Coming Soon!!! Cary SLI-80 Signature F1

Good job Talent, I have always liked their Design.

Sounds like you are going with some good options as well.

Let us know how it goes.

Cheers,

You're gonna love it! Get a headphone extension cable if you don't have one, those tubes get quite warm. Equally as great sounding and great sound stage with decent speakers. I use mine with Grado 325i phones and Focal JM Labs Chorus 716V speakers.

Congratulations! I bought the same amp (40W triode only) from Kevin about 1.5 years ago and LOVE it. It is part of my office system with a Cambridge Audio 840C CD player and JVC DX1000 headphones. That system makes it VERY hard to concentrate on work!

Yes, it runs a little warm but 9' cables will be plenty fine. After you get the amp burned in, you may want to consider some tube rolling. Mine came with ElectroHarmonix KT88's (actually all tubes were EH), but after a suggestion from Kevin, the Winged C 6550's are a much better choice. I also changed out the preamp tubes (which really helped) but can't remember right now which ones I got.

The Cary SLI-80 seems to be one of the most overlooked amps in this hobby. But if your experience is anything like mine, you will love it. Enjoy!!!

From the pic it looks like you have a pair of each, so I am guessing it's a three gain stage amplifier.

I would be curious to know if the KT88's are in the headphone signal path?

Congratulations!
Cary certainly create some quality stuff, which I am sure will keep you pleased for a long time.

From what Kevin at Upscale Audio told me, yes, they are in the signal path. I am NO electronics expert, but the signal to the headphone outputs and the speaker terminals follows roughly the same path, only diverted at the end by the "Headphone/Speaker" switch. Obviously, I would highly doubt that the headphone output is receiving 40 watts of power, but how the signal is attenuated without degradation, I am not certain. Actually, I have always wanted to call up Cary Audio about that question. Perhaps I will do that today...

I'll get back to you on the tubes I am using ASAP. I am away from work today and will be gone until Tuesday. I'll post it as soon as I get back to work to take a look.

I have not used the SLI-80 very much as a speaker amp to this point. I did try it with my ProAc Response 2s' which are only about 87dB/4 ohm. Although the sound was quite wonderful with terrific 3D imaging and smoothness, the ultimate punch, dynamics, and loudness were a bit lessened, especially comparing it to a 250W Parasound solid state amp. Also, the SLI-80 is a slightly warm amp, especially in triode-only mode. The ProAc's are also on the warm side. This presents a little too much of a good thing when paired together, with the ultimate sound lacking in sparkle.

A more efficient and sensitive speaker would likely be a better match given the 40W/channel. Triangle and Opera are brands of speakers that Kevin told me may work well with the SLI-80 (both of which he sells, coincidentally). I am also very interested in the Legacy brand, especially the Focus. At 96dB sensitivity, and a full range speaker to boot, this seems like a very good match. My dealer in Honolulu is awaiting a pair and I can't wait to bring my amp to to try with them. I will be very interested to hear what brand of speakers you end up buying.

I agree with you here on speaker sound with this amp.

With headphones it's wonderful, even besting my Singlepower Extreme by small amount. One of the best I've ever had.

With speakers it was nice too....a little too nice.
Big soundstage, nice image placement, but with my Acoustic Zen Adagio speakers (89 db) it was just too polite and mellow.

I would probably balance this amp with some clean, clear speakers that were fairly efficient and maybe even a little light sounding. That ought to work.

Since I was more attached to my speakers than the amp, I eventually sold the Cary, but really liked it.
Give it lots of space, it runs hot.
The Winged C 6550 tubes are very nice. They take about 200 hrs to break in.
TR

Yes the 9' cable is plenty. I just meant you don't want to have it right next to you. The Focal JM Labs Chorus V 716 are 92db/m, they're 6 or 8 ohms, and clealy sound better in the 8 ohm rather than 4 ohm position on that amp. I had 88db Signet monitors that sounded good, but the 716s work even better, and as I mentioned, the sound stage depth with them is excellent. The SLI-80 (mine has the 6550 Winged Cs) also sounded very good with the larger PSB speakers that are I believe 93db efficient. I just liked the soundstaging and the smaller size of the JM labs a bit better. I have all stock Cary selected tubes in mine which is not an F1 version. Enjoy it.