Your All Time Favorite Preamplifiers?
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I can’t resist chiming in.
i have two favorite preamps. My present one, which is less than 6 months old is a Luxman CL-38uC tube preamplifier. It has a stunningly attractive vintage image with real wood top and sides as well as all sorts of tone controls .
I love that it has a phono stage and that the phono stage is the equivalent of its standalone separate phono stage. IOW, unusually good. It also has one balanced input. I wish it had more, but I’m happy to have one. I confess I can’t discriminate between its contribution to audio excellence versus the Luxman amplifier I have also, the MQ-88uC. How does one tell? I can only say they sound great!k
My second favorite preamplifier is vintage, and I use it paired with a vintage Adcom amplifier at my desktop computer audio system.. It is the Musical Fidelity A3cr. If you were to read a review on this preamplifier perhaps you would see why i like it so much, but here’s an excerpt.
I really enjoy using this preamp and again, the reviewer says it best:
The Musical Fidelity A3CR may not be perfect, but it’s hard to find any major fault. Actually, you need to really exert yourself to find its minor flaws. It is spectacularly well built. It is deliberately over-designed to cope with the widest possible range of sources, cables and power amplifiers. Sonically, it belongs in the top rank of all the preamplifiers I have auditioned.
i have two favorite preamps. My present one, which is less than 6 months old is a Luxman CL-38uC tube preamplifier. It has a stunningly attractive vintage image with real wood top and sides as well as all sorts of tone controls .
I love that it has a phono stage and that the phono stage is the equivalent of its standalone separate phono stage. IOW, unusually good. It also has one balanced input. I wish it had more, but I’m happy to have one. I confess I can’t discriminate between its contribution to audio excellence versus the Luxman amplifier I have also, the MQ-88uC. How does one tell? I can only say they sound great!k
My second favorite preamplifier is vintage, and I use it paired with a vintage Adcom amplifier at my desktop computer audio system.. It is the Musical Fidelity A3cr. If you were to read a review on this preamplifier perhaps you would see why i like it so much, but here’s an excerpt.
I really enjoy using this preamp and again, the reviewer says it best:
The Musical Fidelity A3CR may not be perfect, but it’s hard to find any major fault. Actually, you need to really exert yourself to find its minor flaws. It is spectacularly well built. It is deliberately over-designed to cope with the widest possible range of sources, cables and power amplifiers. Sonically, it belongs in the top rank of all the preamplifiers I have auditioned.
Dissanayake custom-made for me.
Over a few decades I had read various reviews and articles about Sarath Dissanayake's handcrafted preamps, and since I recently changed speakers and power amp, I decided to also change my old Audible Illusions Modulus 2D from 1993.
I wanted something special to put in my chain (Avalon Indra, Bartolomeo Aloia Micropal solid-state power amp, Cardas Golden Reference cables) and decided to take a risk on getting a preamp without listening to it.
I must say that before deciding I spoke to a couple of people who had had the Dissanayake Resurrection (a preamp from the 1990s) and they spoke very highly of it (they told me it was the best they had ever had).
Based on this information I set out to find Sarath (which wasn't easy because he doesn't have a website or FB page, but I knew he was in Rome). After finding him and talking to him, I ordered him a line-only valve preamp with only one input (for the DAC, I don't use turntables).
Three months later he brought me home a two-chassis preamp (separate power supply) with a nice thick red front panel engraved with his logo, weighing about 20 kg. On the front it only has the volume knob, on the back the mute lever and on the power supply body it also has a selector to change the voltage and get a bolder sound.
Well, after running it in for a few days, I started to enjoy it and I can say that I am really really satisfied. Detail, scene, background blackness are its characteristics.
The Avalons gives already great perspective and soundstage, but the Dissanayake preamp adds firmness and depth to the whole.
Listening Dido and Aeneas by Currentzis (track 3 Ah Belinda!), or Julius Asal playing Scriabin and Scarlatti, or Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique with Gatti and RCO, are pieces that keep you glued to your seat, whether by day at normal volume, or at late night at low volume.
So thanks Sarath, you built me a great preamp! Incidentally, we gave this custom-made preamp the name Dissanayake "19.07.2024 Mezzanotte24h"
Over a few decades I had read various reviews and articles about Sarath Dissanayake's handcrafted preamps, and since I recently changed speakers and power amp, I decided to also change my old Audible Illusions Modulus 2D from 1993.
I wanted something special to put in my chain (Avalon Indra, Bartolomeo Aloia Micropal solid-state power amp, Cardas Golden Reference cables) and decided to take a risk on getting a preamp without listening to it.
I must say that before deciding I spoke to a couple of people who had had the Dissanayake Resurrection (a preamp from the 1990s) and they spoke very highly of it (they told me it was the best they had ever had).
Based on this information I set out to find Sarath (which wasn't easy because he doesn't have a website or FB page, but I knew he was in Rome). After finding him and talking to him, I ordered him a line-only valve preamp with only one input (for the DAC, I don't use turntables).
Three months later he brought me home a two-chassis preamp (separate power supply) with a nice thick red front panel engraved with his logo, weighing about 20 kg. On the front it only has the volume knob, on the back the mute lever and on the power supply body it also has a selector to change the voltage and get a bolder sound.
Well, after running it in for a few days, I started to enjoy it and I can say that I am really really satisfied. Detail, scene, background blackness are its characteristics.
The Avalons gives already great perspective and soundstage, but the Dissanayake preamp adds firmness and depth to the whole.
Listening Dido and Aeneas by Currentzis (track 3 Ah Belinda!), or Julius Asal playing Scriabin and Scarlatti, or Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique with Gatti and RCO, are pieces that keep you glued to your seat, whether by day at normal volume, or at late night at low volume.
So thanks Sarath, you built me a great preamp! Incidentally, we gave this custom-made preamp the name Dissanayake "19.07.2024 Mezzanotte24h"
Attachments
Can you share any details about the design? Type of tube? Component parts, etc.
the construction diagrams are proprietary and are not the usual generalised copying of the usual diagrams that have been around for about 80 years!
the products are characterised by very high performance even on the entry level of the brand! they use valves that are not usually seen on commercial preamplifiers of any price and blazon!
Dissanayake products should be listened to and evaluated and then judged, better if compared with other products even of much higher price!!!
production consists of preamplifiers, power amps and phono stages
If the tubes are not in production that's always a concern. You might want to lay in a stock.
many of these are tubes that are easy to find, and are often inexpensive and much less used than the usual commercial products, which also preserves them from the heavy speculation that has affected the entire hiend sector for many years!
In any case Dissanayake has three warehouses full of NOS tubes and other components such as Western Electric transformers and other historic hi-fi brands!
don't worry, you won't run out of thermionic devices ;-)
Right next to the canned food and ammo…
yes it is smarter to spend 1500 euro on a tube 300B or a pair of ECC803S diamond of course!
Considering pre amplifiers of yore … I remain very fond of my ARC Ref 40th Anniversary , which can, if one is handy with a soldering iron , be tuned up a little further whilst retaining the depth , heft and weight of tone and liquidity of sound that it does so well .
An example of which was performed by member @ayreman here :
www.whatsbestforum.com
An example of which was performed by member @ayreman here :
Modding my ARC Ref Anniversary
Got my Ref Ann 10 years ago. It barely broke in when 3 Nichicon electrolytic caps leaked right onto the PCB. I was livid. What?! A preamp with $25K price tag barely survived 1 year of its operation? I scrutinized the parts the unit was assembled of and was horrified how much junk was in it...
www.whatsbestforum.com
Last edited:
Right next to the canned food and ammo…
Tubes are more likely to go up in value over time and unlike food or ammo, the ones in question have been out of production for decades and won't be back.Considering pre amplifiers of yore … I remain very fond of my ARC Ref 40th Anniversary , which can, if one is handy with a soldering iron , be tuned up a little further whilst retaining the depth , heft and weight of tone and liquidity of sound that it does so wellView attachment 134354
An example of which was performed by member @ayreman here :
Modding my ARC Ref Anniversary
Got my Ref Ann 10 years ago. It barely broke in when 3 Nichicon electrolytic caps leaked right onto the PCB. I was livid. What?! A preamp with $25K price tag barely survived 1 year of its operation? I scrutinized the parts the unit was assembled of and was horrified how much junk was in it...
LOL, I think there was more than a little tuning happening in that thread
I should have included wine, but I like to trigger the people with bunkers.
A friend has some amps with 6KG6A tubes and cannot find replacements.
Need to add those into the bunker.
Where does one find those tubes?
Ｐｈ－ＥＣＧ ４０ＫＧ６Ａ １０本セット - Yahoo!オークション
米国 Ｐｈ－ＥＣＧ （旧ＳＹＬＶＡＮＩＡ）の、４０ＫＧ６Ａ、欧州型番 ＰＬ５１９ の１０本セットです。 ソケットは、マグノーバル９ピンでプレートキャップは、Φ６ｍｍです。今回、１０本セットを２組出品します。外観はどれも差はほとんどなく一定していますので、写真は代表の１０本のみとします。 １０本単位での入札となります。 ２０本必要な方は、数量２で入札してください。日本国内、送料一律￥１０００でお願いします。 ただし、北海道は￥１
page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp
I am enjoying a Shindo Monbrison in my present system! It would have to be my favourite preamp so far.
To me components are a system thing. I have heard many other preamps at friend's places and at high end show like Munich but without hearing them in a system and environment I am familiar with it's hard to judge just how good a particular component is.
To me components are a system thing. I have heard many other preamps at friend's places and at high end show like Munich but without hearing them in a system and environment I am familiar with it's hard to judge just how good a particular component is.
That's the same as an EL509. You can find that sort of stuff on ebay and I think JJ still makes that tube but without the plate cap and in an octal base embodiment. I thought they still made the plate cap version too. At any rate that's easy to find on ebay. I found a set of four just now. EL509 with plate caps
I am not very frightened by this issue because tubes are to be replaced frequently in a power amplifier, but much less so in the preamplifier where they are less stressed.
My Audible Illusions Modulus 2D, overhauled after 30 years had perfect tubes.
This is the reason why I have the tube preamp but the solid-state power amp.
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