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Most Rockingest Preamp south of $2k used

I'm curious if anyone knows of, has heard about or owns a preamp that simply does the most justice to rock n roll, under $2k (or more) used. The one SS pre I owned (Odyssey) seemed a bit light in the mids and bass, arguably the two most important components to rock. Then I went tubes, and I think it's in the right direction. Regardless of SS or tube, I would think the ultimate rock pre would be a PRAT king, maybe even pushing the beat a little, certainly not laid back, with great bass, mids and dimensionality and overall musicality (vs analytical). Am I missing anything?

I'm tired of putting the cart before the horse -- researching what's for sale on agon as opposed to having a few models to look out for and keeping an eye out for them. Who's got a say in the most rockingest pre?
tholt
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,391 posts
 
BTW, once you find a good pre-amp, I think the choice of speakers and suitable matched am[p will make the biggest difference in terms of delivering "rockingest" renditions.

I'd recommend the Ohm Walsh line of speakers (www.ohmspeakers.com) and a good high current Class D amp.
stereo
147 posts
 
Rock is great from the Audio Mirror Pp1 and so is jazz. I was listening to some rock an hour ago (Jane's addiction- Down in a hole)) and blown away. The preamp is not forward or laid back. It is whatever your speaker and amplifier are. The Pp1 is fast and detailed, but not bright. Tube rolling in the Pp1 can give you exactly the sound you want. The remote makes it so easy to turn up a song when listening to a CD. I had my volume potentiometer updated as well as some black gate caps added. It sounds better then a CJ PV10 and Melos Maestro. I also compared it to some $1k VTL and Cary preamps and found the Pp1 much better. Vlad is a great guy and will take good care of you for upgrades. He stands behind his products.
lake513
123 posts
 
Audible Illusions Mod 3 is a great choice I had mine 14 years never a problem and it does not eat tubes . I change tubes for fun every so often but never trashed a tube I have used and tried many NOS and new tubes -Tele 6922 , Tele CCa , Ediswan , Mullard ,Siemens , Ram ,Gold Aero and many many more.
morgoth360
34 posts
 
What about Sonic Frontiers SFL-2 anyone on Agon can tell me if this preamp rock's, or is it geared towards classical music?
morgoth360
34 posts
 
Tholt what can you tell me about the Sonic Frontiers SFL-2 a friend suggested i give it a listen, i'm getting lots of suggestions but most of this preamps are either old or are only available online so it's not feasible for me to make comparisons, that's why i'm asking for your help also it seams like were both looking for similar results from our respective systems.
thanks
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