At the end of the last year I bought a couple of Classe Omega monoblock amps, and I wanted a new pre-amp to go with them. I did my research and decided on a Trinnov Audio Amethyst. Apparently Trinnov is more known for their HT systems and commercial sound, but this is their TOTL 2 channel pre amp. Actually I think its their only home audio pre-amp.
The clinching point of the Amethyst is the onboard DSP system, which I could see very beneficial in my listening room. Actually, it is awesome! Then I decided to work with the internal DAC and see if its better than my Audio Magic Kukama. Took some time and had to commit to Roon, but it is superb also. Best digital sound I have here, and it more than surpasses my expectations.
The last area to fiddle with is its internal phono stage. Typically, these are an add on and are never really serious pieces of hardware right? It is MM only, so I need a SUT to run my low output moving coil cartridges. Now this thing is weird also. The RIAA curve is hybrid, with the lower portion handled discretly with a passive network, but the upper registers are all software controlled. Seems sketchy right?
I have had this preamp for months and never used it. But this morning I decided I am going to give it a try and I disconnected my Esoteric E-03 phono stage. Ran an Ortofon T2000 into it, and have the MC2000 cartridge playing with it.
Initial impressions? Very positive, as it sounds excellent no matter how you evaluate it. Now I doubt the previous owner of the Amethyst played vinyl at all, so this is a unused input on the pre-amp. Yet the sound is tonally balanced, excellent definition and clarity, has good microdynamic expression, and is quiet as a church mouse. I really can't fault it with the listening I have done so far. Yes I need to spend more time with it, but if the sound doesn't get any better than this I will still be very pleased. Pleased enough to think the Esoteric may have become non-essential.
I am thinking about paring back my analog gear in order to fund a speaker upgrade. Deciding what to keep and what can meet my requirements over the long haul is the first step. I may pare this down to two cartridges and two turntables, with the Transfiguration Proteus and Ortofon Verismo being the keepers. This means letting all the vintage Ortofon MC cartridges go along with their matching Step Up Transformers. Not an easy decision. The sale of the Esoteric and the SUT, and the Dynavector tonearm would make a significant contribution to that speaker kitty.
Trinnov | HiFi Preamplifier and Streamer with Trinnov Room Correction
