Preamp Deal of the Century

I agree with Bwhite regarding this matter. Furthermore using this forum for such an announcement seems inappropriate to me. I would hope for a nominal cost that Mick would offer to upgrade the existing Cortese and Grange out there to the level of the "new and improved" models if it is possible. If not, he might have been wiser in not using this forum to display his enthusiasm.

Having said that and getting back to the topic of the thread "Preamp Deal of the Century", don't believe for a second that that the value and performance of the Syrah and Chardonney have been diminished by Mick's post. They are superb performers in their price range and above and most importantly, a great value. After all, how many handmade, hardwired, transformer coupled full function all tube pre-amps are available for 2.5K? I would welcome knowing of just ONE that performs to this level at this price point.

Hey Gang. I'd take bets the Syrah 4 sale here doesn't last the weekend.

Tubegroover - think about it, the Cortese (and Grange I suppose) is hugely better than the Syrah in that it is WAY more refined, solid, and of a much higher quality standard than the Syrah - in my experience. While sonically they are quite similar, the Cortese is in every way a more precise instrument - having owned/heard both, there is no question in my mind.

Without going into detail speculating how this could effect used Syrah prices, lets just say that if the price of a used Cortese were to fall substantially, who in their right mind would pay $2500 plus customs and shipping for a new Syrah from Australia vs. buying a used Cortese in good condition?

Anyhow.. I may have totally over reacted to this and therefore put too much emphasis on "resale value" which while important & something Supratek is "famous" for, is not what really matters.

What seems most important (to me) is whether or not Mick provides an upgrade plan to Cortese/Grange customers - without that, this announcement of progress will most certainly hurt all who have supported Supratek - in one way or another.

Bwhite, agree with you 100% on offering an upgrade. Just wonder how that would effect the production of current models?

You guys need to calm down a bit here, and you may be missing the point about Mick's announcment.

The issue at hand is all about 'controlling potential noise problems/mismatches with amplifiers from other manufacturers' with some further improvement in sound. It's not about current Cortese/Grange owners being somehow stuck with an inferior product, it appears that Mick's new circuit maintains the magical sound of the original circuit but at lower gain therefore better matches amplifiers that have high gain.

If noise is not an issue with your current Cortese/Grange in your system then the upgrade is also not an issue?

You are also jumping off the deep end without consulting the master first! Mick is a very approachable and helpful guy who takes great pride in his work. I am sure any of you who require the upgrade need only ask him and he'll probably do it.