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Is the BAlabo BC-1 MKII Preamp the reigning King?

Tube vs. Solid State...Tube vs. Solid State...Zzzzzzzzzz...
Those days are over. Several years ago both Robert Harley and Jonathan Valin reviewed and Amp and Preamp from a company out of Scotts Valley, CA. called BAlabo, (Bridge Audio Laboratory}. After extended listening sessions Harley and Valin concluded that the BAlabo BC-1 MKII Preamp and the BP-1 MKII amp are the worlds finest sounding products
and what they heard was the greatest listening experience of their entire careers. They concluded that their is no tube or solid state product anywhere on planet earth that even comes close to the performance level of these products.
Tubes have that special liquid, lush, blooming midrange and the BAlabo does all tubes will do but on a much higher, superior level from their solid state designs. Curious if any Philes out there own or have experienced these products.
audiozen

Showing 2 responses by charles1dad

charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 
Kiddman, Chayro and Larryi, as usual insightful, observant and on the mark.
Every time JV and cohorts declare some latest solid state amplifier the
"best" there's the obligatory tube analogy (bridges the gap, yada

yada). I won't question their sincerity (I have no way of knowing) but I've
personally never heard any SS amplifiers that duplicates the
emotion,natural
3 dimensional sound of a good tube amp. I don't understand the the need
for
this constant comparison anyway. They're different devices and will by
nature have different presentations, both technologies have their admirers.
I just happen to prefer tubes ( especially simple circuits and lower power
implementations) and wouldn't want a tube product intended to sound like
a transistor design or I'd just buy a SS amp in the first place. What ultra
level SS amplifier will be deemed the best in the near future? We won't have
long to wait given past history. It seems like only yesterday when Soulution
was getting all the love or was it Vitus, Constellation? I've loss count.
Charles,
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 
Kiddman,
The listeners who are inclined to proclaim their audio system sounds better than unamplified live performers is to a degree understandable. If you prefer what's come to be known as the ultra detail-information-resolution presentation (some would say "accurate" ). If this is your standard then live acoustic instruments will indeed sound different in comparison. These insrruments will be warmer, richer and fuller in tonality and body than the "accurate" sound some have become use to hearing. Components that closely mimic the live and more saturated sound would be perceived as colored and embellished. It depends on what type of sound is the listener's standard of reference (template). These two camps will definitely go in opposing directions when choosing their components.
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