jacob@psyche.mit.edu (Jacob Feldman) (12/12/90)
Concerning the request for opinions on Bryston preamps-- About two years ago I did a fairly extensive preamp comparison in the <$1000 range, which included extensive home listening of the Bryston, VTL (tube), PS Audio 4.6, Adcom, and also the much more expensive Threshold FET 10 (~$2200). There were a lot of intangibles here, like how much imaging precision you are willing to sacrifice for some tonal warmth, etc., but my basic conclusion was that the Bryston was not a contender. (Very brittle, screechy, bright.) The Threshold was certainly the overall best, not surprising given the price, but interestingly its imaging was distinctly not as good as the PS Audio. The Adcom, which I had owned for years and was replacing is in some ways the safest bet if you can't do home listening--very neutral, not too weak in any department, sweet sounding. (I was replacing it because it was too veiled, closed off at the top, and attenuated the bass to an amazing degree, but really I have very fond memories of it.) The VTL was, well, tuby. Very noisy and unreliable sounding, too, with all sorts of tonal problems, like rampant coloration. I bought the PS Audio, which in many ways (tonal neutrality, precision of imaging) blew everything else away. It lacks a little in warmth and tonal body, but you can't have everything for <1K. -jacob
mha72@leah.albany.edu (12/13/90)
In article <8276@uwm.edu> jacob@psyche.mit.edu (Jacob Feldman) writes: > I bought the PS Audio, which in many ways (tonal neutrality, >precision of imaging) blew everything else away. It lacks a >little in warmth and tonal body, but you can't have everything >for <1K. ^^^^^^^^^^ > >-jacob > Well, I believe you can have ALMOST everything with the SUPERPHON Revelation IIWhen I was looking for a new pre-amp a couple of years ago, I compared it at home with the PS Audio 5.(Back then the PS was $350 more expensive). It did everything the PS 5 did, only better, and on top of it, it had a very realisticpalpable, full sound. Back then, I was trying to learn to play the tenor sax, and its sound was very vivid in my memory. When I played some of my favorite Jazz albums containing tenor sax, with the PS 5 it sounded like a kazzoo. With the SUPERPHON, it sounded almost exactly as my own tenor sax did. I even liked it more than the cheaper KRELL pre-amp (honest!). I still don't understand why TAS and Stereophile never fully reviwed it! Especially STEREOPHILE, where it was the cheapskate's hinting at its greatness which made me want to audition it. IMHO, of course!
ph@ama-1.ama.caltech.edu (Paul Hardy) (12/17/90)
In article <8276@uwm.edu> jacob@psyche.mit.edu (Jacob Feldman) writes:
Concerning the request for opinions on Bryston preamps--
About two years ago I did a fairly extensive preamp comparison
in the <$1000 range, which included extensive home listening
of the Bryston, VTL (tube), PS Audio 4.6, Adcom, and also
the much more expensive Threshold FET 10 (~$2200).
...
The VTL was, well, tuby. Very noisy and unreliable sounding,
too, with all sorts of tonal problems, like rampant coloration.
-jacob
Which preamp was it? I have a VTL Super DeLuxe preamp, and the thing is
DEAD silent. The phono section is the best I've heard, though I haven't
had the nerve to audition anything more expensive (you know where that
can lead!) The phono section sure beats the Moscode SuperIT that it replaced
(and that got me back into tubes after years of assuming tubes were defunct
for, well, "obvious reasons"), and it was better than any solid-state preamps
in its range (on a MM cartridge, a Stanton 881).
I think the phono section that's in the Super DeLuxe is used in some of their
less expensive preamps like the DeLuxe, which is a Super DeLuxe without the
outboard power supply. I suppose having an outboard supply makes it quiet,
in all fairness. I never listened to the DeLuxe. I got the Super DeLuxe
after reading favorable reviews, followed by favorable listening sessions.
That was three or four years ago. I'm still perfectly satisfied with it.
--Paul