VAC preamps - too expensive?

VAC preamps are pricey, no doubt, but excellent. I bought a demo Phi Beta preamp 8 years ago for roughly half of MSRP, which was still a bundle. I thought I was crazy at the time, but I'd heard one at a dealer and loved it, so I jumped. Well, it’s been in service 12 hours a day for almost every day since then, sounding wonderful with any amp I pair with it--and there have been many in that time. The fact that it has a dual LOMC phono, too, that’s among the best I’ve heard is just icing. You pays your money for VAC but you get an heirloom piece that just keeps going. High expense but high value if you buy used or a demo.

With the newer stuff, VAC has priced itself out of the real world. But the older top preamps are very similar in circuit to the newer ones. Look there if you want the VAC sound and quality without the risk of losing your thumbs to loan sharks. Stick with ones that provide 12 db of gain. The Renaissance Series, at least the earlier models, have something like 23db of gain, which is nutty to me.

I sought out the Phi Beta for a year before I found one. It was only made for a couple years before VAC went to the 2A Sig as their TOL pre. The change was made, I was told by the lead tech, mainly because VAC could no longer source the IC relays that enabled the Phi Beta to have a full function remote (key feature for me). Sound quality was not the reason. The replacement 2A Sig has only volume and mute on the remote. Yes, the manual source switches on the 2A Sig offer slightly more sonic purity, but the Phi Beta has plenty of that itself and the full-function remote is a real pleasure. I have a lot of sources so it’s important to me.

I’d say keep your powder dry until a Phi Beta comes along on the used market. It’s beautiful, too. Worth the wait.

If you have a high-end turntable, the VAC onboard phonos are a work of art and well worth it.

I completely agree. My Phi Beta has a very similar phono circuit, maybe even the same one, if executed, I’d imagine, at a somewhat lower level than the Master. It has 6 x 12AX7 with Lundahls. Mine is 2 x LOMC, and I had Brent upgrade the transformer on one to the Statement version, along with installing screw terminals for both so I can slide in nude Vishays of any value for unlimited loading options. It is superb. I might even prefer this phono stage to my Allnic H3000, which is no slouch.

@mulveling I'm totally onboard with SUTs, although I can't use them with with my Phi Beta because it came with dual MC, no MM. This was the personal preamp of Jay Kaufman of Audio Revelation, and he ordered it that way. No matter, really, because I have the Allnic H3000 in the same system and it has two MM inputs (plus two MC). My rig has 5 tonerarms active, which is absurd but big fun, and I use several stand-alone SUT (including Bob's) sometimes. Allnic has its own built-in SUTs, too, which compete well to my ears with my stand-alones. So for me, without the opportunity to directly compare separate SUTs in the VAC, whatever minor failings Lundahls might present are lost in the excellence of its overall presentation and sound. And I just adore the unlimited loading options. It's weird how tiny changes in resistor values can have an audible impact.

My Phi Beta preamp has been the beating heart of my main system for 12 years, on 14-16 hours a day and requiring zero maintenance beyond changing tubes every couple years. Love it.