Placette RVC review in Stereophile

i agree that the review in question is quite short. but i believe that the point of the review was that this unit is so cheap (and has a 30 day money back policy) that you can't afford no to try it (assuming you can use short interconnects from the RVC to your amps) considering it's amazing performance.

his point on dynamics was that he percieved 'trade-offs' but not necessarily shortcomings. in some cases an active pre will allow more bass slam but at the expense of articulation and speed. so far i prefer the overall dynamic performance of the Placette to any active pre (with the possible exception of the CTC Blowtorch).

i have used the Placette RVC for over 2 years. to my ears, in my system, it has clearly bettered EVERY active preamp i have tried (6 or 7 mostly in the $10k to $15k range) without dynamic shortcommings (except compared to the CTC Blowtorch). i have also compared the RVC to other passives (including transformer and autoformer based) and preferred the RVC clearly (except the Silver Rock which had sonic tradeoffs but also no remote).

if your system has a natural balance without the need for the added 'something' that EVERY active pre adds.....you need to try the Placette. that 'added something' gets between me and the music.....at least to my ears.

Tom, by 'bass slam' i mean an increased energy in the bass where the bass becomes more prominent relative to the overall balance of the whole frequency. some preamps 'boost' the bass a little, adding some weight and body.....but usually obscuring detail. if you love 'rock show' bass....it's perfect. but for reproducing acoustical bass; it is a detriment.

i like increased dynamic contrasts generally.....i perceive the Placette to uncover tiny dynamic changes that active pre's seem to gloss over to a varying degree.