If boulder is tops what is second tier?


If we would assign A++ to boulder, what phono preamps rate as A+?
What would be considered just a notch below the boulder?
Would this include: the Manley steelhead, the Aesthetix IO signature, ASR Basis Exclusive mark II, the BAT VKP10SE super pack, the Einstein?
What others belong to this group or which of these doesn't?
pedrillo

Showing 1 response by tswhitsel

Albert…that is an interesting comment coming from Boulder’s designer. What is even more interesting to me is that Boulder is not the only high-end amplifier manufacturer who has made this comment or one similar to it in private to me or to others whom I know in this hobby. It is little wonder that there is so much controversy when it comes to cable. I don’t think there are too many of these engineers who do not acknowledge that properly designed audio cables are important in an audio system, but they are all too aware of the fact that good cable is readily available and inexpensive except in high-end audio where it has been cleverly masked behind beautiful cosmetics and very slick marketing that often generates profit margins in excess of 1000% or even 3000%. Generally speaking it seems that amplifier manufactures tend to stay out of these arguments.

There is a clear ‘carriage trade’ that has developed over the years in high-end audio and the Boulder phono preamp fills this market nicely, as do Wilson loudspeakers and numerous other products we are all familiar with. Of course the audio rags always say this is stuff is the best, especially the ones that receive huge advertising revenue from such manufactures, but as many of us have discovered it just isn’t always true. And as I think most of us know there are those who will only buy the most expensive equipment with the highest status and ‘perceived’ excellence. Many high-end manufactures take advantage of this quirk of human nature and price their product accordingly.

That said, I have no personal experience with the Boulder phono preamp. Maybe it really is excellent. But could it possibly be worth $30K, and cost anywhere near that to manufacture, or is more like that $100 pair of interconnects that retails for $3000? And by its cost alone does it earn its rank of A++? I think not on both accounts. Unfortunately it is difficult not to equate higher performance with higher cost because that is they way we have been taught (manipulated) to think.

Whatever the case, I did want to add one more phono preamp to the discussion that I believe falls into this category, even though at $3250 its price is not as extreme as some of the others mentioned. That is the Herron Audio VTPH-1 MC Plus. While Keith Herron’s preamps have garnered their fair share of rave reviews over the years, Herron does not throw a lot of money into advertising (or Rowlandesque cosmetics) and perhaps for that reason they seem to fly a bit under the radar. None-the-less the VTPH-1 is worthy of any serious analog audiophile’s consideration and will compete favorably with some of the products mentioned here.