -- do you know the input impedance of your parasound? I have a sunfire w/24K input impedance.. I know the cary's is 50K
If you don't mind - about how much does the cap change cost - if I wanted to go stock and then get it modded later? What did the cap change do to the overall sonic signature? Some folks seem to love this pre - and I have heard others think it sounds 'fat in the bass,w smaller stage' - although not many. There may be a place in Windsor I can get to for a listen...nothing in Michigan.... thanks a bunch for your input!! Tim.
Spike
Well-known member
Timm,
The Cary SLP98 is a very capable performer even in stock form. Now, if you want to "upgrade", you can always give Gerald Walsh at Cary a call directly and they will be more than happy to help. Cary always have excellent service and they have always stood behind their products. I was seriously considering the SLP-98, and I had talked to Cary, paving the way for:
There's also an excellent write up on the Cary SLP98 at S'phile.
Spike
The Cary SLP98 is a very capable performer even in stock form. Now, if you want to "upgrade", you can always give Gerald Walsh at Cary a call directly and they will be more than happy to help. Cary always have excellent service and they have always stood behind their products. I was seriously considering the SLP-98, and I had talked to Cary, paving the way for:
- F1 upgrade (still on the fence about this one).
- HT bypass (default when powered off to save tube life).
There's also an excellent write up on the Cary SLP98 at S'phile.
Spike
hey Spike - as a matter of fact - I did follow your thread... I thought you went with the modwright? what type of cost were you looking at if you went with the upgrade thru cary? I know Dan Wright seemed to be a pretty nice guy as well - sent notes to him on the LS 36.5 and his modded cd players...he thought upgrading my pre was a way to go - either with the 9.0 or 36.5....
Spike
Well-known member
It's been quite a while since I talked to Cary regarding the upgrade so I don't recall the $$ amount. If you read my thread carefully, the ModWright just edged out the Cary but they were very close. I could be quite happy with the Cary had I not listened to the ModWright. That should say something about how good the Cary is. The best advice I can think of is to borrow your friend's Cary and audition in your home for a few days. Let your ears be the judge.
Spike
Spike
Yeah - I just found a local dealer over the bridge in canada...Hopefully, I'll be able to give a good listen and take advantage of exchange rates...In any case, it is the only place the has cary within 200 miles of me.... I think the preamp 'thing' is about system synergy as well...Since you have the six pacs, I could see how the 98 added on top of those could possibly get a bit too 'lush' - but, that is based on things I have read - nothing I have heard..so you can say I'm 'full of it'
That is good to hear that the modwright just edged it out... The look of that cary is something else....and I do think system synergy would probably be the deciding factor... thanks for your input...
asindc
Well-known member
Tim,
The input impedance for the Parasound A21 is 33K unbalanced, 66k balanced. I run balanced connectors throughout my system.
As for the cap upgrade, it was 175 bucks. It opened up the soundstage more and the top end has more clarity. Think of changing the caps as being roughly the same in impact on sound as tube rolling.
The only reason I can think that some might find the SLP-98 "fat" in the bass is because of the particular setup. With MLs, I can't imagine that would be an issue.
FWIW, at least to my ears the Cary had a little too much 'mid-range bloom' for my tastes....again your YMMV !
Regardless I still love their products, couldn't be happier than I am with my 303/300 CDP, and I agree with Spike, company support is excellent !
Regardless I still love their products, couldn't be happier than I am with my 303/300 CDP, and I agree with Spike, company support is excellent !
Well - I just wanted to follow up on this particular thread.... I got the Cary slp98p... and I have been listening for 3 weeks. The tubes were new when I purchased it... The 6sn7s are a chinese brand (shungyang???) - which I have read very good reviews on. The rest of the unit is stock -no upgrades...
My system: odysseys/descent/ sunfire signature grand amp / denon 5900 /
Here are my thoughts: Based on comparison to sunfire TGIII ... Bass on my system is now fantastic... I have a descent - which I have yet to hook back up and don't think I need to.... Soundstage wider ... voices are natural and midrange is great as well... I couldn't be happier. This pre seemed to drag more out of my sunfire amp - or so it seems.... I constantly want to turn it up now - before, I thought it sounded better at moderate levels. I never thought a pre-amp could make this type of difference, but it has. I have played everything on this over the past 3 weeks - and find that acoustic guitar just sounds amazing. And, my foot is bouncing a whole lot more...
I want to thank all of you for responding and giving me your input. I bought this without hearing it on the 'gon. your input was instrumental in pulling the trigger since no dealer had one anywhere near me... They had cary- but not the slp98.
couple of questions: Standby mode -- keeps tubes on - but not ramped up...leave it in that mode when not playing - or shut it completely down? I have been shutting down.
The tubes: The 6sn7s - any comments on this chinese brand? Secondly, these are the only tubes that matter for non-phono applications right? Changing out the other tubes just impact the phono?
The marriage of this pre with my sunfire amp is magic.... Thank you everyone for your helpful posts....
My system: odysseys/descent/ sunfire signature grand amp / denon 5900 /
Here are my thoughts: Based on comparison to sunfire TGIII ... Bass on my system is now fantastic... I have a descent - which I have yet to hook back up and don't think I need to.... Soundstage wider ... voices are natural and midrange is great as well... I couldn't be happier. This pre seemed to drag more out of my sunfire amp - or so it seems.... I constantly want to turn it up now - before, I thought it sounded better at moderate levels. I never thought a pre-amp could make this type of difference, but it has. I have played everything on this over the past 3 weeks - and find that acoustic guitar just sounds amazing. And, my foot is bouncing a whole lot more...
I want to thank all of you for responding and giving me your input. I bought this without hearing it on the 'gon. your input was instrumental in pulling the trigger since no dealer had one anywhere near me... They had cary- but not the slp98.
couple of questions: Standby mode -- keeps tubes on - but not ramped up...leave it in that mode when not playing - or shut it completely down? I have been shutting down.
The tubes: The 6sn7s - any comments on this chinese brand? Secondly, these are the only tubes that matter for non-phono applications right? Changing out the other tubes just impact the phono?
The marriage of this pre with my sunfire amp is magic.... Thank you everyone for your helpful posts....
slowGEEZR
Well-known member
Great! Transistors may be more accurate, but tubes just have a way to get you involved, don't they? If the standby mode does not light up the tubes, then I think you'd be ok leaving it in that mode. When I purchased my Jolida a few years ago, I asked about tube life expectancy if I left it in standby mode and was told that it does not shorten the tube life. I have left my tube integrated in standby mode for the years I've owned it.
Joey_V
Well-known member
Search for my review on the SLP98 and then check out my review on the SLP98 vs the SLP05 for a sense of how it stacks up against the Cary reference.
I had the regular SLP98 and (if I remember correctly), I had an "unlabeled" F1 a bit later. I don't recall doing A/B listening between the two, but I do not recall an appreciable difference in my listenings.
Keep in mind, I've been out of the game for some time so I'm sadly beginning to have to clear the cobwebs in my mind.
Joey
I had the regular SLP98 and (if I remember correctly), I had an "unlabeled" F1 a bit later. I don't recall doing A/B listening between the two, but I do not recall an appreciable difference in my listenings.
Keep in mind, I've been out of the game for some time so I'm sadly beginning to have to clear the cobwebs in my mind.
Joey
thanks joey -- yeah, I really like this pre... a very nice stepup from my sunfire.... I couldn't go the extra moolah for the slp05... I know you changed out the stock tubes... I got mine delivered with ...I believe they are called shungyang 6sn7s. They got nice reviews... Just wondered while you were fiddling with tubes your impressions... if you can kick a few more cobwebs out... BTW - nice to see you around again....
tonepub
Senior Member
Get your hands on some NOS RCA's or Sylvania 6SN7's and you'll be amazed at the change from the stock Chinese tubes. A good set of 6SN7's will last almost forever too!
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