A Preamplifier Faceoff: Ayre & PS Audio
In the March 2018 issue, Art Dudley admired the sound quality of Ayre Acoustics' KX-5 Twenty preamplifier, but didn't love some of its operational aspects. I've staged this Follow-Up as a putative face-off between the Ayre and my current reference preamplifier, the PS Audio BHK Signature, which I reviewed in the June 2017 issue.
Acoustic Research Stereo Remote Control
Prologue: The context for this review is that back in the 1980s, preamplifiers and integrated amplifiers with remote controls didn't exist. In early 1985 I borrowed a sample of Acoustic Research's Stereo Remote Control, which I believe was designed by Ken Kantor (later to find fame with NHT) and set it up in my bedroom. It drove a pair of powered loudspeakers with auto turn-on, and I very quickly grew to appreciate, not just the sound quality, but the convenience of being able to control the system from the comfort of my bed. So what did JGH think of the SRC?John Atkinson
Adcom GFP-565 preamplifier
In recent years, Adcom has carved an enviable niche for themselves in the entry-level category of high-end audio. Their excellent GTP-400 tuner/preamplifier, which I reviewed in September 1989 (Vol.12 No.9), has further enhanced their reputation for musically satisfying sound at affordable prices. The GFP-565 is Adcom's newest preamplifier and their most expensive to date. The GFP-565 was designed to offer more than simply excellent performance for the price asked. This new arrival is Adcom's attempt at manufacturing a preamplifier which can compare favorably to the most expensive state-of-the-art products offered by other high-end manufacturers. As such, its $798 price tag is still reasonable, especially when the 565 is compared with other preamps in the under-$1000 price range.
Adcom GFP-750 preamplifier
Adcom is one of those companies that's just too consistent for its own good. Year after year, they put out well-engineered, fairly priced gear, while we audiophiles become jaded and almost forget they're there... You want a good-sounding CD player that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? [Yawn.] Well, you could try Adcom. Need a power amplifier with some sock that won't make your tweeters crawl down your ear? There's always Adcom.
Analog Corner #286: StillPoints Aperture II, VPI Voyager, Bespoke Passive Preamplifier
VPI Industries Voyager phono preamplifier
Following my auditioning of Channel D's Lino 2C current-mode phono preamplifier, back in the world of voltage amplification, here's another phono preamp from another company based, like Channel D, in New Jersey. Probably not since Dynaco manufactured its electronics in Pennsauken has the Garden State enjoyed such riches of analog electronics!
Following my auditioning of Channel D's Lino 2C current-mode phono preamplifier, back in the world of voltage amplification, here's another phono preamp from another company based, like Channel D, in New Jersey. Probably not since Dynaco manufactured its electronics in Pennsauken has the Garden State enjoyed such riches of analog electronics!
ATC CDA2 Mk2 CD player-preamplifier
In the early 1990s, the Compact Disc was all the rage, and vinyl records were being executed en masse. Thirty years later, and oh, how our tables have turned. Mint first pressings of tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley's 1957 album Hank Mobley (Blue Note BLP 1568), which once could be had for $40, now bring upward of $8000. Each. Vinyl continues to enjoy a global resurgence of popularity, while CD sales have plummeted to all-time lows.
What happened? Apparently, yesterday's pops and ticks are today's "warmth," Record Store Day exclusives, and skyrocketing vinyl values. All things old . . .
Audia Flight FLS1 preamplifier
Our conservative two-channel audio world doesn't easily accept change. Not that many years ago, even remote control was considered a sign of electronic moral decay certain to degrade sound quality. Today, home theaterlike operating systems, with their fluorescent-screen hells and microprocessor-controlled functionality are commonplace, even in the highest of fi. Consumers accustomed to the convenience of audio/video processors now demand it on every price tier of two-channel hi-fi, though purists who think sound quality is commensurate with inconvenience can have that if they want it.
Aunt Corey's Homemade Buffered Passive Preamplifier
"An' then ya bring alla ground wahrs to uh, uh single po-wint..."
AVM Ovation PA 8.2 modular preamplifier
The digital ground seems to shift weekly. While firmware and software updates over the Internet somewhat slow the constant upheaval, when you do buy something, you just know that as soon as you plunk down your cash, something new will come along.
So, especially with preamplifiers, why not produce a design based on modules that the user can swap in and out, to custom-configure the preamp to that user's current needs while leaving room for later expansion? Why pay for six inputs' worth of stuff when at present you need only two? Upgrades? New features? No problemswap out a module. Or, if a circuit in one module malfunctions, you can send only that module back for repairs, not the whole thing.
Ayre Acoustics K-1 preamplifier
The Glimmer Twins were right: If you can't always get what you want, sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need. Take Ayre's K-1 preamplifier, for instance. I'd been trying to get Ayre to send me their $3750 V-3 power amplifier since the moment I started writing for Stereophile; after approximately a year and a half, I finally got a phone call from then Marketing Director Bruce Van Allen.