Nagra BPS, anyone heard one? Tron seven competion?

There is a pretty glowing report by MF in the latest Stereophile.I am not sure how much reliance you can or should place on a reviewer's comments. While I find MF's comments/assessment generally to be of a high order , have trouble with his take on the Nagra VPS which I own and enjoy. Sorry for the digression.
Cheers

Hello Sunnyboy, thanks.
I agree with the "reliance reviews" comment... Have you read a bad review?!!!
That said, it is a starting point in terms of character and comparison of similar equipment.
If you don't mind, which comments did you not agree with in regards to the vps?
The Nagra vps.. lucky you! Enjoy!!
Thanks
James

Sme10
Specifically two comments : first, that the VPS has a distinct tonal color and second, it adds a veneer( I am paraphrasing) thats lush and romantic. I can only react in the context of my system, my room and the music I play and find it hard to relate these comments to my listening experience over the past 8 months I've had the Nagra VPS. Last night listening to some 70s rock : Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick and Dire Straits(more like 80s and 90s rock)there was a raw visceral power to the music that was in no way diminished by adding the VPS to the analogue chain. I am familiar with these lps and can recall and compare the experience with my earlier phonostage, the Sutherland Phd. In every which way, it has elevated my analog experience. In all fairness I should point out that along the way I have changed carts from a Lyra Helikon to a Skala and now to a Transfiguration L Orpheus.
My goal or audio quest is simple : musical enjoyment. Am I tapping my feet and generally feeling good listening ? To me this is more important than the Holy Grail of tonal neutrality. YMMV.
What the heck...I have an all tube system with ESL speakers and "lush and romantic" are the last words to describe either the system or any of its components.
Sorry for the long rant.
Cheers
PS Its a very impressive system that you have. Audition the BPS if you can but remember there is a lot of competition at that price point.

Hi, a few months ago I got to audition the Nagra BPS over at Goodwins Highend Audio in Waltham, MA (near Boston).

I have also auditioned the VPS though I did not have as much time the day I heard that setup -- both are among the best I have ever heard.

The BPS was driving a Clearaudio Stradivarius cartridge mounted on an SME10 turntable. It was one of those listening sessions which was truly thrilling.

I am also very familiar with the Sim Audio Moon LP 5.3 phono stage, Musical Fidelity built in and stand alone units, Rogue Audio built in phono stage in one of their higher level preamps, having heard them many times in auditions and in good friends/family systems in the last few years.

The Nagra phono stages are the only ones I have heard which I like better than my McCormack phono drive, Revision A w/powersupply. They have much more refinement, detail, lovely top, tighter and deeper bass, but still sound open and natural. The Sim Audio phono stages sound hard to me.

I have a Benz Glider M2, an LP12 Valhalla Ittok VII, so you can tell I value a slightly warm open sound.

The Nagra BPS is an amazing little unit. Good luck with your search, Stephanie

I also have the VPS and agree fully with Sunnyboy1956.

Now for the BPS. MF review of the BPS was very good. It has an open sound stage, bass is well defind, midrange has good energy and focus and the treble is smooth and natural.

The BPS does all of what the VPS does, just not as good or as sweet. At the price they are asking it is a steal IMHO.

Hey all

Well I finally managed to hear a BPS in Germany while visiting a friend. Yes it's small! Really small. I'm not convinced it's actually a good enough unit for low output MCs. The unit was setup for maximum gain which is only 60dB! The cartridges we used were the Dynavector XX2 MK2 @ 0.23mV which was really noisy through the BPS and a ZYX Airy 3 @ 0.35mV which was better BUT still a tad noisy. I think the BPS is better suited to medium output MCs - which discounts just about all quality MCs! IMHO.

So, forgetting the noise (if you can), the sound is nice. It is nice, not dynamic at all compared to a really good SS at a similar price, but that might be to do with the fact that it is powered by a 9v battery. That means +/- 4.5v or less for the voltage rail compared to +/- 15v or more for a well designed SS or Tube unit. I read a while ago that your voltage rails are directly related to dynamic 'swing'.

Soundstage was not wide but far better than a Lehmann cube but nowhere near as wide or deep as a Whest PS.30R. The bass performance was good and precise but a bit veiled. The midband and Hf were also good but veiled. I wasn't really bowled over by the overall sound as you can see - I was expecting NAGRA precision but instead got a 'good' sounding phonostage sound that was coloured, veiled and lacked dynamics.

I actually don't know who this is aimed at. It doesn't have the flexibility, soundstage or musicality of a well designed full sized mains powered phonostage, it only handles medium to high output MCs or MM, and sounds good but not great for the price. I do like the size and build BUT not the 9v PP3 battery! If you want battery power then look at a Sutherland. If you want dynamics etc look at a Whest and if you want small with a 9v battery to fit into your computer case then this is it.

hope this helps.

Robm1,
I had none of the problems with the BPS that you had, with either of my cartridge. Maybe it was a problem with something else in the system you were using. Even at the store Goodwin's Highend there were no issues with any TT - cartridge setup. I'd try a different setup.