Preamp Deal of the Century

Hey, Larry--
The First Sound is an excellent preamp, no question. I had it in my system for nearly a year and enjoyed every minute of it. I could have lived happily with it, I believe, were it not that I wanted to get back into vinyl, wanted a pre with a phono stage, and stumbled upon this thread when it first appeared. In short, I did wind up ordering a Syrah and put in my six months of waiting like everyone else, so I have had the opportunity to compare and contrast these two preamps.

The First Sound definitely paints a blacker background and is less sensitive to tube noise, although the Supratek can get pretty quiet if you fiddle around long enough with isolation and, more importantly, getting good tubes. It takes a little time, but is well worth the effort. Still, advantage in this area goes to First Sound, which has the lowest noise floor I have heard in my system to date. It is almost eerie, especially for a tube preamp.

Also, the First Sound is incredibly dynamic. Matched with components that are up to the task, this preamp will rock your world. It has incredible impact on all kinds of music. If you lean toward solid state, but want some tube warmth in your system, the First Sound may be the ticket for you, as it has NONE of the "mushiness" frequently associated with tubes. It is clean and clear as a whistle, but without any grain or stridency.

The Supratek, on the other hand, is much more liquid and has a far better layering of instruments, WITHOUT sacrificing dynamics. By comparison, the First Sound seems almost compressed. I think this is the main reason so many people are in love with the Syrah. As has been said before, there is something about its presentation that just feels "right." With a lot of audio gear, even the First Sound, I am more aware of listening to the gear--this one does that better, that one does this better--than the music. That can be fun, but it's not really what it's all about for me. With the Supratek, you can let all of that go and just enjoy the music. I have found nothing in high end audio that I would consider as purely musical as the Supratek.

Some people may prefer the First Sound, and it is a terrific pre, but I much prefer the Syrah in my system. Believe me, it was worth the wait. With the best restaurants, it will be the meal you remember, and not the wait. The same thing applies here, I think.

Best of luck.

Larry,

You are quite within your rights to 'question' rather than just 'take a leap of faith' by purchasing a Supratek. But look at the specifications and design implementation of the Supratek, and you'll know it's built like no other.

Tubegoover & Waltersalas have put it nicely, and I don't need to say much more, however:

Firstly, on aesthetics alone the Supratek Syrah is a gotta-have product, it looks like a million dollars and like it's just come out some funky Art Studio. The combination of Jarrah timber and chrome works really well and scintillates. It illicits positive comments from every visitor to my home (without exception so far).

Secondly, it definitely has the sound to match!

Thirdly, I'm not familiar with the First Sound pre, but compare it's construction to Supratek. Is it hard wired with silver or is it full of thin printed circuit boards? Has it got a separate power supply with a huge toroidal transformer the size most 100w power amps have? Is it Single Ended Triode? Lithium Battery biased? Transformer Coupled? does it use valves for Rectification/Regulation? Does it use expensive Auriecaps? If the answer is 'No' to a lot of these questions, then there is no way it will be as good as the Supratek.

Like all things in audio (especially with writings on the net) it is good to question and enquire, sort out the bulls_ _ _ from the truth, but to me there's no contest between Supratek and the others as it provides good value and 'Holy Grail' type sound to boot.

Regards,

Steve M

Stevem,
The First Sound is hand wired with separate power supply. Plus it is completely copper enclosed inside the outer shell, helping with EMI/FR rejection. Even the fans of the wonderful Supratek, (I am one without hearing it) would say that with a one to one comparison it is quieter.
I guess the question is: and this haunts all grail hunters, which one is better?
Obviously sometimes it is a function of matching etc, and not emperically true for everyone.
Mick is a great guy, but I always question 4 to 7 month waits, with associated service issues.
Tubegroover is an obviously good listener, and I already respect his writings. So if he likes it that is enough for me. And I have seen almost all of these things first hand in my travels to 100 stores working inside the industry.
Thanks
Larry

Hi Larry,

From your description the First Sound pre looks like it's got great potential! I understand your apprehension about waiting a few months for the Supratek, but you know the old saying 'good things come to those who wait'.

BTW, the Supratek also has a solid copper chassis under that shiney chrome exterior.

Regards,

Steve M.

I have been withholding this but I think it just needs to be said so no one will have any misunderstanding or apprehension, don't think about it if you are, just do it. If you have a budget that permits it, you can't make a wrong decision with the Supratek. It is impossible unless you are prepared to spend considerably more money. Even so, the decision will still be valid because it can be resold without losing anything or very little and if you don't go ahead with it you will most likely never have the opportunity to hear if you made the right choice or not and the curiosity will never subside until you forget but after so many posts on this thread and still counting, the death of curiosity may prove quite slow.

My reason for the above comment is because I have communicated with a few that are on the fence and I have been too conciliatory to their concerns, the wait and the service. This is the real deal it can't be overstated. It is a 7K or better pre for 2.5K, it really is. I waited 5 months longer than I should have. If only I had believed what I read from the beginning. Read Mark Bucksath review on the Supratek website, and read it very carefully http://www.supratek.biz/review.htm

If you can connect to the contents of his most wonderful descriptives of this product, you will hear the Syrah. Keep in mind this recommendation is based on the extreme value of what you will hear, not in the context of the "best" that may be available. If you are prepared to pay considerably more, you will certainly have more choices. I have NO doubt this is the best pre-amp value at this price point on the planet and it is very easy to say it.