2. amps-preamps
  3. 163573-671

Preamp thoughts- Conrad Johnson ET7 S2 V McIntosh C2600

I still haven’t found a preamp I can live with after parting company with a Allnic Audio L-5000 DHT some months ago.

 I had a brief and enjoyable affair with a nice Electrocompaniet pre, which was wonderful in many ways, big, bold, warm and luscious - but ultimately lacking a little in resolving powers. A step up to their latest iteration is a tempting possibility.

Another short encounter ensued, this time with a more integrated solution, a Devialet Expert Pro 220 CI..... nope, not my cup of tea.

So, Conrad Johnson ET7 S2 V McIntosh C2600.

Anyone have any experience with both of these units and care to shed light on strengths/weaknesses one versus the other.
i like big, warm, bold but with extension, air, ambience, detail etc. My Allnic was almost perfect in so many ways but a touch too neutral. 
I’ve looked closely at a lot of preamps including Aric Audio, MicroZotl, Don Sachs, and now the more mainstream units from CJ and McIntosh.

Phono, DAC not necessary but I would like a pair of outs for subs.
Preamp to pair with Thor TPA 60 KT77 monoblocks, but other amps, including solid state will come and go (part time reviewer).
Speakers are Dunlavy SC-III or Castle Harlech or any of a variety of other speakers that come and go. Vinyl mostly, some digital via Aurender N100H / Moon Audio 380D. PSA P10 to keep everything clean.

Up to around $6k on the used market but flexible.

Thanks for any input!!

Rooze

128x128rooze

Showing 4 responses by eugene81

eugene81
263 posts
 

@rooze What did you end up going with? 

I've found myself in the same boat.  ~$6k used budget and I also owned a CT5 that I really liked and it paired superbly with the Luxman M800a, which I have incoming, when I heard the combo 12 years ago.  So I was thinking ET7 S1/S2 would be a safe bet.  But I've also enjoyed some of the newer McIntosh stuff, namely the MC452, so looking into the C2600 brought me here.

eugene81
263 posts
 

Interesting--thanks for the update.

eugene81
263 posts
 

@rooze You've sparked my interest in Allnic, so I just pulled the trigger on an L-3000 MkII to get my feet wet.

eugene81
263 posts
 

@rooze I’ve been running the L3000 MkII with a new-to-me Luxman M800a power amp for a week and it is easily the best sound I’ve achieved in my system. I tried running my dCS Paganini DAC directly to the Luxman and a significant amount of the magic was lost. The L3000 is the most transparent tube preamp I’ve had, but also brings a massive soundstage, sweetness, finesse, presence, long decay, etc. For the past couple of years I’ve been trying all sorts of integrated amps and even power amps direct from DAC. This was after a several years-long hiatus in the hobby, and the Allnic is making me realize that I’ve forgotten how much a good line stage shapes the sound of a system.

Anyway, thanks to you I’m now a big fan of Allnic and will probably end up hunting for a DHT.

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