Nagra Classic Preamp

[skinnyfla]

Hi,
thinking about changing my amplification step by step and beginning with the Preamp… would like to go tubes… up high on my list of candidates is the Nagra Classic Preamp.., anyone care to share impressions and/or listening experience?

Thanks,

Chris

 

[jfrech]

It's a fantastic preamp. I owned one and along with a Classic Phono/Classic PSU before I moved up to the Nagra HD pre and phono. Nagra is very true to the source and is a great match with Wilson's. The Classic is very even handed up and down the frequency range, great spatialness and resolution that's portrayed naturally. You can't go wrong with it. If you're keeping your McIntosh amp should be just fine. Given your phono set up...you'll appreciate the Nagra's quality.

 

[skinnyfla]

It's a fantastic preamp. I owned one and along with a Classic Phono/Classic PSU before I moved up to the Nagra HD pre and phono. Nagra is very true to the source and is a great match with Wilson's. The Classic is very even handed up and down the frequency range, great spatialness and resolution that's portrayed naturally. You can't go wrong with it. If you're keeping your McIntosh amp should be just fine. Given your phono set up...you'll appreciate the Nagra's quality.

… thanks, sounds great and certainly high up on my list… maybe with the option to upgrade poweramp later down the line…

 

[Holmz]

Hi,
thinking about changing my amplification step by step and beginning with the Preamp… would like to go tubes… up high on my list of candidates is the Nagra Classic Preamp.., anyone care to share impressions and/or listening experience?

Thanks,

Chris

I went from an Audible Illusion Modulos linestage to the older Nagra Jazz.
Both are nice tube preamps and do their job well.

(And moved from tube amps to SS amps for convenience.)

You could do worse, IMO, but I like the Swiss gear, so I am biased.
And one either likes the look of them or not.
Supratech, AR, Atmasphere and others were in consideration, but it was hard to get a listen.

Macintosh also has a look if that is important.

 

[A-Line]

Hi,
thinking about changing my amplification step by step and beginning with the Preamp… would like to go tubes… up high on my list of candidates is the Nagra Classic Preamp.., anyone care to share impressions and/or listening experience?

Thanks,

Chris

Greetings.

You have McIntosh solid state for amplification right now. Did you want to check out some of the newer McIntosh tube components? The new C12000 hybrid tube preamp paired with the new tube MC3500 MKII tube amps are quite nice.

Nagra is a different sound than McIntosh, even for tube components. Tariffs in your country may also play a big part in the way of cost for McIntosh vs Nagra.

 

[skinnyfla]

Thanks for the feedback… I have never heard a different amp in my setup as I‘ve had the McIntosh for the past 13 years and I‘ve always been happy with the SQ… now many people say McIntosh is mediocre at best and other stuff is supposedly way ahead… kinda makes me curious how much better things will get… that’s why I‘ve ruled McIntosh out for now as I would like to see what hidden worlds there are… I love the look of McIntosh… but obviously I also want to explore what possible (drastic?) improvements there may be soundwise… Nagra Classic Preamp retails at 18k round here, McIntosh 12000 at around 21k (both incl. VAT - so they are close by n price)…

 

[Holmz]

Thanks for the feedback… I have never heard a different amp in my setup as I‘ve had the McIntosh for the past 13 years and I‘ve always been happy with the SQ… now many people say McIntosh is mediocre at best and other stuff is supposedly way ahead…

People always say it is way ahead, when it’s pretty minimal at best.

kinda makes me curious how much better things will get…

Fear of missing out is a real thing.

that’s why I‘ve ruled McIntosh out for now as I would like to see what hidden worlds there are… I love the look of McIntosh… but obviously I also want to explore what possible (drastic?) improvements there may be soundwise… Nagra Classic Preamp retails at 18k round here, McIntosh 12000 at around 21k (both incl. VAT - so they are close by n price)…

While I like the Nagra gear, and am heavily biased towards it…
I would suggest that you look at the McIntosh gear.
It at least looks nice, and ties things together Feng Shui wise.

If it is capable of drastic improvements, then you should be able to hear it.

 

[skinnyfla]

People always say it is way ahead, when it’s pretty minimal at best.


Fear of missing out is a real thing.


While I like the Nagra gear, and am heavily biased towards it…
I would suggest that you look at the McIntosh gear.
It at least looks nice, and ties things together Feng Shui wise.

If it is capable of drastic improvements, then you should be able to hear it.

... so true - I`ve heard the term "blows xyz out of the water" so many times before and usually, from a certain point on, things tend to be "different" by a small margin and I`ve yet to hear something new that blows something else "out of the water"... I?ll see where the journey takes me and maybe, in the end, I`ll find things are good just the way they are... also a possibility ;-)

 

[Ron Resnick]

I`ve heard the term "blows xyz out of the water" so many times before and usually, from a certain point on, things tend to be "different" by a small margin

+1

This is why the Hyperbole Police remain ever vigilant, and rarely enjoy a day off.

 

[Holmz]

... so true - I`ve heard the term "blows xyz out of the water" so many times before and usually, from a certain point on, things tend to be "different" by a small margin and I`ve yet to hear something new that blows something else "out of the water"... I?ll see where the journey takes me and maybe, in the end, I`ll find things are good just the way they are... also a possibility ;-)

Slapping my forehead…
(Doing nothing is an option.)