Preamp Deal of the Century

Hello. Questions I did to Mick ...

- When I asked Mick to put a headphone socket on the Cortese his answer was:
> " The output impedance of the Cortese is about 200 ohms- there are some good headphones able to be driven by this- check your headphones. It is possible to put a headphone socket on the back or top, but not enough room to put a seperate driver in the chassis"..."It doesn't hurt at all, one socket for the HD600 is possible".

- Does it have remote control?
> "Yes -remote volume only. Up/down, fine up/down, mute , works out to 30 feet"

- Does the new line stage version have XLR inputs and outputs?.In such a case is it really balanced?
> "Outputs only- yes it is truly balanced using transformer not op-amps or solid state".

- Couldn´t it have XLR inputs?. That way I could use the full potential of my Wadia.
> "Yes I can do that"

- Could I have also provision for bi amping with the balanced output?
> "Yes. I will have to make up a custom chassis but that is not a problem".

Of course, I trust him, but I agree whith Bwhite that simpler could be better in such a subtle preamplifier. If I can live without those changes, I think that at the end, it would be better. That way, there is more respect to the Mick´s original creation and less "caprice" from my self.
That means, the best possible sound.

My Supratek Chardonay is fitted with a balanced output and it works just fine, it even came with an output level adjustment knob so I was able to fine tune it with the input of my amp. The output level works on both single ended and balanced output.

Rmml... That is great to know. Looks like Mick has managed to fix some of the earlier issues concerning variations on the original design. That is outstanding! Mick is making improvements to his design and processes - this is a good thing for all of us.

Can someone tell me how would be a combination of Supratek Cortese and KR Enterprise Kronzilla single ended Mono Blocks?
Thanks.

Jpms -- having experienced the Krons not the Cortese, I can only extrapolate. First, check out the input impedance for the Krons & refer to the output impedance of the Cortese.

As I have heard them, the Kronz provide brute power &, I expect, *should* be happy with the sonics of a Cortese, as these are reported from respectable ears. However, make sure the Cortese has an adequate and quiet power line (a dedicated line?) as the KR seem to happily amplify ANYTHING you feed them -- i.e. they are hardly the politest/most forgiving/etc, amps out there! Cheers!