Get the weekly hi-fi digest — new gear, best reads, and deals.
Founded in May 1989 in Cary, North Carolina by Dennis Had and his wife Donna, Cary Audio Design began as Dennis's dream on their dining room table. Had's passion for electronics started at age seven with a 2A3 tube amplifier science project that won a blue ribbon in seventh grade. Before founding Cary Audio, Had was an investment banker and RF engineer who had founded successful companies in 1974 and 1980. Starting in an 800-square-foot industrial space, Cary Audio's initial products were the PD-1 passive line stage preamplifier and CAD-100 mono block amplifier. Key milestones include the 1989 CAD-300SE single-ended Class A triode amplifier and the 1992 CAD-805, still in production as the 'Grand Master' of Cary sound. Dennis Had retired in 2009, selling his shares to partner Billy Wright. The company remains a privately-owned American manufacturer in Raleigh, North Carolina, employing 21 dedicated employees in a 10,000 square foot factory, continuing to handcraft high-performance tube amplifiers and audio equipment.