Placette, VS First Sound VS Audio Synthesis Passio

I've had my Placette Passive for about 18 months now. It allows you to hear your components and the source material as they are. It has no added coloration, no distortion and no mercy. Everything comes through with total transparency.

It definately worth a try. I believe that Guy is still offering a money back option if you don't like it. He is also selling some very transparent interconnects that take the sound to a higher level.

Rick

I compared the First Sound passive to a Reference Line Preeminence I passive. The Reference Line was more musical, had greater soundstage depth and more dynamic realism. The reference Line uses Vishey's and was a reference pre-amp for many reviewers a few years back. You may want to add this to your list of possibilities.

If you are looking for a super transparent, purely passive transformer-based stage, give John Chapman at Bent Audio a jingle. He can set you up with any number of input/output combos RCA or XLR. You can get them kit or pre-built and they are EXCELLENT. No vested interest, here. I just owned one and thought it was great.

http://www.bentaudio.com

Tough call, these are great pieces. I've had extensive experience with Passive Placette, Active Placette, and First Sound Deluxe (the $4k model).

When I wear my audiophile hat the Placette wins - for detail and linearity, without being harsh, it is unmatched in transparency IMO, but, the First Sound is absolutely supernatural in it's black background, dynamices, nuance, and overall sonic beauty. When I play the First Sound my jaw hits the floor on the first note and stays there. Every single note is like an individual gift to your ears. I have never heard anything like it.

Ultimately - and this is critical - it's a matter of system matching of course and your choice might simply need to depend on the rest of the gear...

I've heard there can be impedence problems matching certain amps to First Sound so see if you can try before buy.

Art

4Yanx- I had the Bent unit you are describing in my system and another buddy's (Israel Blume- Owner/Designer Coincident Speaker Technology) for testing- although fairly smooth in presentation and not the least bit aggressive, we found it did soften the frequency extremes too much for our liking, and therefore didn't make the grade. That being said, John at Bent Audio is a super nice guy to deal with.

Israel and I both use Audion preamps from the UK, which we have found to be the best, however as far as transparency/neutrality go, I also found the Wyetech Opal quite outstanding, but this may be out of your intended budget. Vox- for YOUR situation, I would not hesitate to get the Placette RVC w remote. There is one right now on audiogon @ $650. If I had a single source only, this would be an easy decision...