highstream,
I use a Dialogue Premium (DP) preamp and have the following FWIW comments. I run McCormack amplification and Thiel CS5's.
After a while the DP seemed analytical to me and I considered selling it. This was with Phillips rectifiers and after several tube changes. I like Seimens and Mazdas the best. Regardless of the tubes, the DP seems to me to focus on the vocals in the mix.
I also run a Conrad Johnson 17LS2, which has a warmer sound than the DP and it seems more nuanced and textured. It has more PRAT to me but not quite as much bass slam.
I also use an Axiom II with Walker mods passive preamp and it provides the most revealing sound - it seems to provide the best presence but bad recordings can be rough on the ears.
The interesting thing is how my front end impacted the preamp sound. First I replaced a Ric Schultz modifed Oppo 103 with an AudioSpace CD8 used as a transport and a Theta ProBasic III DAC. I then kept the DAC and moved to a PS Audio PerfectWave transport. This last change was a real wow moment as I heard a lot more detail and the live presence improved for all three preamps, but especially for the DP. The DP's PRAT improved as well.
I just switched to 10 gauge from 16 gauge copper multi-strand speaker and this also provided more detail and better decay, which, to me, again added more presence.
Again, FWIW.
Thanks for listening,
Dsper
I use a Dialogue Premium (DP) preamp and have the following FWIW comments. I run McCormack amplification and Thiel CS5's.
After a while the DP seemed analytical to me and I considered selling it. This was with Phillips rectifiers and after several tube changes. I like Seimens and Mazdas the best. Regardless of the tubes, the DP seems to me to focus on the vocals in the mix.
I also run a Conrad Johnson 17LS2, which has a warmer sound than the DP and it seems more nuanced and textured. It has more PRAT to me but not quite as much bass slam.
I also use an Axiom II with Walker mods passive preamp and it provides the most revealing sound - it seems to provide the best presence but bad recordings can be rough on the ears.
The interesting thing is how my front end impacted the preamp sound. First I replaced a Ric Schultz modifed Oppo 103 with an AudioSpace CD8 used as a transport and a Theta ProBasic III DAC. I then kept the DAC and moved to a PS Audio PerfectWave transport. This last change was a real wow moment as I heard a lot more detail and the live presence improved for all three preamps, but especially for the DP. The DP's PRAT improved as well.
I just switched to 10 gauge from 16 gauge copper multi-strand speaker and this also provided more detail and better decay, which, to me, again added more presence.
Again, FWIW.
Thanks for listening,
Dsper