BAT preamp: Rex to Rex-2 upgrade

So I decided to bite the bullet and upgrade my BAT Rex preamp to the Rex-2. I thought I'd give a little report for those who already own a Rex and were thinking of upgrading also.

First thing I noticed right out-of-the-box was this is one DYNAMIC preamp! Dynamic scale has been noticeably improved and it isn't subtle. Slight dynamic swells and shifts of energy are much wider than before and the dynamic ceiling sounds as it could be endless The Rex-2 also makes significant strides in audio improvement to sound-staging. There is now a greater difference between direct sound and ambient sound. So now the sound space sounds bigger and airier while the images in that space now have more solidity. Other notable ( hi-fi ) areas of improvement come in the way of extended frequency response, both hi and low. Bass is now more potent, tighter, deeper, with better delineation. Treble with a week of break-in is now more detailed, airier, with a greater sense of speed. This quality now allows me to hear the initial attack with increased clarity and A-R-T-I-C-U-L-A-T-I-O-N.

For me the original Rex was the standard setter when it came to timbre/texture of tone. While all the improvements I heard above are certainly really good things, without the liquidity and organic presentation of instrumental tone, in the long run it wouldn't matter for me. I don't mean this in the audiophile way of being warm and euphonic. It is meant to mean, vibrant and true to life, dense and rich with natural realistic tonal color.

Yesterday, in my 40 years of being into this hobby I had one of the most enthralling and musically satisfying days I can ever remember listening to music. The texture I was hearing was so captivating, so undeniably true sounding, my emotional connection to the music so strong, every note was simply magic!!! I wish musically rewarding moments like these for all.

Enjoy.