Conrad Johnson vs. McIntosh Tube Gear

Try a tube/ss combo and get the best of both worlds... I've had great success matching tube preamps with McIntosh SS amps. For example I use an Audible Illusions Mod3a preamp with a MC402 amp, I also use a CJ premier 14 with the MC352 amp. You get all the warmth of the tube preamp and all the power & quickness of the ss amp.

I'm also a fan of the Quicksilver gear having owned the line stage pre, the Silver 90's and the Silver 60 (amps). The preamp is good, but you can do allot better.

Good luck and enjoy.

Thought I haven’t used the new Triode amps, I’ve used both the Silver 60’s and Silver 90’s amps from Quicksilver with my Audible Illusions Mod3a preamp for some time (before selling the amps and going SS on the bottom). The midrange is as Mike points out super smooth and silky... Depending on the room size and speaker selection it’s a winning combo.

As for the AI, there’s a lot in print here and elsewhere about the product and company. I’ve have zero problems with mine and it’s a great bang for the buck. Put some Russian military NOS tubes in it and sit back. The preamp adds little to no color what so ever and is dead quite. Personally I can’t say enough good things about the preamp, plus it has a very good phono stage. (I had the mod3 which I had upgrades a few years back to the mod3a with a custom 17” faceplate.) There are very reasonably priced on the used market, however please read the threads on customer service.

One last note, there is absolutely NO comparison between the QS line stage and the AI Mod3a. The AI is just a killer preamp (for the money).

Good luck
Tony