2. amps-preamps
  3. 191802-4635

Solid State Preamp to replace tube unit

I currently own a CJ tube preamp. Ive always owned tube preamps and I would like to get my first solid state preamp.I am fed up with buying expensive hard to find tubes that last 3 months or new production tubes with that not so great sound. I pine for consistency. I probably wont sell my CJ I'll just keep it. My power amps are NAD M23 for the summer and CJ Premiere 12's for the winter.

Since I dont dabble in the solid state world I am not sure what to get. I figure since this is my first SS unit 4-5k preowned??. Some brands I have considered CODA< Pass, AYRE, Classe, Bel Canto, Krell etc. Note: I have tried the Parasound and Benchmark but they didnt do it for me. I dont like anayltical sterile sound. If it is a touch warm/colored that is probably good as I am coming from a very warm CJ tube unit.

Must haves are a remote with balance control. Multiple outputs (XLR and RCA). I have an outboard phono pre. Thank you for reading and for your suggestions.

jimbones
jimbones OP
244 posts
 

All. I believe my issue is that I purchased some of my tubes on ebay and some as "pulls" from well known tube suppliers. Now the tube suppliers are not at fault because when they were tested they were fine. BUT, they were not NEW. Thats not on them Its on me. I now will only purchase new tubes and see how that goes. To Be continued

sls883
249 posts
 

I believe the Philps PCC88 tube that I linked earlier (Tube Depot) is/was being sold by c-j.  If I'm not mistaken, I was told the c-j buys that particular tube.  Below is a link from a post on another forum. That was one person's experience with tube rolling with the ET-5.  From what I've read, it is harder on tubes than some of the other c-j preamps.  The tubes in my PV-14L lasted for 10+ years.  I didn't have the Premier 17LS2 long enough to burn through any tubes. 

 

I am reporting back as promised. The tube I am using is the Philips E88CC, a NOS military tube from the 1960s. Jeff at cj can supply them. They are the best tube overall that I have tried. They sound warmer overall than the EH and hold up just as well. The EH tube is good too, sharper, brighter.
The Gold Lion 6922 sounded great, perhaps the best of all, but it got noisy very quickly.

sounds_real_audio
1,002 posts
 

jimbones

if it has a volume control then should be easy to try it out. take the preamp out of the system. 

georgeab
95 posts
 

I too, got tired of the hassle of tubes. I went with a SimAudio Moon P7. For me, it was a great choice as it checks the boxes of what I like.     

audio-b-dog's avatar
audio-b-dog
8 posts
 

I owned tube preamps for many years. CJ Premier 14, then I moved to Audio Research. My last ARC preamp was the Reference 3 and I loved it, but did not love having to pull it out of my system to change the tubes. 

I found a Pass Labs XP-30 (MSRP $16K) used for about $6K, so I jumped on it. The sound out of this preamp is every bit as clear and musical as the tube preamps. But it is pricey. However, Most people seem to be purchasing the two-piece (mine is a three-piece) Pass preamp for about $10K. Still expensive, but I wouldn't have any concern about buying one used. Pass makes very solid products. 

And I actually must admit that I like the Pass preamp more than the tube preamps I'd fallen in love with. I called my neighbor over to hear it and immediately he commented on the clarity of the new preamp and my system. It's an improvement.

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