Purchased this from a neighbor after comparing it to some well respected preamps: Sumo Athena, Counterpoint SA-1000, Carver's own C-1, and a Marantz model I can't remember. Sonically the equal of any of them and actually better in some areas. The CT-28v bass had a heft and presence that the others couldn't match. The Counter point had the best highs, and the CT-28v was not far behind. The mids is where the CT-28v really shone! it was also the quietest of the lot without even a hiss from my highly modified Magnepan MGIIIa which have ribbon tweeters which are bright and go to almost 40 kHz!. Only when the volume is at max is there a hint of hiss, considerably better than all the others. I cannot say how impressed I was so when my neighbor was moving and decided to sell, I jumped and I have been enjoying it for several years with no issues.

Not just a preamp either! Has the tuner and multichannel as well as digital room effects. Because of its amazing sound, I still use it as my HiFi/Stereo preamp and not for my Home Theater.

Can't imagine a better product/sound for the money! If you see one, grab it!!!

Excellent tuner, good dpl and clean switching

remote is adequate but not great

The unit I have is actually the Carver CT-29v. It is the same as the CT-28v except that it includes a multi room output. I bought a Marantz AV-550 to upgrade my pre-amp to Dolby Digital and was disappointed with the results. The carver pre-amp was a lot cleaner, more solidly built and had a much better tuner. It looks like I am going to get a good outboard processor, some extra wires and keep this older pre-amp for the next the ten years because this Carver pre-amp is just too good to replace without busting the bank.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz AV-550

Audio can be heard from all speakers

Minor weaknesses include the rudimentary remote, the location of the subwoofer pot. The major weakness has been a persistent background hiss.

The CT 28V was problematic from the very beginning. It is paired with a 705X, with a separate Audiosource amp for the Fried subwoofer. It has always emitted an annoying hiss that is audible in all speakers, but most noticible in the center channel which is supplied by two bridged outputs from the 705. The unit went back to Carver, and they made some modification that diminished the noise but did not correct it. I gave up and bought the EP9ES which performs flawlessly. I found Carver to be unsympathetic, and dealing with their service department was tedious and exhausting. One day I will probably try again to resolve this with Carver, or maybe save my energy and donate the unit to some charity.

Similar Products Used:

Sony EP9ES

Has all the features that I need or want in a Dolby Pro Logic Preamp (6) DSP modes plus Stereo. The sub-woofer output can only be controlled from the rear of the Preamp. It would be nice to have this function available on the remote. The CT-28v reproduces music and movies quite well. The tuner does a good job pulling in the distant FM stations and the signal meter is useful. There are four audio only inputs and three audio/video inputs as well as three S-video input and output connectors, and an external processor loop. I also like the on-screen display over the TV for a quick check of my settings. My only concern with this Preamp is that I have not seen or heard of any others that own one of these. If you have one and read this do a review so I can see what others think of it!!!

I've been very pleased with the CT-28v's performance since purchasing (second hand) from an original owner about two months ago. It was a welcome addition to my existing Carver configuration which includes the 705x amplifier and SDA 390t cd player. As a control center for both audio and video, the CT-28 functions and sounds magnificent. I don't own a subwoofer, so the control function on the back panel is not a problem. The concerns I DO have with the CT-28 are minor. The remote control, which has an older key pad style, is NOT user friendly. The key configuration is tight with very small buttons.
I've also noticed that the pre-amp itself, runs a little warmer than I had anticipated.
Bottom line; it is a quaity piece of equipment that peforms and functions better than any other pre-amp I've come accross. I'm convinced that my decision to purchase the CT-28v was an excellent one.

I purchased the ct28 about a year ago given the unit also had switching for s-video and matched nicely with the carver amps I was using( tfm15 and the av405) Overall I have been pleased with the preamp's prologic decoding that was on par with the HKavr25 that I was previously using as a preamp. I was particularly impressed with the tuner section of the preamp that is generally overlooked in av gear, it locked on weak stations in stride. I also enjoy analog so the phono input was a welcome bonus and my LP's sounded just fine on my Thorens TT. The DSP modes were OK, although I rarely use these options on any equipment I use. My only complaint is the subwoofer level control that is buried behind the chasis, I believe that if such control is offered it should be on the front panel of the unit or operable by remote. I purchased the unit by mail order for $550 that is about half the MSRP and it has performed admirably. I think the unit deserves four stars although I would have given five if the subwoofer control was up front.