Preamp Deal of the Century

Before I discovered Supratek, I was using a Audible Illusions 3A preamp. I was a very nice preamp with a good phono section, but not in the same league as my Supratek Syrah, or my Cortese. Glad to see all the new names in the Supratek family. Welcome to the fold.

Paulfobrecht, when I ordered my Cortese, I gave Mick my ss# because some of the people on the thread told me it would help in going through customs. I got some hassles from DHL too. Same deal, wanting "proof" of my ss#. It delayed things for a few days. Once you get your preamp and listen for the first time, you will forget all about any delay in getting it.

Thanks The Chops. Just be sure to get a high quality pair of speakers that will help bring out what the Supratek is capable of.

To all of you that are playing your Suprateks for the first time. Just enjoy for a while. They sound great out of the box, but they will only get better. It takes a minimum of 100 hours for break in. Full break in is probably more like 200 hours. I do not recommend tube rolling until the preamp is through it's break in period. I know tube rolling is fun, so have at it! I did plenty of it with my Syrah, but when I got my Cortese, I stuck with the stock tubes that Mick put in. I loved the way the Cortese sounded with the stock tubes and I just got tired of the price of NOS tubes. I am spending that money on music.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Supratek.

How would you compare the sound of the Syrah to the Cortese?

The Cortese is just more resolving. The Cortese sounds better with stock tubes than the Syrah did with NOS tubes.

Any opinions on a CD player that works well with the Chardonnay in the 2-3 k range?
I’ve read positive reviews on both Lector and Rega products.

I am currently using the Ayre Cx7e which works well with the Chardonnay - clean and revealing sound. Looking into the Meridian G08 as an upgrade - very musical with a spacious soundstage. Hope this helps.