Are you testing the original or upgraded (level 2) LTA preamp? I just got my LTA preamp returned with the upgrade today and the bass is a bit deeper/tighter. Still evaluating other aspects of the upgrade - definitely a bit better overall. I would agree with those who posted above about rolling the small tubes - since the LTA doesn't drive the tubes hard, it makes it easier to upgrade without worrying about burning through expensive tubes. I put in some NOS Siemens 12AU7s and the sound definitely was a little clearer and cleaner over the stock tubes.
Preamp shootout: Linear tube audio, Modwright, etc.
Hi Audio friends,
The world of preamps is taking me down a lot of rabbit holes and I'm curious what everyone out there thinks. My journey here started with using my Dac direct to amp. As soon as I inserted a dedicated pre the debate over pre vs. no pre ended. Didn't realize I was missing a third of the music. My current rig: wilson sabrina's, Coda TS v2 power amp, exasound DAC, silnote & cardas cables . I was using a Modwright LS100 and I'm currently trialing the Linear tube audio ref pre. The LS 100 is holographic, images well, but is not nearly as open or detailed as the LTA. The LTA is gorgeous through the mids, but is a little muddy through the bass and not really suited for hard rock. Wonder if different tubes would make a substantial difference to the LTA? If anyone has experience please share.
What other options might be considered in this price range?
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@giantsalami I love my. Modwright 36.5. Upgrading the rectifiier tube, as recommended by Modwright, makes all the difference. Ask Vintage Tube Services for a god Mullard. The 6h30's don't make that much differennce |
The two I can think of that could be interesting are: PS Audio BHK Signature AVM Evolution PA5.2 In both cases the stock tubes are not optimal. In the case of the BHK, there is a pair of NOS Tunsgrams that really brings the unit to life and it is a VERY good sounding preamp. I used it for about a year with a variety of amps and was quite happy. I scrapped it because PS Audio went direct and I did get a better preamp from Art Audio. The AVM uses ECC83s. I recommend rolling in NOS Mazda Cifte's if you want detail, Mullards if you want sweetness. This unit is feature packed including tone controls, input attenuation, etc.... I have this unit here now as one of my preamp demos.
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The PS Audio BHK is really good, but I found it responds well to tube rolling - you really need to roll the tubes to get the most out of it. Since it does respond to tube rolling, I would call it a good tube preamp. I do like that it is a bit of a swiss army knife of a preamp since it has a large number of balanced and unbalanced inputs. Overall, I'd say with stock tubes it performs below the LTA original generation; with better tubes about equal to the LTA OG. The LTA with the level 2 upgrade I would place above the PS Audio. Of course, if your equipment performs better using balanced gear, the LTA might not win in a head-to-head. |
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