Thx xiii, I would love to have one his cortese units. Maybe if i tell him that. He might responed
Preamp Deal of the Century
If anyone is looking for a true "World Class" preamp at a very fair price..heed my advice. I just recieved a Supratek Syrah preamp that was hand built by Mick Maloney in Western Australia, and it is absolutely beautiful! This preamp is the best deal you will ever find. I would put it up against any preamp out there for both looks and sound. Price? $2500 for the Syrah (includes Killer Phono stage). Not into phono? Try the Chardonney line stage for $2100. Don't get me wrong, I am not associated with this company. I am just a very happy owner! This preamp is VERY dynamic, yet liquid. It conveys the sound of music better than any other preamp that I have ever heard! You can check out the Supratek website at www. cantech.net.au
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Well, you could always buy a Chenin and gradually upgrade it. I have done tons of work to mine, changing the output tube type, plate loading scheme, output transformers, bias scheme, power supply, etc. Point-to-point wiring makes it a lot easier to upgrade. Just now working on an "ultimate" power supply upgrade for the Chenin, which I should have completed within the next week. It is a CLCLCRC design using Lundahl LL1638 low DCR chokes and all film caps. Just fits inside the Chenin PS unit! It simulates very well on PSUD-II, giving a 100x decrease in ripple noise from the stock, while also having a faster settling time. The Lundahls are dual-coil chokes, meaning they can be wired with one coil each in the + and - legs of the circuit, which should give added common mode noise reduction. I'll let you now how it sounds. |
Power Supply Upgrade Completed! Wow, it's so true that you listen to the power supply - the upgrade sounds excellent. Went from the stock values of 33uF/10H/100uF to 6.8uF/10H/47uF/10H/100uF using Mundorf Supreme/Silver oil and Solen caps and Lundahl LL1638 chokes. When I computer modeled the PS, I optimized it so that I would get the same output voltage as stock, and the upgraded unit put out 299.1V versus 300.0 from the stock; a slight tweak of the regulator adjustment pot and I was at 300.0V on both sides. The model showed ~30uV of ripple before the regulator (yes microvolts!), and ripple was undetectable on my oscilloscope, so that was accurate as well. Way more bass slam, more body through the midrange and smoothness everywhere. The preamp sounded very good before, but it is even better now. I have a attached a snapshot of the new PS unit. New Chenin Power Supply |
Hello, I've read a couple thousand comments in this thread. I'm amazed how little chat there is about pairing an amp with various supratek pre's. Thanks for so much interesting commentary from all. This thread certainly played a major role in my decision to buy one. Just won a Chardonnay on Audiogon and now am in need of an amp. So Chardonnay, Klipshorns and about $1500 (or less) to buy an life enhancing amp. Needless to say I need an amp now... how else will I hear my new pre? Couple possibilities on Audiogon now. Belles 150A, Audio Sector Patek, PassAleph3 (whoops, now sold). Any help greatly appreciated. |
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