I have the Audio Research LS27 and it sound very very good outstanding sound stage and dynamic dead quiet noise floor, great sound Pre Amp. Good luck.Tango
Looking for Tube Pre-Amp Recommendations
Just got a pair of Avalon Ascendants and have them mated with Sonic Frontiers Power 3 monoblocks and an old Conrad Johnson PV 12 pre-amp (will be upgrading my old Meridian 508 cd player too but want to settle on the pre-amp first).
Looking to upgrade the pre-amp as the Avalon's are either showing up the pre-amp and or it's just not a good fit (it worked well with my Thiel 6's). So, looking for a recommendation for a replacement tube pre-amp. I'm fine buying used. Don't want to spend more than $5,000.
Curious if anyone knows the newer CJ stuff? I liked their sound years ago and it worked with the Thiels but now curious if a better more recent CJ pre-amp (like the CT5) would mate well with the Avalon's? One person told me he didn't think it was a good fit (he thought the new CJ's were "pudgy" sounding and not quick and airy enough for the Avalon's).
Any thoughts would be most appreciated.
Looking to upgrade the pre-amp as the Avalon's are either showing up the pre-amp and or it's just not a good fit (it worked well with my Thiel 6's). So, looking for a recommendation for a replacement tube pre-amp. I'm fine buying used. Don't want to spend more than $5,000.
Curious if anyone knows the newer CJ stuff? I liked their sound years ago and it worked with the Thiels but now curious if a better more recent CJ pre-amp (like the CT5) would mate well with the Avalon's? One person told me he didn't think it was a good fit (he thought the new CJ's were "pudgy" sounding and not quick and airy enough for the Avalon's).
Any thoughts would be most appreciated.
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- 15 posts total
Based on the specs I am seeing online for the speaker, I think your bottleneck is the interface between the speakers and the amp. You are making the amp do a lot of work to drive the speakers to a reasonable volume. The speakers are 4 ohms, which increases distortion (in all amps, not just tube amps) and will also reduce power and bandwidth on account of the output transformer in the amp. I think you would be a lot better off with a speaker that is more efficient and higher impedance. You can do that without sacrificing sound quality. A good example would be a set of Dreammaker 2s from Audiokinesis. They are 16 ohms, and about 95 db, meaning that you would need about 1/8th the power or so to make the same sound pressure, and the Dreammakers go just as low if not lower. I would give this consideration. You can make incremental improvement by replacing the preamp, but you can have transformation by replacing the speakers. I am not saying the speakers are bad BTW, just that your amplifier does not match well with them. |
Atmasphere, If the OP gets the Audiokinesis you recommend at 95db, it opens up the door for some gain related hiss/noise due to the speakers being so efficient. Do you think it might be an issue in this case, with the OP's current gear? I have a pair of Wilsons rated at 94db, and had that problem until I found components that were a better match for the speakers. |
It might be worth trying some Paul Speltz Zeros impedance matching autoformers before changing preamp, amp, or speakers. Naked versions are $550 and boxed are $1,200. You can find them used here occasionally Here's some reviews: 6 moons.com / by Srajan Ebaen Enjoy the Music.com / by Wayne Donnely [url=http://www.tnt-audio.com/accessories/zero_autoformer_e.html]TNT-AUDIO / by Richard George[ /url] |
- 15 posts total