Found an AR SP-9 preamp..any good?

bobt
bobt Posts: 280
edited March 2009 in 2 Channel Audio
I found an AR SP-9 preamp for a good price. Only problem is any Reviews from the "streophile" mags say the phono section was not great. This is a strait SP-9..NOT a MK3...which is supposedly great.
Any thoughts on this.
This is an upgrade from an Adcom GTP-400...so i don't know how bad the SP-9 could sound compared to that...LOL

Anybody have this preamp?......like it? hate it?
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Comments

  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,165
    edited March 2009
    I think a few people have used this in their audio travels............and yes, it will be a big upgrade from an Adcom GTP-400. Adcom only made a couple really nice sounding pre's and the 400 isn't one of them.

    Hopefully those that have used it will see this thread ans chime in. If not, it will be an upgrade over what you have.

    Good luck

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • bobt
    bobt Posts: 280
    edited March 2009
    Yeah the Adcom pre is not the best, but at the time, and price it did it's job.
    Had a phono stage, and headphone input. So at the time fit the budget...LOL

    I'm not an "insane" audiophile, meaning i do not go and spend 500-600 on a phono cartrige, or mega bucks on cables. I like to keep things in a..at least reasonable area. In some cases I think the supposed sound improvement, is more preceived then real. I still use some old Monster cable, for speakers..must be 10 gauge...very thick. I went and spent $250 for some supposed great cables (on sale of course)..to be honest..I found no difference. Phono Cartriges on the other hand, sound completely different.
    I don't think i payed more then 150 for any of them, but have had Ortofon, Grado, Shure, Stanton. But that was running thru the Acom phono stage. So the Adcom has to go, what I thought was good on the Adcom..may sound completely different.

    Isn't the world of "stereo" great......LMAO
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  • Hobbyguy
    Hobbyguy Posts: 317
    edited March 2009
    This was the first preamp that I was going to buy because it is supposed to be very good. If you can get one for 450-500 for a mk I that would be a good deal. The mkIII is supposed to be alot nicer but alot more expensive. An alternative is the Audio Research LS-2 MK II if you can find it for $995
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  • bobt
    bobt Posts: 280
    edited March 2009
    The Sp-9 MK1 I was looking at, the guy wants $650 plus shipping, so would have been $700...which i thought was too much for that unit. A MK3 was on there for 975, but was gone, before i could bid on it.
    I will look around for a LS-2 MKII also.
    Thanks
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