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Extreme Midrange Bloom

Hello: I'm using a BAT VK52SE with the 6H30DR tubes recommended by several folks here on the Gon. I've noticed an extreme emphasis in the upper midrange frequencies which is somewhat unsettling and in fact causes an almost artificial honking presentation. Is this simply the BAT house sound or is there something I can do to resolve this anomaly? I've never experienced this in any other preamp I've owned in the past. I love the build and general fit and finish of this preamp. The user interface is excellent. An audio enthusiast friend suggested this could possibly be a result of the oil filled caps BAT is using. Any help would be most welcome since the pre is great in every other way. Accurate bass, sweet highs and a very unfortunate bloated midrange.
frontier1
audphile1's avatar
audphile1
4,933 posts
 
what's the rest of the system? Could it be that the BAT pre has too much gain for your amp? Look at all the specs of this preamp and compare them to the specs of the other pres you had. Something is not right. There could be some midrange bloom since it's a tube unit, but it shouldn't be as excessive as you describe.
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
How many hours do you have on the tubes? It could be that they are still burning in.

That being said, I preffered the older VK-31SE/VK-51SE series to the newer VK-32SE that I auditioned, for similar reasons. I found the VK-32SE to have a sweeter midrange, with more bloom, but it lost much of the dynamics and authority of the VK-31SE/VK-51SE, IMHO. FWIW, I solved this problem by buying a ARC Ref 3, which I like better than all of the BAT preamps, though I'm still using a BAT amp.

Cheers,
John
dazzdax
599 posts
 
How much midrange bloom is needed? With other words: can you have too much midrange bloom? When does midrange bloom becomes an euphonic coloration?

Chris
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