Joule Electra LA150 MkII or Lamm LL2 Deluxe?

Some people (myself included) cannot live with the "steps" in a stepped attenuator, esp. if the pre-amp itself is a high gain device. It was always too load or too soft.

Good one Grant.

To update this thread, I have purchased the Joule Electra LA150 MkII and I am currently giving that a run in my system. My unit is an upgraded MkI, and Jud Barber says there is no difference between that and an original MkII. My first impression is of exceptional clarity and dynamics. This preamp absolutely does not run out of steam at any level. It never breaks up, and never sounds shrill, grainy or lean. However, it does seem a bit more in the neutral camp than I expected. However, this is compared to my former TEAD Vibe/Pulse and my other current preamp the Lector Zoe, both of which are known for having a rich presentation, and perhaps being a bit "dark." The Joule is not dark. It plays what is there, but somehow without a "warts and all" presentation. You get detail and dynamics, without highlighting flaws on lesser recordings. It is very musical. Although I do not have much experience with this preamp yet, I believe its strength may be in the more than ample power reserves and the linearity of the tubes used. It does not candy-coat the music, but it does sound beautiful.

I understand one of the upgrades (or changes) from MkI to MkII involved changing out the internal Purist wire for Cardas wire. It seems the silver wire may have been too much of a good thing, and may have limited the full rich sound that many found desirable in the LA100 preamp. Following that trend, I removed some Purist interconnects that contained silver from the Joule to my amp, and replaced them with pure copper interconnects I had around here (Sonoran). To me, the pure copper wire sounds best with this preamp. I may consider going back to Cardas interconnects or another copper cable that would be a step up from the Sonoran. Any suggestions?

Finally, I still have my wanted ad posted for the Lamm LL2, and plan to purchase one if I find one generally within the A'gon blue book price range. I suspect, from what I have read, that the Lamm may deviate from tonal neutrality (especially compared to the Joule) by being more full and robust in the bass and mid-bass, but I am not a stickler for those things and generally go with what sounds best to me.

Curious Mitch, I was under the impression that the Joule was the reigning champ in the "rich presentation, bass detail & weight camp", that the MKII update was how it got there, and the reason I'm interested in it...please keep us posted.

I owned the LL2 and now own the La-150MKII, and matched with the CAT JL2s and Music Refence RM9 MKII amps it is very rich, with great bass weight and detail, yet also quite transparent - this pre is in no way slow and syrypy - it is comparable to my passive TVC (S&B 102 designed by Kevin Carter) in transparency and speed. I actually can't decide which I prefer between the two, which speaks volumes for the quality of the TVC given it is 1/5th the price. There was quite a gap in time between my Lamm and the Joule so I don't trust my audio memory on that.