Placette RVC review in Stereophile

Mike and Tomryan, I think you guys are kidding yourselves or you like your music without dynamics if the Placette is your cup of tea. If you like the sound of the Placette then get the one with active circuitry and enjoy the dynamics. Spend some time in a small venue listening to live music and you will realize that the biggest difference between your recorded music and the live event is dynamics.......Music isn't supposed to be pretty, it is what it is and it is big and it is dynamic.......

Last performance I heard was John Renbourn in a club here in Houston that could seat 75 and was just over half full.......That was about three weeks ago...Going to Bluesfest in Maryland this weekend after a rib infestation in Pennsylvania at Muskmike's and expect the sound will only be fair.....Glad you like the Placette as that is an inexpensive solution. I have directly compared an active preamp with the Placette passive at Mike Lavigne's and it wasn't even close as respects focus, venue information or dynamics......Love to stay and chat, but off to Pennsylvania at daybreak.......

Bob Crump
TG Audio/CTC Builders

I think you missed the spirit in which advice was given as I have no problem with your liking the Placette as it is a very good commercial unit. To make something that sounds better costs like Hell and normally isn't very commercial or convenient to use. I build gear for a living and the CTC preamp ate the passive Placette as respects focus, venue and dynamics. It wasn't close and think you can get a taste for it by reading Mike's earlier posts as we did this in Mike's system last Fall. If you like the passive Placette I imagine you would love the active one even better was my point.

Regarding Renbourn, he puts on a great show and prefers the small venues as spoke to him backstage for a while at the break. He was travelling with Jacqui McShee and together they were just awesome. Jacqui currently has a group called Jacqui McShee's Pentangle......This weekend I will hear Mighty Sam McClain at Bluesfest in Maryland, but expect the PA will be overpowering......

You make a good point in system matching as my amps (Parasound JC-1s) prefer an active stage before them to do their best as do most amps. My business partner called earlier tonight and I explained what was going on with this thread and he got a hoot out of it as he was pretty much at a loss to explain why the Blowtorch is so dynamic compared to most any other unit other than the topology is a complimentary differential folded cascode with no loop feedback. He used to use some 26 turn pots which had beaten up a unit he had designed in 1980, the Dennesen JC-80, and then the Blowtorch came in and destroyed the wire wound pots. Bottom line is there is more dynamic information with the CTC than there is with most anything out there. Curl made a joke and said it must be the atomic dynamicizer he designed into the circuit :-) Open loop bandwidth of 350K doesn't hurt either :-)

Tomryan, the Blowtorch is a built to order active preamp that starts at 15K and goes up. CTC is John Curl, Carl Thompson and Bob Crump. We average about five units per year is all and have 26 in the field so it has very limited appeal due to cost and lack of convenience features. It is the best we know how to build and never will go into production, but will remain built to order.

Last time I heard flamenco guitar was at the La Mansion Hotel in San Antonio and that was years ago. Amazing how well a hardwood stage will resonate to foot stomps! Rather hear the Flamenco than Mighty Sam McClain anytime! Thinking about foot stomps you ever heard John Hammond? The guy is a one man band as he plays guitar, harmonica and stomps his foot on the stage for the bass.......Sounds like we will both have an enjoyable weekend, but I have to drive 1,400 miles to enjoy it over at MusikMike's in Chambersburg, Pa.......Just as well as it is going to be 95 here today with a heat index of 107........Off to get the oil changed and get a haircut before I start treking Northeast........