2. amps-preamps
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Seriously considering tube preamp…opinions?

Tube virgin, here. I am building a system and I'm trying to contain the preamp/amp cost to $3k or so. (I could go up a little.) 

I'm inclined not to dive into tubes all the way through, but get a solid state on the output end. (Open to suggestions; inclined toward PS Audio, Parasound.) I'm reading around about tube preamps and have talked with my local dealer, who sells Black Ice/Jolida and Prima Luna (PL). He used to carry Rogue but said they kept coming back for repairs. That's why he carries PL.

I'm asking these questions after having established (via reviews, comments) that Schiit gear is quite the value. Lately, I've been reading about Decware and other small tube makers. I'm very curious about buying direct, if possible, and a company that stands behind their products is crucial.

So, your opinions about tube integrated or *especially* tube preamps —

1. Who do you like? Consider I want to do pre/amp for a total of $3k if possible.

2. Do you think PL is worth all that money just for a preamp? I get the feeling they're high quality but a bit over-hyped. (No disrespect to the highly passionate Kevin Deal, but he's all over my search results.) And what would you think about $2k/$1k preamp-to-amp spending ratio?

3. Any sense of what happened to Jolida since the name change to "Black Ice"? I see there's a sordid story there but did the re-branding clear up the mess? Any experiences with the Black Ice company?

4. I know there are many Schiit fans out there; so my question would be -- did anyone consider Schiit for tube preamp and go another way? Or move beyond Schiit for any particular reason? It's hard not to just capitulate and do a Freya+ or Saga+ but why wouldn't one just go with Schiit?




128x128hilde45
bstatmeister
537 posts
 
aegir would be the one to get if you have very efficient speakers, something above 92db or so. If you buy Aegirs with inefficient speakers you will be much more likely to clip. Vidars should do a better job driving inefficient speakers (200 watts per channel into 4 ohms).

SQ wise, from what I understand, Aegir is more articulate/airy in the highs, where Vidars is less so but may provide more bass impact. as always YMMV.
4425
861 posts
 
personally i would by a used CJ or ARC. CJ for unbalanced and ARC for balanced connection. i would not buy an unknown brand as you’d be buying a boat anchor when reselling. IMO
hilde45's avatar
hilde45 OP
4,994 posts
 
@richopp Audio Research looks amazing. I'm not sure how I fit that into the budget I outlined. Good to dream, I suppose.

@milpai Thanks for the note about the Rhumba 1.3. It’s $4k, as a preamp. I was looking to keep preamp & amp to $3k. I imagine at $4k, there are a lot of options, but this is effectively beyond my budget.

@bstatmeister Schiit is the option that is lurking in the background, always. I appreciate your note about the difference btw their amps, as there is some fluidity about which speakers I wind up with.
lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,570 posts
 
Given OP budget of $2K, he is unlikely to find anything decent in ARC preamp range. Don’t think he wants to own a 10 plus years old ARC preamp. IME, ARC is a very linear sounding, they sound more like solid state than any other tube preamp I’ve heard. I have owned both LS28 and Ref 6 and eventually sold both of them. 

Before ARC fans gets bent out of shape over my feedback, I should mention that my current reference is Shindo Monbrison preamp.
hilde45's avatar
hilde45 OP
4,994 posts
 
@richdirector — thanks for those suggestions. I don't plan on playing vinyl, but I'll take a look.
@4425 thanks — I will avoid boat anchors. By "unknown brand" I assume you mean "not well known" or "not artisanal" (to borrow a foodie term).
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