2. amps-preamps
  3. 189541-175138

Preamp for Bryston 4b3 & Tannoy Cheviots

I recently upgraded my amplifier from a Parasound A23+ to a Bryston 4B3 and upgraded my speaker cables to my Tannoy Cheviots to good effect. Before this upgrade, the other upgrade I’d been considering was to upgrade my Parasound Holo P6 preamp. Now that I have done the amp upgrade, I am starting to wonder what paired with the Bryston might make an additional increase in sound quality. I listen to a wide variety of rock music, a lot of roots music, Jazz and singer songwriters. I see a lot of music live, and having real instruments sound as real as possible and breadth and three dimensionality of soundstage are the goals I would like to maximize. I primarily stream music and have a separate DAC and digital reclocker so I am primarily looking for a pre where I am not paying for an on board DAC. A phonostage is also of no current value to me.  Though I have 1000 LPs in the garage, I haven’t had a turntable in years, and am reluctant to add an analog element to my system whose quality would be proportional to the other elements of my system. I have a large number of cds, but rarely play them. Similarly, I have no use for a bunch of home theater features and connections as my system is only for music.

I note the relatively new Bryston BP-19 is analog only and I assume would be a good mate to their amp. However, I haven’t found any in-depth reviews of it. I was also pondering the Primaluna Evo 300 or 400, but one of my dealers has been cautioning me against the long term expense and hassle of tubes. I’m thinking I might be able to spend around $6000 if it made a significant improvement in sound quality.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

The details of my system are as follows:

Amp: Bryston 4B3 300 w x 2

Pre:   Parasound Halo P6

Speakers: Tannoy Cheviots, Analysis Plus Black Mesh Oval 9 gauge biwired cables (21’ run)

Digital Streamer/Source: Heavily modified BlueSound NODE 130 (added Fidelity Audio clock board & LPSU)/ Innuos Phoenix USB/ Gustard X26 Pro DAC (connected by Shunyata Alpha USB cables.

All other interconnects: Synergistics Research Foundation or better

Power: Power conditioner: Synergistics Research Powercell 10 SE Mk 3 w SR Atmosphere level 3 cord; All power cords SR Foundation
 

My listening room is also known as my wife’s living room. Please no suggestions as to room

corection as I have no control over the room. The speakers are on the 14 foot wall at the front of the house, and although the living room is 16 foot deep, it flows into a dining room space where the ceiling lowers. There are also a couch and windows on the left side, and interior wall on the right (where the TV and stereo system components are).

 

lloyd1969

Showing 3 responses by yyzsantabarbara

yyzsantabarbara
5,026 posts
 

I do not think I have used the Benchmark LA4 with the older ST and SST series. I used to own the ST and SST amps. Those amps were hot on top. The 4B3 does not seem that way.

If the 4B3 is similar to the CODA #8, #16, Sanders Magtech, or the KRELL Duo175XD then I would use the LA4 as my first choice. I used it with all 4 amps, and it was the best preamp I had on it. I tried about 7 different preamps from $800 to $8000. I owned the old Bryston BP-25 and that was not good in comparison to the LA4.

I will be selling my LA4 next week. I traded my Benchmark AHB2 amp today for the Benchmark HPA4 preamp. It is identical to the LA4, but it has an additional headphone amp.

If you want more warmth, I am fan of the new Schitt Mjolnir v3 (own it). A class A preamp, but not as good to me as the LA4. Though no remote.

Another preamp that is great (and I own) is the Holo Audio Serene. It is almost identical to the LA4, just a bit warmer.

I think all the preamps I listed would be good with the 4B3. Infact, I was thinking of getting the 4B3 from my Magnepan LRS+ and use with the Serene or LA4. I decided to use the CODA #16 instead.

BTW - do not get fooled by the lower prices of the preamps I am suggesting. They are really good, if you do not want the preamp to add too much to the sound, except the Mjolnir v3 which adds a lot.

 

 

 

yyzsantabarbara
5,026 posts
 

The LA4 is fully balanced and supports the AES48 XLR standard. You do not need to go to town with the XLR between the preamp and amp. I do use a consumer hi-end XLR from my sources to the LA4.

That LTA M does sound interesting to me. I use 2 preamps hooked up to my CODA #16 amp. There is a switch in front that allows me to toggle between RCA and XLR input on the amp. I have all my sources hooked up to both preamps.

I occasionally use my Schitt Mjolnir v3 preamp connected by RCA, instead of the LA4 connected by XLR. I do this occasionally for the sake of variety. The LTA M seems like a better preamp than the Class A Mjolnir v3 that I currently use. The Schitt preamp definitely is not as good as the LA4, but it is a fun listen.

BTW - Benchmark has a 30-day home trial. My LA4 will go up for sale next Friday.

yyzsantabarbara
5,026 posts
 

@lloyd1969 The LA4 and HPA4 sound identical. I have owned the HPA4 2x and the LA4 once. I love the lack of sound of each one.

I did not need to get the HPA4 since I had the LA4, but I was able to do a cashless trade for my AHB2 amp.  The reason to get the HPA4 is as a supplementary headphone amp for what maybe the world's best headphone.

RAAL 1995 headphones, Magna and Immanis | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org

I have decided to get the RAAL 1995 Immanis and I think the HPA4 will be a nice match for the slightly warm Immanis. The Immanis is incredible. I heard it in Ventura, CA at the USA partner, RAAL Requisite. Danny McKinney is the guy in Ventura that can demo the phones. Stereophile and TAS are both going to have reviews of the Immanis.

I mention Danny because when I went to demo the 2 phones, I took my Holo Audio Serene preamp. It measures even better than the HPA4/LA4 and it a touch warmer. Danny had a passive preamp that he had put together for a speaker that he was designing. I compared my Serene to his passive and the passive was a lot better, in the sense of hearing more into the music. 

I am thinking that the passive maybe even better than the HPA4. I told him that if he ever builds a passive preamp with multiple source inputs (XLR, RCA) then I would want to get one. 

I actually have 3 preamps and 2 systems,

  • Benchmark HPA4 with CODA #16
  • Holo Audio Serene with Magenpan LRS+
  • Schitt Mjolnir V3 with CODA #16

The Mjolnir v3 costs $1300 and is a pure Class A preamp. It is a headphone amp and a preamp. It is similar to the CODA 07x preamp. The Mjolnir does not have a remote control.

The CODA 07x preamp is another unit that may interest you since it has a tube -ish sound. I have the CODA #16 amp but liked the HPA4 and Serene over the 07x, though a lot of other people may like the 07x. I have seen the 07x on USAM for $3.2k+. I would take that over tubes since it is much easier to take care off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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