Hey all, I've done a lot of reading on the Rogue Audio and Primaluna gear. I Like what I've read, and I actually heard the m150's a while back and came away impressed. I have not personally listened to any Primaluna gear.
Do any of you have thoughts either way? I'm looking at Prologue 6 & 7, vs. Rouges m120 and M150. A lot will have to do with what becomes available on Audiogon, but I am prepared to purchase Prologue 6 new if necessary. Thanks
Congratulations on your new amp !! I have been absolutely delighted with my Cronus for almost two years now, and I'm sure you're going to be very happy for a long time. And, like I've said here before, Mark and Nick at Rogue Audio are great guys, and are always available to answer questions and give advice. Don't be afraid to give them a call. Good Luck, and Happy Listening !!
Electro-Harmonix KT90EH is the power tubes that came with the Cronus. The pre-amp tube is a Sylvania. I can't tell what the other two 12au7's and 12ax7's are right now without removing them. I know they're whatever came with it from Rogue. All their web site tells me is that they're upgraded.
I must say, I'm rather impressed with the sound. I began playing music about 10 minutes after I started it up. It sounded pretty good. About 40 minutes later, I was almost in tears listening to the Pink Martinis. I was puuling out CD's I haven't played in years and they all sounded excellent.
use gloves when handling any of the tubes , large or small The Magnum should have the KT90 powertubes which with the larger power supply allows for the unit generate 90 wpc - these are tubes that get biased . The small tubes are all signal stage tubes
Sounds great. I'll post back here after I receive the unit. Thanks for the information. I know nothing about tubes besides the fact that I enjoy the sound immensly. What are the 4 large tubes? I know some tubes last a long time and some don't. Which is which? When I tube roll, do I wear gloves? The owners manual I found on Rogue's website just labels the center as the preamp section. What's the other 2 - 12au7's and the two 12ax7's?
Found a great combo of 12ax/au7s.The Mazda 12au7 french military labeled "Cifte" (Quest for Sound) and the Shuguang triple-mica G8/9 12ax7s (probably available thru E-Bay).If you can't find the Shu s,give me a shout.I believe that I might have access to a pair.
Donjr - the names should be on the glass - brands such as JJ, EH (electron harmonis) , sovtek are new production, those like RCA, Sylvania, Telefunken are NOS - Mullards and Tungsols can be either - here's a couple of links - TubeDepot sells both - new & NOS , Brent jesse sells NOS -PS I'm not affiliated with either just a customer of both - If it doesn't have NOS you can get them without spending a fortune and get a big difference to my ears - likewise you can spend a lot on NOS if you have the bucks
Sogwood. That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. As you can imagine, It's pretty tough waiting. I took Monday off of work just to listen to tunes all day.
I'll be very surprised if you don't find the Cronus Magnum to be a big step up in every area of music playback from the NAD....even the bass reproduction.
Thanks Learsfool. I love my NAD to death. It's actually the only amp I've even had that I will always hold onto and service because it's a great back up. I have a Rogue Cronus Magnum coming from Agon and I'm psyching myself up for it.
No, Don, the Rogue would probably not sound bright in comparison to the NAD. Those NAD's are not bad little amps, my brother has one of their integrateds.
Sorry to jump in like this. Being someone without tubes, would a Rogue Cronus sound brighter than my 12 year old NAD integreated? My NAD doesn't sound bright at all, but would the Rogue be bright in comparison?
Sogood, I did not hear the Rogue on my Klipsch speakers, I heard them through a pair of ProAc Studio 140's, through which I have also heard my amp. The Rogue's have much more power than I need to drive my Cornwall 2's, for sure (so do the PrimaLuna's for that matter), but then, I can drive them with almost anything I want, that's not really an issue for me. And either amp should drive all of the speakers Hawk is considering just fine. I haven't heard the Focals or the Alon, but the Sonus Faber's are very nice. Personally, I would make the speaker choice first, though - the speaker will have the greatest effect on the sound of your system. If you don't like the sound of them, it doesn't matter what you drive them with, really. Doing it the other way around is putting the cart before the horse, IMO.
Yes I have heard the rogue sound numerous times and I like it. The bass is in line with my musical taste (jazz, fusion) and neither the M150 or the stereo 90 ever sounded bright to me. Granted, I've not heard the Primaluna gear which is why I started this thread to begin with.
Sogood, you make a great point about speaker matching. In the running are Focal 1027be or 1007be, (both of which sounded great with the Rogue gear) Sonus Faber Cremonas and the old Alon V. I understand that Alons like tubes so thats why I began my query about tube gear, but have since heard the Cremonas and the focal stuff, both very impressive. Decisions, decisions.
IMS:I believe the 88s are more "full-range".Adjust warmth through the driver/input tubes.If the power is not an issue,the auto-bias works w/o a hitch.The "stock PL tubes" have a slightly forward sound.Rolling the 12au/ax tubes makes a significant improvement(>>$110/4-double for monos).
If you don't think they sound bright, fine! I meant in comparison to the PrimaLuna's, and actually in comparison to all other tube amps I have heard. I have heard them over the exact same set of speakers, wire, etc. as the PrimaLuna's, and everyone present agreed that the Rogue's had a much brighter, harder sound. I am not saying this was a bad sound at all, by the way, just different, and not what I personally cared for. The PrimaLuna's certainly sound more life-like and throw a much bigger soundstage, IMO, if that is important to you, and I have never heard of anyone having a problem with them, whereas I know a few people who have had problems with their Rogue amps. Just sharing my own experiences, YMMV.
I am extremely happy with my Rogue Audio Cronus. Mark and Nick @ Rogue are a pleasure to deal with. Great product, great service and advice from the boys who designed and built the amp, and a wonderful sound of music as the amp drives my speakers. Life is good !!
I bought the Rogue M-150 about 5 years ago and have not looked back. They may not be overly tubey in the midrange but they are anything but bright sounding and i have Martin Logan Summit speakers which are very transparent to the source and require a lot of current. I chose the M-150 over M-120 for several reasons less heat equals longer tube life, can switch from ultralinear to triode via an external switch, more power and can bias output tubes individually via an bulilt in meter. I prefer the KT-88 tubes but throw in the 6550's occasionally for a change of pace. I am pretty sure you can also use EL-34 which suppposedly create a tubery sound but I have not tried them.I have never heard the Primaluna gear. Another bonus Rogue is made here in the good old USA.
Lears,there is nothing,in my opinion, bright or solid state sounding about the Rogue equipment.I own a Rogue TempestII Magnum integrated and it is a wonderful organic,if you will,sounding amp.I have had the pleasure of hearing several Rogue prouducts and and none,to my ears, sounded as you have described them.Of course,you are entitled to your opinion,everyone hears things differently.Hawk,you tried them for yourself and liked what you heard.Nuff said!!!
Tpreaves is correct - these are two very different sounding products. The Rogue amps are the more modern type of tube amp design, much higher powered, much brighter, more solid-state-like sound. The PrimaLuna amps have a much smoother, warmer, more life-like sound, and they throw a bigger soundstage and image better. They are also better built, in many people's opinion. Art Dudley just reviewed the Dialogue monoblocks in the latest Stereophile, FYI. I went with the Dialogue 2 integrated myself. By the way, if you do the Prologue 7 as opposed to the 6, you will have much more flexibility for tube-rolling. I really like the Adaptive Auto-Bias feature of the PrimaLuna amps, as well. I have been very satisfied with my choice.
No, the heat factor doesn't bother me....just thought I would warn you. I'm told that the Rogue 150's run fairly cool.
My Rogue 120 Magnums replaced a Krell Ksa-250 in my system, and they both give off about the same amount of heat driving my pair of Apogee Duetta Signature speakers.
That said, heat is an amp killer...SS or tubes. The Rogue amps sound best with KT-88's also....I use EH KT-88's in mine.
Tpsonic, do you prefer the Kt-88 for their midrange? Also, how do you find the 7's ability to handle marginally efficient speakers. I have my eye on some old Alons which usually require a good amount of power.
Sogood51, has the heat from the 120's been a problem? do you use a fan or any other cooling method.
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