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RE: Ranking Of Vintage Tube Preamps While We Are At It

The best (stock) tubed pre I ever heard was an Audio Research SP -6B. I suspect that the stock SP-8 and SP-10 are better, but I've not heard them. I know that the SP-9 in all iterations was quite inferior. Regardless, I need tone controls, so if I ever sample an ARC again, it will probably be an SP-3 (x).

In their stock forms, Mc C20s and C22s were largely indistinguishable to me. I can report that a stock C22 (from the '60s) had a tolerance in RIAA equalization inferior (larger) to what we would expect today -- i.e., a larger error. Perhaps more important, the physical arrangement of various internal parts in order to deal with the fancy front placement of controls greatly diminished stereo separation -- John Curl would cringe! Both issues can be addressed, but the latter takes hours of measurement and soldering by a very dedicated tech. Once they are addressed, however, the improvement in sound-quality is substantial. Because my C22 was not upgraded until a few years after I heard the Sp-6B, I cannot say for certain which I'd prefer today.

A properly maintained PAS-3x is superior to an SP-9 but inferior to the SP-6B and upgraded C22.


Jeremy

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