Anyone famaliar with the manufacturer,and in particular this pre amp.The credentials and testimonials seem impressive.The advertised 10 day audition is appealing.
Herbie has three different and differently priced tube rings. Have you guys used the cheapest, or which do you recommend? Also have you experimented with the myrtle wood versus soft isolation products under the unit, and if so what did you prefer? Thanks Joe
Now that my TP 2.0nB is a permanent piece, I am wondering anybody have first hand comparison too Joseph's Dimension interconnect and Cardas Golden Reference. I have the Cardas and like it's signature sound, I need one more set of cables for my CD side, and I'm curious about Joseph's. I'm so pleased with his Preamp I'd be willing to try his cables!
Grannyring, If by tube dampers you mean flexible rings that can be rolled down over the tubes to quiet vibrations due to heat and signal then, yes, I do use them with both the preamplifier and the DAC. I was surprised to hear that the rings do improve the music slightly. I use the Siemens ECC tubes provided by Joseph as an upgrade. I bought the rings that I am using on Audiogon. There may be more sophisticated materials available. I have not tried others. Rand
For me, a remote is a requirement since moving to a computer-driven delivery setup. The ability to pick and choose tracks, which almost always vary in recording level justify the remote. Much different than popping in one CD and listening end-to-end, in which the levels mostly remain constant. Just my take...
From what I recall in an e-mail with Victor, I believe Joseph might be working on a tube amp. I also don't have the remote and don't have any desire to add one in the near future. I don't mind getting up to adjust the volume.
No dampers yet, no remote. Ambivilent with mostly near field listening. Always had preamp remotes and almost never use them. I tend to use the pause of my CD Transport if the phone rings.
Joe, Both Victor and Joseph are very helpful in recommending certain vintage tuners. Joseph might have a few in stock that he has for sale. Check with Victor when you're ready. Also, the louder and softer sound effects that you hear with familiar music are the macro amd micro dynamics discussed which the preamp excels at.
That's exactly what happens when your equipment is quiet.
You're able to talk (without shouting) at normal conversation levels while music plays.
Running dedicated 10-2 lines helped further, the only thing I did was drop the ground inside my preamp at the IEC to eliminate a hum and I made a cutom black acrylic lid for mine.
There also seems to be more dynamic range in that sometimes familar recordings go suddenly louder or softer than I am used to hearing on other equipment
It's been mentioned before in various threads that Joseph can work wonders with older, as well as newer, tuners. If you have an older,analog tuner, for @ $300.00 Joseph can turn it into one of your favorite used sources. I find myself listening to my local NPR college station quite often into the late hours.
Gammajo. I fill is very accurate with his description of our AH. The more I listen whether to relax, or to listen critically. I realise how much more natural all instruments are coming across including placement of the performers. I listen to Vinyl most of the time, but with the recent purchase of my AH, I have been playing CD's quite often and find these qualities to shine through both. I also come from a SS Preamp, one obvious difference was the liveliness of the music, everything seems to be played in front of you as opposed to listening to the acoustics of the studio which I have found in some systems nice, but not for me.
Tvad. I am currently auditioning AH against a ss pre. I dont know if this will help you but my system was very detailed and on the best 10% of CD recordings couldn't please me more in terms of clairty. But on less ideal recordings and higher volumes it could sound a touch strident or etched. With the AH preamp the best 10% is much more gorgeous and the next 70% have become beautiful to listen to, all without losing detail and clarity. Yet I would not describe AH as warm in any "cover it up way" rather it sounds more like real instruments, with acoustic instruments having their natural warmth and electronic instruments very smooth on new age stuff and acidy on acid rock. So I am being drawn to listen to the large amount of music in my collection that isn't the top 10% and finding much of it captivatingly beautiful, powerful or sparkley or soothing whatever it was intended to be. That is a real treat. As this is occuring in a deeper soundfield with more air and surer location of voices or instruments. Fellow owners - did I capture some of the appeal of the AH?
Tvad, I don't like like my system to white washed and "clean" sounding. Seems to me many define transparent as threadbare and sterile. I also don't like fuzzy and over-lush sound in my system. I seek a happy middle. Seems to me the AH preamp is just that. It is very transparent, but not in a sharp and attacking way. The notes have body , texture and weight, plus I experience a wonderful transparent intimacy to the music.
I love to hear all of the detail as if it is right before me and intimate. I want it performed with all of the natural weight and tone that draws me in. Seems so hard to get both, but my current system has both. The AH preamp is the piece that helped nail this.
Victor is usually very quick to respond to emails. He might be travelling. I'm sure that you'll hear from him soon. There are times that he travels and sometimes might take a day or so before he gets back with you, but he will because he's very considerate and concerned. By the way, I'm in agreement with Grannyring as to the sheer musicality and naturalness of the preamp. I only have the 2.0n, but I'm very content with the preamp.
Bill - Thanks for taking the time to write detailed thoughts. I'm headed to Vegas tommorrow and when I return in a week my AH preamp should be fully broken in. Then I will post my impressions. Joe
So you say there is a remote for $300 then? It is not on mentioned in their pricelist or on their website. I've emailed Victor but haven't heard back from him. I guess I'll try again, or just, gasp, call them. By fully loaded you have the 2.0nB with gold pinned Siemens then?
One last point. I have been a audionut long enough to know that system synergy is everything. I do think Mr Chow's wire and dac have wonderful synergy with his own preamp.
The CJ may sound better in another system with different components and wire. I have experienced this fact myself over the years. I don't think it is possible to say one great piece of gear is better than another in ALL cases. It has taken me a little while to learn this, but it has finally sunk-in.
The CJ unit retails for $8400 while the AH unit retails for $3600 - fully loaded like mine. Yes, the AH unit is very special indeed.
I have his preamp with all the upgrades and a nice remote volume. It works great! Just got mine about two weeks ago and love it to death. It is the finest preamp I have ever heard.
I have owned many preamps in my reference system. I know a preamp can really make or break a system. It is, in my estimation, the real heart of a great sound system.
Here is a list of great preamps I have owned,
Thor Tom Evan Vibe/Pulse Audio Note M5 Wavac Jeff Rowland Concerto Tom Evans Soulmate (very nice indeed) Bruce Moore Aloia Belles 21A Sonic Frontiers Line 3 CJ premier 16 LS16 S2
The CJ , in my humble opinion, was the finest I have owned in my home. So musical and full of body and texture. It did this without losing detail.
Now enters Mr Chow's preamp. It bested the CJ in every single way. From top to bottom, from front to back and all over. Reaches higher, goes deeper with much more authority. Better focus and clarity. Stage size is about the same - realisitic and large in scale. The CJ is softer sounding with less instrument separation and less impact.
Now this is the result in my system, in my room, with my wire and my taste. My system consists of,
Proceed PMDT transport Music Hall 25.2 highly modified transport Audio Horizons transparancy cable/wire throughout Audio Horizons 3.0 tubed dac with NOS's from Mr Chow Dali Grand speakers on Sistrum platform Belles 350A Reference amp (love it) 2 - BPT 2.0 balanced line conditioners - one for amps and one for digital 2 - dedicated 20 amp lines Star Sound Sistrum rack for all gear - very nice and helps isolate vibrations very well.
My room is 26 X 20 with a generous amount of sound panals and bass traps with a concrete floor.
My wife is not an Aphile, but loves to listen with me. She also felt the AH preamp bested the CJ. The CJ has wonderful midrange and is silky smooth. The AH matched the CJ in the midrange, but the AH's highs were even smoother and much more extended and clear.
I love my AH dac and wanted the preamp, but a remote was a must. I ordered the 2.0 preamp as soon as Joseph was able to add remote as an option. I think it cost $300 for the remote option.
I just cannot say enough about his gear and his service. Many won't buy from a small, relatively unknown company, but if one is willing to try his preamp, I can't image it ever being returned.
I will not be selling his dac, wire or preamp for many, many years as I am totally satisfied and content. That is a miracle for Aphiles like myself - check my feedback - Ha!
The CJ is a world class unit in sound, looks and features. To some, its softer sound may be more pleasing. The CJ adds more midrange warmth to be sure. Again, some may like this over the more neutral AH presentation. To each his own.
To my taste the AH preamp just got me more involved in the music and performance. It sounded more live and less recorded.
Joseph has asked me to comment on two matters: the hole gamajo mentions marked chssis ground, and a ground hum problem some owners, including gamajo, have.
Gamajo is correct: the chassis ground is there to act as a chassis ground when the two tube phono stage is introduced, either as an internal option or as a stand alone, some time in April.
As for the open ground hum gamajo and some others have experienced, this occurs when for some reason the ground carried by the ground plug of the power cord is rendered discontinuous from the AC outlet through the power conditioner or surge protector, to the amplifier and preamplifier. This means the system does not carry a continuous ground. If one is using the balanced out, the balanced IC will carry this ground between the preamp and the amp as the third wire in the IC, but if one is using the single ended outputs, the RCA IC's only have hot and neutral, and will not. One must thus create an external ground to ground the preamp chassis to the amp chassis.
We hope to solve this problem with a rear panel switch in future models.
At 40 hours, it is no longer subtle - the preamp is developing a gorgeous sound - details later. Thank you all for recommending that I give the AH a listen.
My unit has about 20 hours on it now. I am listening through the balanced outputs. I am also using solid state amp Aragon 8008Bbb and wanting to experiment with tubes for the first time. This is a very preliminary impression. The AH pre in black is more attractive looking and solid than I thought it would be from the pictures. It has has a very pleasant sound with perhaps a very subtle layer of grunge removed compared to the SS pre Aragon 28K. Also the soundstage seems a bit deeper and more three dimensional perhaps with more air around the instruments and sounds seem more clearly placed. The AH has has a fabulous sparkle on some pieces. So far The amount of detail, and sound stage width seem similar to my SS but the AH seems slightly more natural. Looking forward to doing more listening this evening. So far so good but it is subtle. Joe
Yes, I've been listening every chance i get. I have a McCormack DNA- 500 solid state amp, and wanted a taste of the tube sound, so far considering burn in time it is blending very well, i recently installed 4 Herbie Peek Dampers seemed to improve overall. The sound i am getting is Musical and Lively with nice texture, i continue to be play and play! Doubtful of 30 Day offer, and likely to upgrade tubes you know how that goes!
RalphCast - I too have a empty hole marked chasis ground. I can only assume it is for later when Joseph has developed his phone stage which is in the works. But if you find out let us know Joe
Sherod, I do not have a hum any longer after looping a ground. The chassis ground i am talking about is marked on the rear panel next to Balanced in. When looking at picture posted by the advertisers Joseph and Victor you will notice some sort of POC.
Ralph, I'm not sure what you are talking about regarding the chassis ground. I am plugged directly into the wall outlet and my preamp is dead quiet. Do you still have a hum problem? Joe, glad to see that you have received your preamp. I am anxious to hear your evaluation. The preamp will take a couple of days, however, to break in to achieve its smooth character. I definitely recommend the best power cord for it. Interesting that you got a hum on RCA. I only have the single RCA outputs and never had a hum. Must be a system dependency issue.
Just received my unit this afternoon and set it up. Had a hum using RCA output with none using balanced outputs, called and Victor and Joseph responded immediately with recommended fix to close the ground. I will listen for first time this evening when family goes to bed.
Question for those proud owners of TP 2.0, mine came without any type of chassis ground setup, just a pre-fab whole. Wondering if was the same for anyone else.
Markwatkiss - Thanks for the welcoming message. I feel privileged to be in such descerning, gracious and helpful company! Ralphcast - I'm jealous still have to wait till the end of the week to receive mine. Welcome aboard and we are eager to hear your reactions.
Hi All, I have have been keeping up with this site. I was on the fence with many Preamps (Tube), ended up with TP 2.0nB had issue with slight hum, but Joseph was on top of it all the way, I even received a call from him on Sunday to my surprise! The hum is temporarily taken care of soon to be a permanent fix. I will post my final audition thoughts after proper burn-in time so far very happy with sound!!!
FYI, the magic of Joseph's preamp really didn't click in until I replaced tubes location one and three with 1960 Siemens grey plate CCa tubes. These particular tubes are rare and very expensive, but I heard a significant difference after trying various other Siemens CCa and E88cc versions. Various Amperex, Valvo,etc. versions need not apply. I think that Siemens borrowed a few Elves from Mullard to make this particular version CCa because the music it makes is truly "magical". IMHO and YMMV.
Bill - that will be an interesting comparison with the CJ reputation for sound that appeals long-term. I think sometimes it is too easy with new equipment to be amazed at all the new stuff heard (partly becauase we are listening so carefully) then a year later feel that the heart and soul of the music could be better conveyed.
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