The first gen Promitheus that I owned couldn't be beat for $300. It had all the transparency and detail you could ask for, but the bottom end was lacking compared to a Sonic Euphoria and a Bent TVC. The Promitheus also suffered from ground issues. It has a common ground for all the inputs and outputs. I got hum if any of the inputs weren't connected to a component. Maybe Nick has fixed this with newer versions, but it was a significant problem for me. The Sonic Euphoria has an identical wiring scheme (common ground bus), but it has a wire that can be connected to an outlet to stem the problem. It still has a little hum, but not as bad as the Promitheus. The Bent, on the other hand, is dead silent when it comes to grounding issues. There are two things different about its design. The inputs don't share a common ground -- hot and ground are independently switched through the source selector. There's also a switch that lets you toggle between floating and grounding the output to the source. All in all, the Bent is very well designed and sounds superb. John Chapman is one of the most helpful and courteous fellows I've ever dealt with.
I haven't heard Nick's new C-core TVC, but I've read that it's a big improvement. I only wish he would redesign the chassis. It's one of the most unattractive cases I've ever seen. I affectionately called it the Duckling.
I haven't heard Nick's new C-core TVC, but I've read that it's a big improvement. I only wish he would redesign the chassis. It's one of the most unattractive cases I've ever seen. I affectionately called it the Duckling.