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In Reply to: RE: Preamp shootout posted by RGA on July 14, 2016 at 18:49:16:
I haven't heard the highest end AN preamps but the lower ones, up to M5, have an overall warmth to the sound regardless of which system I have heard them in (and no they were not only in all AN systems). It's ok if that is the way your preferrence runs.
The LM219 you own also runs towards the full and warm sound. I have heard this amp driving LM's Western Electric horn replicas. It was quite good and tonally rich. I remember when you were comparing the LM219 to the Melody Platinum 211 amp and commenting that it was the warmer of the two.
So, believe me when I tell you that the Einstein runs in the somewhat leaner/analytical channel relatively speaking. It is fast, dynamic and resolving but if you couple it with an analytical source, amp and/or speakers it will do NOTHING to make that sound more musical. Is it perfect? No, I think it is slightly lean through the mid upper bass and this gives it a slight tonal tilt. The Thiels are a very linear speaker both in FR and time coherence and therefore give gear nowhere to hide. The KR audio amplifier is a very easy load for the preamps (100K input impedance and a decent but not excessive gain) and is also ultra revealing. The characteristics that I heard between my two preamps was the same as at my place but the Puresound was capable of a more dynamic sound at my place...perhaps due to the big difference in the sensitivity of the speakers.
I have heard that the top AN gear is actually somewhat lean...perhaps due to the all C core transformers and silver wire. I do not know having not heard their best stuff.
My latest review project is the Aries Cerat Diana integrated...now this is a really GOOD sounding amplifier. All direct heated and all interstage transformers (between input and driver and driver and output) no caps...like Audio Notes better stuff. However, the power supply is MUCH bigger and more robust and the output transformers are simply huge...probably double the size AN uses. The result is very close to an invisible amplifier. My best recordings simply sound closer to real.
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Follow Ups
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 07:54:26 07/15/16 (34)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 14:32:38 07/19/16 (33)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 14:30:38 07/22/16 (32)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 14:21:46 07/23/16 (31)
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 01:46:51 07/24/16 (28)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 18:27:43 07/25/16 (26)
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 05:06:05 07/26/16 (25)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 12:26:53 07/28/16 (24)
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 07:46:29 07/29/16 (21)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 10:54:54 07/29/16 (20)
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 11:16:08 07/31/16 (17)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 14:23:01 08/01/16 (16)
- RE: Preamp shootout - morricab 04:25:21 08/09/16 (15)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 21:51:24 09/11/16 (12)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 08:17:44 09/12/16 (11)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 20:13:20 09/12/16 (10)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 09:17:37 09/13/16 (8)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 17:27:14 09/13/16 (7)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - A.Wayne 18:12:27 09/13/16 (6)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - RGA 00:08:11 09/15/16 (5)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - A.Wayne 21:16:11 09/15/16 (1)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - RGA 22:09:12 09/18/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - Wojciech 05:20:35 09/15/16 (2)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - RGA 22:13:45 09/18/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout with the AN ANE speaker - A.Wayne 16:19:56 09/15/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 09:13:39 09/13/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout where's the AN .... - A.Wayne 19:55:55 08/09/16 (1)
- RE: Preamp shootout where's the AN .... - RGA 19:37:17 09/11/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 07:58:47 07/30/16 (1)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 14:40:25 08/01/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 06:53:07 07/29/16 (1)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 10:25:02 07/29/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 08:34:02 07/24/16 (0)
- RE: Preamp shootout - A.Wayne 21:05:15 07/23/16 (1)
- RE: Preamp shootout - RGA 10:10:02 07/24/16 (0)