First Sound compared to Supratek, VAC, or Audio No

I agree that the VAC is a bunch-o-money. I caught a rare factory demo at substantial savings, which was the only way I could afford or even justify the purchase.

But, now that I have made this 'expensive gamble', I can sincerely say that my system has benefitted dramatically from adding this pre, so it was worth the expense and I have absolutely no regrets or desire to 'upgrade' further. This one is a keeper.

I guess I can't give a better reason then that to recommend AT LEAST an audition....

Another fan here of both First Sound and VAC. Kevin and Emmanuel are great guys. The preamp is a tuning device for the system as much as many of the pieces you buy are.
84 is a friend of mine, who was going direct with the Berning, amp. He inserted the First Sound into the system for a trial...that was 6 months ago.
The VAC is excellent also. At the Vegas show this past year, I put together a consortium of manufacturers, to display with Von Schweikert. We used all VAC electronics, and to say it was remarkable is a vast understatement.
We did Live versus Playback every day at 6:00; with Kevin Hays' electronics it was magical. You are really asking about various versions of wonderful. Plus Hi Fi is lucky to have two great people like Kevin and Emmanuel.
Another friend of mine just got the VAC 110, and he is using a First Sound preamp. Boy is he in for a treat. Now all he needs, is a Peter Cincotti album, a glass of Silver Oaks Cabernet 1993....

Good listening,
Larry

Hi Larry, I agree with you that HiFi is lucky to have Kevin and Emmnauel in business. They are both very talented, helpful, and forthright.

Kevin Hayes from VAC is a pleasure to deal with. He's never pushy and is always very pleasant. I've had numerous conversations with him and even for a "newbie" like myself, he's never lost patience. I'm currently looking into the Renaissance MKII pre. A lot of $$$ yes, but these days you can pay a lot more and get less.
Has anybody done any listening with the Standard PRE LE and the Renaissance? I'd like to know how much better things can actually get?

I auditioned both the First Sound Presence Deluxe MkII and the next First Sound model up: the P Dlxe 4.0 MKII (two beefier power supplies). Since a couple of folks asked about what the upgrade path is like within the FS line, I will say that I bought the 4.0 version because I felt the added power supply capacity and refinement was worth it. I also felt that getting the 4.0 upfront would make further upgrades cheaper later on because fewer parts would have to be changed out or added.

What does one get for the 4.0 version? More of everything that the baseline model gives you: lower noise floor, greater detail, greater dynamic swing and control, more physical presence, lower bass, more mid-bass clarity. The most obvious difference over all is in the bass. It goes lower with more drive, weight, and control.

On a related track, I hope to line up a side-by-side listening session with a local Supratek Syrah owner. I will update this thread if that happens.