Sorry for my innocent. In Taiwan, it seems that this brand (Herron) havn't been introduced here. In now days, many Hi Fi audio brand are disappearing or switch to do other audio gears such as headphone which has tremendous demand. And the Higher end components price have been pushed up to the very expensive level which only few music lovers can afford...... It's not easy to find the balance of good C/P. |
My current preference is a Herron VTSP-3A (r03). It is rich and full in tone and harmonics. It is also quite dynamic and time alignment is as good as it gets. I have heard nothing better.
|
No problem, faust. Accuphase makes fine gear. Enjoy!
Dave |
Dear Dave, Thank you for your kind reply. I have found a Ayre K1 for sales in our 2nd hand dealer which cost about US$3400. And the Ayre's distributor in Taiwan has been changed, therefore, even I have intention to buy K1 for upgrade to K1XE, I think there is no chance here in the far East. Also, I have concern that the audio gear with ages might got problem easily which need to send for fix. Therefore, I am trying to find a higher grade Accuphase pre such as C-2800 as 2nd hand or the new C-2420 both are from Accuphase with different grade. |
"I have read a report that the volume knob in the K1 or K1-XE ( I don’t remember clearly about the model), might cause some small noise if the user do not turn the volume up and down often."
faust,
I think you misunderstood the report. The volume control itself makes noise when turned up of down, but this complex volume control was created just to ensure maximum elimination of any noise whatsoever in the audio circuit and makes the K-1/K-1xe one of the quietist preamps ever.
I have owned the K-1xe for seven years and never had any noise issues whatsoever with the volume control.
Best to you faust, Dave
|
Thank you for your kind opinion. For the purpose of budget consideration, do you think it is good idea to have an Accuphase C-290 (almost 20 years after launch) with my latest launched A-47. |
You could mix and match with different preamp and power amp though it's a question of personal preference. Personally I would rather stick with the same manufacturer for both pre and power for synergy and/or compliance with technical specification.
|
The commodity is in Taipei, Taiwan. It is far away from U.S.A. The commercial flight would take 13 hours from here to the states and you have to take transportation to and fro cost into consideration which will push up cost too. I have read a report that the volume knob in the K1 or K1-XE ( I don't remember clearly about the model), might cause some small noise if the user do not turn the volume up and down often. Also, K-1 is a quite old model. I am afraid the components inside might get too old to change it's original tastes. Therefore, how do you think it is still a bargain to get a K-1 without upgrade? |
"...but Ayre K1XE is not easy to find one here in Taipei, there is one in 2nd hand K1 (not K1XE) store which offer at US$3300. I do not know what is the difference between these two models."
Hi faust,
The K-1 was the first model and can be upgraded to the K-1xe by Ayre for a relatively modest cost. Agree with George that it is a superb preamp and a bargain at those prices.
Best to you faust, Dave
|
Tks for your response, but Ayre K1XE is not easy to find one here in Taipei, there is one in 2nd hand K1 (not K1XE) store which offer at US$3300. I do not know what is the difference between these two models. I think it might be the best solution to use a 2nd hand high grade 2nd hand Accuphase pre like C-2800, but it is very hard to find one. Although the brand new C-2420 is more accessible in price, but there is few review on the sound of it's performance. |
faust168 The A47 has a very low 20k input impedance, suggest you stay away from tube preamps, one because they can be an impedance mismatch, two they are also capacitor coupled, and if that capacitor is not big enough it could roll the bass off too early. My suggestion is to go with a direct coupled solid state preamp, maybe the Ayre’s K1XE, I would ask Charlie Hansen (Ayre) if it’s direct coupled. Cheers George |
At current, I am using a pre amp. like audio research SP-3 |
How about the Accuphase C-290. It is almost 20 years old. It is selling at US$4000 here in Taipei. |
Regarding SA-2000,l I have heard once, but not as good as SA-5000. It is rare chance to find SA-5000. |
Tks for your reply. I'll take your precious idea into consideration. |
But the new Accuphase such as C2420 are quite expensive. It costs about US$8000 here in Taipei. This gear has few review in everywhere. |
Get the matching Accuphase pre . 100% maximum allocated synergy . |
" buy and old counterpoint SA-2000 and change a few of the caps and resistors and your in business."
I don't know about that one. Preamps have improved a lot since those things were in production. At 25+ years old its probably classified as vintage. With a budget of 3k, why bother?
|
faust168-
stay w/ Accuphase.
|
buy and old counterpoint SA-2000 and change a few of the caps and resistors and your in business. |
You really should listen to it first. The preamp is the most important piece to get right. If you don't care and just want to take a chance; BAT, CJ, Rowland, Sutherland, Pass, make preamps that might work for you. |
You may want to stick with Accuphase. The other two are relatively less warm than Accuphase. I heard them all and own a pair of Dynaudio. |