Argh, I sold my Ref5se... what was I thinking!

[essjay]

I am very very happy with my ref 3, and if a ref 3 is as good as I am finding it then the ref5e surely has to be a major step up which i find hard to believe because the ref 3 is so darn good.

Anyone who says the ARC reference level gear is horrible must be either doing something very wrong, has an agenda or is being paid to say as much.

Just my uneducated opinion as always

[pete6737]

I love what my Ref5se has done to the sound in my system. I can't wait to get an ARC ref150 and maybe a Cd9. Still working OT for them! Without a direct comparison, I can't say that I'd pass on the ref150 for the gs150. Yes I'm new to the Arc family but I'm pressing on with the all Arc Ref system I heard at the dealer. Pete

[cma29]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

Man, what has gotten into everyone on arc gear lately? We have this thread where people claim the Ref5se is horrible, and another thread that claims the ref75 and Ref 150 are worthless compared to the new "flagship" gs150! Gimme a break.

Nothing arc makes in this league is bad, it's all very, very good, and although there's always "better" and "worse", let's cut the hyperbole!

Originally Posted by Alki

+1, when individuals make the statements that caused you to write this response it reduces their credibility. IMO when you compare most well known components in a similar price range one will not smear, crush, annihilate, or mop the floor with the other. But every one is entitled to their opinion, my guess is that it helps them justify what they paid for their new component.

Exactly. Well said.

[2fastdriving]

Originally Posted by pete6737

I love what my Ref5se has done to the sound in my system. I can't wait to get an ARC ref150 and maybe a Cd9. Still working OT for them! Without a direct comparison, I can't say that I'd pass on the ref150 for the gs150. Yes I'm new to the Arc family but I'm pressing on with the all Arc Ref system I heard at the dealer. Pete

Make sure you listen to the ref75 too. Some people think it sounds at least as good as the 150, yet it provides easier bias adjustments and looks great too. And you can save $$$

[NOLG4EVR]

I enjoyed my Ref5se and Ref 250's for the time I owned them. Very good gear.

Even though I have moved on I would never say anything to disparage ARC products. Every ear is different but it is rare to hear any ARC Ref piece described as horrible.Very surprised to read that opinion in comparison to CJ, or anything else for that matter.

[turntable]

Originally Posted by analog brother

hahaha! was it really that bad?
you make it sound so bad!

Originally Posted by Number95

Absolutely nonsense piece of information unless you had a faulty Ref5se.

Originally Posted by doggiehowser

I disagree. If you have equipment that works best with balanced connections, a properly run in Ref 5SE IMHO bested the CJ through the same gear.

Probably not quite as bad as I made out, however it certainly had nothing on the cj GAT and was a huge disappointment. I owned and ran the thing for 2 months after it had over 600 hours on it, so very well run in as store demo unit. I had planned to sell my cj GAT and run balanced with the Dag amp, so certainly no agenda on my part. AB, ask Janson how much I liked it

I ran it balanced, SE with Pass X350 and Dag Stereo as well as my cj tube amps. I even put the thing on Still points so it was the same as the cj GAT.

It sounded slow, ponderous as if I had put a smokers jacket on and aged 30 years. Nice for intimate jazz or vocals perhaps and it did have a high soundstage.

CJ GAT is faster, more lively, better bass control, vocals out in front a bit more and plays music. Ref5SE played musak in direct comparison, certainly nothing like neutral.

very happy to get the thing out of my system.

sometimes the grass is not always greener.

YMMV in your system cheers

[analog brother]

yep indeed, janson has told me the story a few times! lol
i've heard it only once at nick's but was only for 5 mins or so in an unfamiliar system.
wish i could have borrowed it around the same time as you did.......just to put the 'what-if?' thought to rest.
i respect your opinion though, and everybody's opinion has a right to be different.
it's like how i'm the only guy i know who likes the new scott walker album......haha

[Mikeoz]

Originally Posted by turntable

It sounded slow, ponderous as if I had put a smokers jacket on and aged 30 years. Nice for intimate jazz or vocals perhaps and it did have a high soundstage.

I've never read it described like that. Your unit must have been faulty.

[cmalak]

Shane...I am surprised too by your description. Could have been a faulty unit (maybe a bad tube)...dunno but your description does not jive with what many of us have heard with the Ref 5SE nor the descriptions of the unit in most reviews. Neutrality is the hallmark of ARC tubes to the detriment of some who like more burnished hues that tube gear often deliver. Anyhoo, that's neither here or there. That was your experience and of course the GAT is a fine piece of gear (in the US it's also $7K more expensive than the Ref 5SE). I would have put the old Ref 40 (now superseded by the Ref 10) as the closer competitor to the GAT but again that's neither here nor there. Enjoy.

[Puma Cat]

Honestly, guys, if you haven't heard Shane's ARC next to his GAT in his system, I don't think anyone is in a positon to say it's faulty, he's wrong, etc. etc. With all due respect, there's a lot of supposition in these comments, but Shane and his friends are the only ones that actually have the "data" of a first-hand comparison and having lived with both.

On the other hand, since it came up, I've heard the some of the Shindo gear extensively, and while the Giscours (the preamp I heard the most) is a fine preamp, it by no means is the best preamp I've ever heard, and for my money, there is a lot of gear out there that, IMO, betters Shindo in a number of respects. None of the Shindo gear I've comes close to DarTZeel, for example.

I have good friend who has a pair of Wavac amplifiers that considerably outperformed Shindo Lafons, as well. And by a long way, IMHO. The Lafons were...meh. The Wavacs are absolutely incredible.