I have a Antique Sound Lab 1003 tube amp, which is missing a phone stage.
Contemplating whether to get a phono stage or a radio tune, I found myself searching for a preceiver.
McIntosh - to pricy. NAD - the design doesn´t attract me and it is not sounding that good to ignore the looks.
Carver had some nice radio tuners like the 11b and I read about the "stereophile amp challenge".
A Carver CT-3 was on the bay cheap and I got it. Needed a US style antenna though.
It is very stylish and modern looking peace of tech. The reception is that good and interference free, that I don´t hear a difference to a digital radio stream. Impressive.
The phono section gives a round and fat sound.
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The Carver CT-3 might be bettered by a tube phono pre stage, but is doing a good job.
Nothing not to like, but it doesn´t warm my heart like the phono stage of my THE FISHER X-100 A.
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Impressive is the absence of any "transistor harshness". The CT-3 has everything you like about a tube preamp but a wee bit of the magic is missing.
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Compared to other transistor gear, it sounds tube like. Very spaceous, very open. Neutral in a good way - not boring.
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The Carver CT-3 is cute as pie and delivers. Buy it, or contemplate about tube gear.
It is perfect for a second system at work or in the bedroom.
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If I were not a tube nut, I would love it.

Excellent Pre-Amp. This pre-amp is wide open to say the least!

Strange way to recall frequency presets from memory.

This was my first step up to a better level of audio. Electrically, it is just better to get that noisy, hot power amplifier away from the sensetive pre-amp circuits.

I purchased this pre-tuner from ebay for less than $250. I can't say enough good about the pre-amp! All the other receivers I have heard (some quite expensive) simply can't match the sound quality of this unit coupled to a good amplifier. And don't think power has anything to do with it! If you are using a well designed, descrete transistor or better yet tube power amplifier, you will be impressed. At the least, it would be difficult to get better performance without spending MUCH more money.

Currently I'm driving a low power single-ended tube amp with the Carver. All I can say is AIR! No more closed in feeling here. A true 3-dimensional soundstage is now apparent.

If you are currently using an equalizer to get that frequency response you like, THROW IT AWAY! I was doing the same thing and now it is no longer needed. All those noisy transistors and op-amps in the signal path are GONE!

This is a great way to move on from the receiver world without spending a bundle. I highly reccomend a pre-tuner (particularly Carver) and a good tube amp for an improvement.

Similar Products Used:

Realistic, Optimus, Adcom, H&K, and other common receivers.

wonderful tuner section

just about everything else..

Well, I picked up a TFM-25 amp and fell in love with it, true bargin, even as a brand new amp. But I was using an old highly modified Hegaman HAPI 2 pre-amp, so I picked up a CT-3 to make a nice matching set.

The CT-3 is a *very* quiet preamp and has Carvers wonderful tuner section, even AM sounded really nice. The volume control tracked very well and had good response with the remote. It was reliable, and it functioned perfectly, however.... It was very dull and lifeless with no bloom to the stereo image at all, the much older Hegaman op-amp based pre-amp blew it away.

All in all a very good product in terms of functionality and reliability along with an excellent tuner section. Extremely quiet in operation, my Marantz CD player actually had a detectable noise floor using this pre-amp, but it really fell short in terms of what I consider the hi-fi

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never had a tuner/preamp before or since, other carver stuff, counterpoint, dynaco, hafler, home brew tube and solid state stuff....

Sound, flexibility, value.

Aesthetics

WOW! Talk about value for the money. This looks like another run of the mill, cheap solid-state pre-tuner. Wait until you hook it up. Of course, no pre-amp can cover for a lousy power source, but this unit has striking clarity and spaciousness. I got spoiled many years ago. My first day of college, I walked in and my roomie had a pair of Magnepan's, an ARC pre-amp, an Ampzilla, Nakamichi tape deck, and Linn Sondek turntable. I did not bother to unpack my meager receiver, etc. He taught me about audio, and I have been picky ever since. I bought the CT-3 as a temporary until I could upgrade to a tube pre-amp. I will still probably fork out a thousand or two for the tube sound that I was weaned on, but I don't think I'll let such a nice piece of equipment as the Carver CT-3 get away. I hope Bob Carver can get the company going again because he deserves to have his mark on the audio world. A very nice unit indeed!

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ARC SP-3

I have owned the CT3 for 4 years and it sounds great! Very warm and rich. The tuner gets good reception and the sonic holograph does make a difference! Way to go Bob!

Excellent sound -- a big step ahead of integrated amplifiers or receivers, including high-end brands.

none

Only one word for it -- wow. It is not just the change I made from integrated receiver to separates. The Carver Sonic Holography fixes some of the cross-channel problems inherent in traditional stereo playback. I have always read about soundstage, but never experienced as I do now with the Carver CT-3. Bob Carver is a maverick in his industry and knows what he is doing -- the sonic holography technology continues with his newer products put out by Sunfire -- but if you are on a budget, you should strongly consider picking up one of the used Carver pieces readily avialiable on eBay. That's where I got mine and I have absolutely no regrets -- only thanks for the BIG step up in sound quality.

Similar Products Used:

NAD 712 receiver and NAD 214 power amp