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VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?

152.130.8.67
Posted on August 19, 2014 at 09:58:43
BenE
Audiophile

Posts: 405
Location: midwest
Joined: March 18, 2012
 Wondering how folks would describe and rate this pre and what it compares to say in the ARC line, etc. Also wonder how the phono stage would rate.
Thanks,
b

 

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RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 19, 2014 at 17:14:15
LWR
Audiophile

Posts: 66808
Location: The woods
Joined: August 12, 2003
 replaced an AR SP9 with the VTL. It is a very sweet sounding player, throws a wider/deeper/higher soundstage than the SP9 did. It is at VTL right now to fix a static noise they was intermittent. They also updated the power supply.
Would I buy it again? Yep.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 19, 2014 at 17:45:48
fantja
Audiophile

Posts: 15519
Location: Alabama
Joined: September 11, 2010
 Thanks! for sharing. I would love to audition some VTL gear. Dealers/retailers are not easy to find.

 

Thanks LWR, posted on August 19, 2014 at 18:38:59
BenE
Audiophile

Posts: 405
Location: midwest
Joined: March 18, 2012
 And thanks for all the great music you post.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 20, 2014 at 05:29:16
BenE
Audiophile

Posts: 405
Location: midwest
Joined: March 18, 2012
 I was pleasantly suprised by the VTL gear. It really wasn't on my radar, but I like what I heard.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 20, 2014 at 13:16:11
E-Stat
Audiophile

Posts: 37644
Joined: May 12, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 I too, replaced an SP9 (MKIII flavor) with a new full function preamp in the the same class as the 5.5 - an SP20. I think it would be hard to go wrong with either one, but I see you are matching yours with a BEL solid state amp. That might provide a better balance than using a unit with a more analytical character like current ARC product with JFETs and 6H30 tubes.

I'm firmly in the Abe Collins camp of matching pre and power amps often with different personalities themselves to produce a balanced result. If you've followed his many combinations over the years, he has found that the key is all about the end result. In my case, I use and am quite happy with a pair of VTL MB-450 power amps that tend to be on the yin side of the tonal fence. Perhaps a touch dark and slightly tubey. I found that the SP9's somewhat leaner yang character worked well in concert and I find that the SP20 does as well. I'm not as sure if I would be as pleased with an all VTL or all ARC combination even though I have the greatest respect for both companies. Having said that, I have heard a VTL 7.5/Siegfrieds combination that sounded superb.

Similarly, the SP20 provides better low level dynamics, more resolution and a wider soundstage than the SP9. It's really nice having a remote and I switched over to using balanced connections for both the DAC source and to power amps. Some day, I might use its clever line stage driven headphone amp as well.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 20, 2014 at 13:19:45
Mendel
Audiophile

Posts: 1207
Location: GTA
Joined: January 17, 2009
 Not really familiar with the VTL pre-amp so I can't post impressions. However, comparing the ARC SP-9, which was near the bottom of the ARC preamp line up 20 years ago, with the VTL 5.5 signiture which is I believe second from the top in VTLs current pre-amp line up seems hardly fair.
I like ARC pre-amps from the past and use a modified SP14 to this day. Would love to hear the VTL one day.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 20, 2014 at 16:54:12
BenE
Audiophile

Posts: 405
Location: midwest
Joined: March 18, 2012
 I listened to the sp 20
And was impressed by a number of things - plus it's very easy to use. I agree with your assessment of its sonic character. I didn't get to listen to the head phone feature but it's supposed to be really good. The sp 20 and 5.5 definitely are yin/yang.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 22, 2014 at 16:19:52
Raiderman
Audiophile

Posts: 2129
Location: Silicon Valley, California
Joined: March 14, 2003
 Actually the 5.5 is second from the bottom in the current VTL preamp lineup.
TL 7.5
TL 6.5
TL 5.5
TL 2.5

I have the TL 6.5 and I would favorably compare it to the ARC Ref. 5 preamp.
I really like it, especially when paired with my ASR Basis exclusive phono preamp.

My two cents worth.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 23, 2014 at 08:23:36
BenE
Audiophile

Posts: 405
Location: midwest
Joined: March 18, 2012
 True. However, it is the highest priced all tube unit in the line. I'm sure the 6.5 and 7.5 are more neutral and sophisticated in terms of the technology they employ.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 23, 2014 at 12:06:09
fantja
Audiophile

Posts: 15519
Location: Alabama
Joined: September 11, 2010
 Guys-

will you mention your local VTL dealer/retailer?

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 28, 2014 at 09:19:43
nvinyl66
Audiophile

Posts: 151
Location: Canada
Joined: December 8, 2005
 I have owned the 5.5 sig II for more than a year now. To me, it gives the best of all worlds - "tube sound" but without sacrificing frequency extensions or being too veiled. And it has a great sounding phone stage.

 

RE: VTL 5.5 II sig. Preamp - good, bad?, posted on August 28, 2014 at 12:07:48
fantja
Audiophile

Posts: 15519
Location: Alabama
Joined: September 11, 2010
 No one has a local VTL dealer/retailer???

 

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