Linestage search
I´m looking for a linestage for my EAR 509´s monoblocks.
The input impedance of the 509´s is 25K
My first options are the following:
1. EAR 868 (used)
2. Coincident Statement Linestage (used)
I didn´t have the opportunity to hear any of them, so I would really appreciate advice on the choice.
Thank you all.
charles1dad No, it's the Jumbo Shrimp. Hey just going from the Manly website on their Jumbo Shrimp product under specs. and it states switchable gain from 45dB or 60dB and they mention those gains not once but at 8 different times!!! If it’s a typo, it’s a humdinger. http://www.manley.com/products/view/mspr Cheers George |
1. EAR 868 (used) 2. Coincident Statement Linestage (used) A couple 3 years ago I accompanied a friend to go audition a pair of AZ Adagio floor standing speakers. Gorgeous looking speakers, by the way. The setup had EAR 100w amps. I asked of the preamp and could swear I was told ‘Frankenstein’. Knowing then Coincident made an amp called by that name, I said as much, you mean Coincident? The seller agreed. Obviously looking back there was a communication breakdown. An analog source was used primarily until a digital one was asked for. Isoclean PLC was in use as we were informed. The presentation IMHO was as close to SS as one could ask for in spite of the tubes. It lacked the sheen or luster of tubes what so ever. The bass was remarkable though. Whenever one decides to mix and or match different houses and the numbers regarding input and output IMP and gain coincide, everything will work on paper. One should as well be prepared to move on if the sonics don’t butter one’s bread, and that possibility exists a lot. As the sound or ‘synergy’ is another story altogether. A real world certainty is staying in the same house will yield more synergistic parings more often than not. The noteable disparity then hinges on performance, not electronic matching. Of course too, digging or not digging a brand’s voice plays a role. Were it me, I’d try hard to get an EAR pre. I’d bet too, either of your choices would do quite well…. Good luck. |
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The EAR-Yoshino 868 is a no-frills version of the $13,500 EAR 912 (no meters and faceplate handles, fewer controls), a pre-amp Art Dudley gave a rave review to awhile back. The 868 is an over-looked bargain, selling for around $3000 used, $3500-4000 used from dealers. I would much rather have one in my system than a comparably priced ARC, for instance. EAR’s designer Tim de Paravicini has a vast, deep knowledge of electronics and circuit design, amongst the best in the world of still-living masters. Though EAR is a low-profile company in the U.S., it and Tim are very well known in the UK. He designed and built the electronics in Roger Waters’ recording studio, as well as those in the state-of-the-art tube tape recorder of Kav Alexander of Water Lily Records. Kav’s work on the Meeting By A River album (with the great Ry Cooder) won him a Grammy for best engineering. Paravicini is rather opinionated about hi-fi, having little use for boutique parts and audiophile tweaks. Perhaps that’s why he is not more popular amongst fickle, trendy, High End consumers (present company excluded, of course ;-). He rarely modifies existing products, working on their design until he considers them "finished", not a work-in-progress. He therefore does not benefit from a steady stream of reviews of frequent "new" model introductions---in reality updates of models whose sales have begun to decline. If you like the sound of your 509 (what’s not to like?!), there is every reason to expect you will like the 868. Available with or without a phono stage, it has excellent hook-up provisions: A balanced/XLR input, five unbalanced/RCA inputs, two balanced/XLR and two unbalanced/RCA outputs, and a pair of tape ins and outs. If you have patience, and can wait for a couple of months to maybe a year for one to come up used, be ready to jump on it---they go fast. The one on Audiogon last week went in just hours.
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