Do you know Cary?

halo

After selling the Parasound Halo P5 I was going to slum it with the Marantz NR1403 for awhile but I came across this Cary Audio Design CPA-1 Full Balanced preamp and I decided to give it a shot.

Does anyone have any experience with this preamp? I couldn't find much info on it via the interweb. It sounds very good in my setup and it's really amazing with making vocals sound lifelike compared to the P5 (the P5 wasn't bad, this is just different). The seller offered to pay the return shipping if I didn't like it so I had nothing to lose. He said he bought it ostensibly new in 2014 so I'm wondering what the time period was when these were made new.

Thanks for any and all input!

lightman1

Made in North Carolina....'nuff said.

Check for corn squeezin' input option on the back.

acmf74

I have their SLP-03... really nice stuff/qaulity

tonyb

Yes, yes I do know Cary.....she's my sister. How do you know my sister ?

The CPA-1 I have not heard, but reviews suggest it's somewhat hit or miss Which can be said for most tubed gear because much relies on the tubes you use. I do know a few members have one and like it so hopefully they'll chime in for ya.

halo

tonyb wrote: »

Yes, yes I do know Cary.....she's my sister. How do you know my sister ?

The CPA-1 I have not heard, but reviews suggest it's somewhat hit or miss Which can be said for most tubed gear because much relies on the tubes you use. I do know a few members have one and like it so hopefully they'll chime in for ya.

Hey there Tony,

This model is solid state. "Tube sound" without the tubes. lol.

kharp1

lightman1 wrote: »

Made in North Carolina....'nuff said.

Check for corn squeezin' input option on the back.

Homer

polkfarmboy

Muted

Joey_V

I enjoy some of Cary's products. I have not heard this one, but I'm sure it's got some soul to the sound.

SCompRacer

Hi Victor! Nice pre amp! Cary has all info on their site. This pre has higher input impedance than the Halo so we'll have to revisit coupling caps in your Bottlehead Reduction/Integration.

RCA inputs show 100K Ohms for the CPA-1, where your Halo was much lower. Good news is they will be lower value caps which means less $$ for good caps.

https://www.caryaudio.com/product-support/cpa-1/

halo

SCompRacer wrote: »

Hi Victor! Nice pre amp! Cary has all info on their site. This pre has higher input impedance than the Halo so we'll have to revisit coupling caps in your Bottlehead Reduction/Integration.

RCA inputs show 100K Ohms for the CPA-1, where your Halo was much lower. Good news is they will be lower value caps which means less $$ for good caps.

https://www.caryaudio.com/product-support/cpa-1/

Hey Rich!

Thanks for chiming in! I'm sorry to have to put you through swapping out the cap. I didn't anticipate selling the P5 but, once things fell into place for my wife, it was unavoidable.

You are the best man!

SCompRacer

halo wrote: »

Hey Rich!

Thanks for chiming in! I'm sorry to have to put you through swapping out the cap. I didn't anticipate selling the P5 but, once things fell into place for my wife, it was unavoidable.

You are the best man!

Happy to be of some help! Thx!

Vcap calculator shows .80uf to keep the -3dB frequency at 2Hz with 100,000 ohms input impedance. I'll still run it by Jeff as he looks at the circuit of the supply device to determine the actual value.

My ARC Ref 3 has 300K Ohms SE input impedance. I ended up with .33uf couplers on my Bottlehead Eros. I used Sonicap Platinums, like $60 each. If I needed 2.0uf, they would cost $224 each.

Maybe your bro can run you down here for a swap out / get together before you leave the State.

tonyb

halo wrote: »

tonyb wrote: »

Yes, yes I do know Cary.....she's my sister. How do you know my sister ?

The CPA-1 I have not heard, but reviews suggest it's somewhat hit or miss Which can be said for most tubed gear because much relies on the tubes you use. I do know a few members have one and like it so hopefully they'll chime in for ya.

Hey there Tony,

This model is solid state. "Tube sound" without the tubes. lol.

My bad man, had it mixed up with their other entry level pre's. Dang series numbers, lol

I'd look for the tubed version anyway. Just dig the tube sound over solid state but that's just me.

halo

tonyb wrote: »

My bad man, had it mixed up with their other entry level pre's. Dang series numbers, lol

I'd look for the tubed version anyway. Just dig the tube sound over solid state but that's just me.

I hear ya.

This Cary pre + the B&K = SS with a really warm "tube" sound. I've got a tube DAC and the Phono pre Rich is referring to is tubes as well.

halo

SCompRacer wrote: »

Happy to be of some help! Thx!

Vcap calculator shows .80uf to keep the -3dB frequency at 2Hz with 100,000 ohms input impedance. I'll still run it by Jeff as he looks at the circuit of the supply device to determine the actual value.

My ARC Ref 3 has 300K Ohms SE input impedance. I ended up with .33uf couplers on my Bottlehead Eros. I used Sonicap Platinums, like $60 each. If I needed 2.0uf, they would cost $224 each.

Ok

SCompRacer wrote: »

Maybe your bro can run you down here for a swap out / get together before you leave the State.

That'd be great! Greg's work is nowhere near my place but I think it'd be nice to go out to your place and get our ears on your current setup before I move.