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Does the Conrad Johson premier 16LS compete?

Will this CJ unit hold up to others in the original retail price of 8,000.00? I see them used for $4000.00. This will be mated with a Sim audio titan (basically a w-5). What else is out there for $4000.00 or under. Ideally I would not like to go above $3000.00 but I may have to pay more to go to the next level!!!
tennispro
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rdean
7 posts
 
I bought one used and upgraded it to series 2. You could also buy one already upgraded. Replaced the 17LS and was a significant improvement. Can't comment on others in your price range, but the 16LS is a terrific pre-amp
abecollins
219 posts
 
I never liked CJ tube preamps but I've never tried a "Premier" model. The old CJ PF-R is an incredible sounding solid-state model.

In the $3000 to $4000 range, I would seriously consider the BAT VK30SE or the VK50SE. Unlike CJ gear, BAT includes balanced XLR in addition to RCA in/outs and their user interface is superb. I'm running a BAT VK30se into two CJ power amps. Of course I'm not taking advantage of the balanced outputs from the VK30se but that may change when I try some other amps.

Good luck!
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