Great Midrange

Can only connect 3 sources

Bought this at John Rutan's Audio Connection store, in Bloomfield, NJ. By the way, if you're ever looking for a quality and honest dealer with a great selection, John is your man.

Bought this unit because I was looking for the magical midrange that tubes produced. Coupled it with the AES superamp. I loved the pre-amp, but when coulpled with the tube superamp, the sound was a little bright. Plus the bass was soft and mushy. I then switched the amp to my Classe Solid State and the magic happened. Now voices sound sultry yet dynamic, acoustic guitars sound crisp and vibrant, and the bass is solid but not overbearing.

Bottom line, love this thing with a solid state amp. The cost is $400 over the list price because they bang you if you want a remote control with it. Since I view remote control as an essential for any component with a volume control, you really need to spend the $1,000 for the whole package. This is a simple but elegent product.

Similar Products Used:

Classe, Audio Research

Sounds great with even the worst recordings.

A couple more inputs and an extra output would really put this product over the top.

In a word impecable! This pre-amp was designed by Dennis Had himself, pres. and chief designer of Cary Audio. Being in the electronics field I couldn't resist a peak inside. No shortcuts here; 1% metal film resistiors, caps by Kimbercap, Multicap and Solen, and silver wire. This baby throws a fantastic, well organized, layered soundstage. Each instrument is in it's own space front to back as well as right to left. Unlike other pre-amps I've tried, it makes sense of even the most complex passages and takes the harsh edge off even the worst recordings. It restores a sense of three dimensionallity to even the most overproduced recordings, including rock. I can't believe the number of sounds I thought were synthesized that this baby reveals to be acoustic. All this with a Heath (H/K) power amp (with upgrades). I can't wait to hear it with a high-end power amp someday. Also used: Adcom GCD700, Audio Concepts G3's. Dish audio is also smooth and pleasant although soundstage often falls apart here, I blame the source, not the AE-3.

Similar Products Used:

Solid state Heath (H/K) and two homebrew tube types including one Wellborne design.

Incredible warm tube soundstage. Tight and fast. Takes the bite off of middle of the line amplifers. I'm using Acurus A250.

Takes about 20 minutes to warm up but worth the wait.

Actually its the new model I have the AE-3. WOW, is all I can say. This is one incredible little PRE-AMP! Little meaning its only 6 or 7 inches wide but has some brawy wieght to it. It just opened up my Acurus-A250 amp and rebuilt magnepans. I sold my acurus pre-amp which cost $700 and bought this little beauty at $599.99 built. You can get the kit for $399.00 but I'm lazy. At this price its the best pre-amp in its price range I am aware of. The sound is warm, tight, great sound-stage and very fast for a pre-amp in this class. It has 3 inputs and 1 and one output and can match any amplifer in $3000-$1000 to give excellent hi-end sound.I am getting a Linn LK-140 next week and can't wait to take my little AE-3 out for a spin. Buy it, its alot of fun!

Creates a large full sound

The product has a varying amount of hum or buzz that is impossible to get rid of.

I must say that as an audiophile I am disappointed with this product. I have been experiencing what some of the other reviewers have with regard to low levels of noise. To be fair the buzz is rather weak, but noticeable and annoying.

I have made every effort to isolate and minimize the buzz and have managed to reduced it somewhat. The bottom line is that it is still annoying.

The sound from this unit has good potential, but I feel that it could be better if I could reduce the low level buzz. Even though you can only hear it when your up close to the speakers, I think it detracts from the products appeal. There are many who would just ignore it, but why bother buying high end gear, tweaking your system with expensive tubes and or cables if you don't care about the buzz. Seems silly to me.

I recommend that those who are tempted by the units low price, purchase the unit as a kit and build it in a larger enclosure. I think this would help with the noise problem.
The only risk you face is that the problem is inherent is the circuits overall design. I doubt that this is the case since everyone is not experiencing the same problem.

However, a DJH signature edition was just released and if your willing to wait until a kit comes along, then I would purchase the new unit instead. I have a feeling that the reason they introduced this new unit was because of the noise problem with this one. I would still recommend building that one in a larger enclosure.

I would give this product a fair rating for value because the price to parts quality is good. My overall rating is a 2 because of my disappointing experience.

Similar Products Used:

Conrad Johnson PV10

Simplicity, build quality, great for tube rolling, tweakability

see below

Purchased the AE3 used from a fine gentleman who built the kit with Hexfred diodes and upgraded volume pot. The stock Chinese tubes sounded worse than my original solid state set up, so I replaced them with NOS RCA GTBs. For small $$, the sonic difference is immense. No doubt premium NOS tubes would be even better.

System:
AE3
Denon DCM 370 CD
Yamaha RX 770 as amp only (85wx2@8ohms)
KEF Coda 8 speakers
Kimber PBJ speaker cable
MIT Terminator 4 interconnects


The AE3 made a dramatic improvement in this mid fi system. The Yamaha is a high current design with plenty of headroom but it can be a tad dry. The AE3 did far more than warm up the sound - everything is noticeably better (imaging, soundstage, resolution). Most important, it now sounds much more musical - like night and day.

Very minor quibbles - I agree with the prior reviewer that the blue light is unnecessary and a distraction. When I upgrade the caps, I will cut it off. The volume pot is intermittently scratchy but no big deal - smooth handling eliminates the noise. Yes, if you listen with your ear two inches from the speaker cone one barely hears some noise between songs or with the pot all the way down. Other than for a mega $$$ system, it's a non-event.

I highly recommend the AE3. It is a keeper, and my system will be upgraded around it. Not sure what "class" the AE3 is in, but I cannot imagine better performance for the $, especially if purchased used. As for being a giant killer, I have to leave that to those who actually own the giants. However, it seems reasonable there are $2000 and above units that give 5-10% better performance.

Similar Products Used:

Adcom, Hafler, Dynaco

Superb sound - with some caveats

Overall looks, three inputs

OK, so you want great sound but w/o spending a fortune, eh? Well, overall, look no further for a basic preamp in which to revel in. Yes, there are units out there that do just about everything better, but the cost is insane. I've had preamps upwards of $3,000 + and this baby can sound extraordinary, when it wants to; but, with some extremely important internal component changes (from the factory, I might add) that make a huge difference between just good and verging on incredible.

First, make absolutely certain you specify oil filled caps when you order this. Not only the 2 uF coupling caps, but also the .22 uF coupling caps. I specified mine from the factory with oil filleds and it came with Kimbercap .22 mics and the sound was quite dry and lacking in life and sweetness, extension, etc., from the lower midrange on up. Replacing the .22 mics created an all new, dramatically improved sound. This is not a small change! The difference in price adds about $160 or so to the unit and it is well worth it.

Second, get rid of the OEM tubes from China. NOS tubes from Ken Rad, Sylvania, RCA, Raytheon, etc. absolutely dramatically improve the unit way beyond the Chinese OEM's. Don't ask where I got my stock from because I don't want to totally dry up my sources(!). They ain't cheap, mcgee, but they do add sonic improvements in every way, especially in the area of soundstaging and sweetness/smoothness.

Third, make sure you get the unit with the HEXFRED fast recovery diodes when you order from the factory. This also makes a sonic improvement in dynamics and the ability of the unit to hold together astonishingly well during demanding passages.

All in all, comparing it with far more expensive units I've owned over the years, I can live very comfortably with the AE-3. Besides, it gives a real sense of retro look to one's system. Don't laugh - or you'll find it knocking your proverbial socks off, and your friend's $3,000 killer preamp quite easily.

Nice job, Dennis.

Associated equipment:

PS Audio UltraLink II W/HDCD DAC
Disc drive - old clunker for now pending a purchase of something nice in the near future (I hope). :)
Power Amp - Mesa Engineering Baron with NOS MAZDA Chrome Plate 12AX7's circa 1950's and Svetlana EL-34's (pending KT-90 tube replacements).
Infinity Speakers for now pending replacements with SWANS Diva 6.1's (used to have Acoustat Model III's highly modified until late last year, though).
PS Audio P300 and P600 Power Line Regeneration (a MUST OWN device!).
PS Audio Ultimate Outlet 20 amp version
Studio Tech Rack
Bright Star isolation bases
MapleShade triple point ultimate tone points (expensive, but the best tone cone points I've ever seen!).
Audiotruth silver wiring
AudioQuest clear (original) speaker cabling
Siltech silver A/C cords

This unit is worth the 5 stars in each category if not for the extra $$ one can put to use elsewhere.

By the way - buy this nowhere else than from Kevin Deal @ Upscale Audio. :) :)

Similar Products Used:

Counterpoint SA-3000A, Conrad-Johnson Premier 3

This kit preamp that lists for $599 direct from Cary (Audio Electronics)is a fantastic bargain. It has the same tube complement as their $3000 SLP98. The only features it lacke is tape loop, headphone jack, and seperate power supply. Internal construction is point to point and assembly was a sinch. Sounds like a dream and is a steal at this price. Do not let the non audiophile look or price fool you in that this preamp can copmpete with the best of um.

Very well-designed tube preamp. Quality parts, excellent build and sound quality.

Exposed tubes, only 3 line-level inputs.

I use this preamp with a Rotel RB-981 power amp and Vandersteen 2 Signature speakers. The tube preamp provides a lovely mellow counterpoint to the solid state strengths of the Rotel.

I am bored to death with audiophile magazines extolling the latest statement preamp that is the last word in soundstaging, transparency, etc. Dennis Had of Cary Audio is one of the few top designers who go the other way. His creations are very well engineered and timeless in the best sense of the term. AES is a Cary subsidiary, and the AE-3 preamp was designed by Dennis.

Low end preamps usually fall into two camps - the solid state ones add grain and harshness to the treble, while the tubed preamps can be overly lush and romantic. The AE-3 is the best I have seen at or near this price point. Sure, the statement products may be better in all the audiophile categories. But the AE-3 gets close enough at a fraction of the price.

One note of caution: I have heard this preamp coupled with the matching AES Super Amp driving Vandersteen 3's. At least to my ears, that combination sounded too warm and muddy. As with any other component, proper system matching is a must.

Similar Products Used:

Rotel

Build quality is excellent! Sound is excellent!

Can't really think of any. It does exactly what it's supposed to.

The AE-3 sounds great. I've never even missed the Adcom it replaced. It easily sounds as good as the Adcom ever did only with the tube factor in it's favor and it cost way less money. It's solid as a tank and feels like a very high quality piece. I like the feel of the volume control. I also like the simple yet high quality lay out of the back of the unit. The RCA connectors seem to be of very high quality.I'm using it with the Audio Electronic Supply super amp (25w/ch) to drive a pair of Avantgarde Uno Series II speakers. The whole combination seems to work great. Some people might possibly want more features, but I don't. I just want it to make music. I might like to have had the remote control option, but I didn't want to go the extra $$ at the time.

Similar Products Used:

The AE-3 replaced my Adcom GFP-750

everything

none

I made this preamp by my self and it came out perfect .... absolutly no hum and dead quiet .... I don't know the problem about the review below... if he built it by himself, he might did something wrong such as putting too much heat to some parts ... anyway, I've tweaked everything as I could as following
1. Capacitors: Hovland, Jensen Copper in oil, Elna, Solen
2. Hexfreds for power supply and filament
3. NOS RCA red base
4. Kimber Kord and Cardas RCA input
6. Noble Volume Control
7. MJW16212 Voltage Regulator

my system:
1. AE-25 tweaked tube amplifier
2. Cal Sigma DAC
3. DVD player as a transport
4. B&W P5 tweaked SPKs
5 Silver and DH labs interconnect, Kimber 4&8-PR SPK cable