Cary SLP 03

Hi all ! Just last week I bought a new SLP-05 to replace my SLP-03 . I never rolled tubes in the 03 as I thought it sounded OK . Well....then the SLP-05 showed up...freeking nuts ! The 05 is much better than the 03 in every way . I even made a comment to my buddy the 03 does not perform like a $3000 preamp . Therefore IMHO I could not recommend spending more than $1000 for this piece . Sometimes its hard to tell what is good and what is bad w/o changing it .

Bradluke0 the SLP 05 should be much better than the SLP 03 in every way. The 05 has been the top of the Cary preamp line for years and retails for more than twice the cost of the 03. The performance of the 05 which retails for $8500 should be incomparable to the 03 which retails for $3100. Not much good said about the 03 on the net however, so it's likely you're right that it's not even worth the sale price.

I would get the 05, but I can't stand not having input select on the remote. If Cary comes out with a new pre with a remote that has input select that can perform like the 05 then I would be in for that.

Hi all ! Yes , I agree on all points . I was trying to convey that sometimes we dont know how bad or how good something is until we substitute something else in the system . Not trying to compare the two really , just dont think the 03 is worth alot and the 05 was worth every penny .

I also bought an 05 after auditioning an 03. The 03 wasn't offensive, just wasn't impressive though. I wouldn't call the 05 a lush preamp either.