Supratek, The Cabernet Dual Preamplifier

[Κώστας Φ.]

Μία μάλλον ενδιαφέρουσα περίπτωση λαμπάτου προενισχυτή: 2 σε 1...
Στα $5000.
Λίγα λόγια για την Supratek:

SUPRATEK products are conceived and designed by Mick Maloney in Australia and Kevin Covi in the US .The range of preamps and power amps are built in Australia using the finest materials and components.

Και τι λέει ο κατασκευαστής για τον προενισχυτή που μου κίνησε την περιέργεια:

Our work in designing and building very high quality custom tube active crossovers led to the development of the Cabernet DUAL preamplifier- this is the most sonically advanced preamplifier available today, and is in many ways ahead of it's time.

The DUAL has two seperate preamplifier sections with two sets of outputs. Both sections are high bandwidth, full range preamps with low output impedance capable of driving any power amplifier .

One preamplifier stage uses a 6SN7 driving a 101D Directly Heated Triode which is transformer coupled to the output. DHT tubes are famous for their inherant transperancy, but this application takes the sonics into new areas of unvieled clarity and vividness. Only a DHT tube can provide real holographic imaging that is the ultimate in musicality . The sonics are liquid and frightenly lifelike with fantastic speed and resolution. This is not a slow and warm" tube" sound , but a sound that is close to the life of the music.
Pure Emotion.

The other preamplifier stage uses a 6SN7 driving a 6H30 tube in White Follower configuration. This gives superb response both in bass and treble bandwidths , and gives state of the art performance into any amplifier.
Perhaps not as musically satisfying as the 6SN7-101D , it nevertheless has deep effortless bass and extended bandwidth way beyond audibilty.

Having two seperate preamplifier stages opens up the possibility for bi-amping using dedicated preamps/power amps for bass and mid/treble.
You will need a speaker that is capable of being bi-amped, ie the crossover will be split into bass and mid/treble sections with the terminals for each section brought out to the outside of speaker cabinet , so there will be two sets of terminals.
You will also need two separate stereo amplifiers or 4 monoblocks . Ideally one would use a tube amp for the mid/treble and perhaps a solid state amp for the bass. Both preamp outputs will drive both tube and solid state amps.

The preamp has a separate gain control for the 6H30 section mounted on back panel, and master control for both sections is on front panel.

However both preamp stages can be used entirely independently of each other - indeed you may just wish to use one section to drive your power amps.
The response to the Dual has been overwhelming- there is no other audio device that can make such a dramatic difference to the sound of your system.

For those who cant utilise the biamp features of the Dual we offer the Cabernet Single. Supratek has been using directly heated triodes in preamps since the early 90's and we were the first company to offer the 101D in a commercial preamp, after the success of our 300B preamps.

The Cabernet Single uses 6SN7 and 101D tubes , but can also be ordered with your favorite DHT tube. Choose from the 45,300B or 101D (standard) or if you would like to hear the lush smooth tones of a genuine 1930's NOS tube we can supply the single with 6SN7 and 33 tubes, complete with 2 extra sets of NOS 33 to last the lifetime of the preamp.

The Cabernet Single preamplifier sells for $4500.

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Και ένα review από το 6moons, για την προηγούμενη έκδοση του ενισχυτή...


"Essentially, biamping delegates the more challenging bass register to a dedicated muscle amp. Brawn on the bottom, finesse on the top. That's indeed the fundamental rationale for biamping.

Naturally, the same issues plaguing 20Hz-to-20kHz tube amps also apply to tube preamps. Unless you biamp. Say what? How does biamping apply to a preamp? Enter Mick Maloney's new remote-volume Supratek Cabernet Dual. It is an offshoot of custom tube preamp/active valved crossovers [one recent example to left, with temporarily labeled blue trim pots adjusting gain for fixed crossover bands]. Our crafty Australian designer figured that since bi-amplification requires two outputs (and ideally separate gain provisions for each), he could author a novel bi-amp preamp. It'd sport two discrete circuits, one optimized for bass, one for mid/treble. This would allow him to cherry-pick specific tube types whose typical strengths the listener would harness over only a limited frequency range. To make the twinned Cabernet universal, both its outputs send a full-range signal. It is the divider frequencies of the hi- and lo-pass networks in your speaker that set the operational cut-off values for each preamp circuit. Variable gain levels for each leg; options for bass circuit damping; an RCA or XLR input choice for the mid/treble half; five single-ended inputs plus one balanced; and an outboard power supply with tube rectification round out the feature set.

...

Cabernet Squared

The power supply sports a 5AR4 rectifier (GZ32/34/37 or 5V4G may substitute) and 5881s (or 6L6GCs or KT66s) drivers. The signal tubes for the mid/treble circuit are current production TJ 101D globes. Bass is handled by 6SN7s. A rear-mounted 5-pole rotary switch sets gain for the "upper" preamp section (the first position leaves the output transformer unloaded while subsequent stops load the transformer for consecutively lower gain).

Two three-pole toggles in front of the transformer covers set the output impedance for the bass circuit for each channel while a top-mounted Alps potentiometer fine-tunes the circuit's precise output signal strength prior to the master volume. The 3-pole toggle between the transformers sets standby-mute/power, its central position turns input 5 into an HT bypass (mains volume bypassed). Two inset chromed rotary controls on the front panel adjust master volume and input selection while the power mains resides in front of the power supply rectifier valve. In keeping with Maloney's preamp philosophy, the Cabernet Dual is a very high-gain device to maximize drive and tone. Different trim levels substitute the black paint of the top cover and tranny casings for chrome and the high-gloss black fascia and side trim for different exotic woods. 3.5' long locking 5- and 8-pin umbilicals connect the power supply to the control unit to keep the power transformers' electromagnetic fields away from the deliberately unshielded wiring in the signal path circuitry.

...

"Basically, the circuit runs one half of the 6SN7 as the input tube which is direct-coupled to the 101D and to the other half of the 6SN7. The 101D is designed to be the mid/treble output. It is fantastically transparent but has weak bass - which doesn't matter here. The 6SN7 bass output is designed to extend very low and to be tight and accurate. Both outputs are transformer-coupled. You can actually use both outputs full range if you want to hear them with their full character and particular strengths and weaknesses. The circuit is a bit more complex than that, but that's it in a nutshell."

...

Conclusion. Sorta.

...

It's a terrifically inspired piece of the advanced audio design arts. Black arts - for white magic..."

Full Review: 6moons.com
Follow-up: Click

 

[ironsienna]

O enisxyths autos einai pragmatika ena thavma... Ton akousa apo enan filo mou kai mou epese to sagoni katw... Parhgeila ki egw oxi omws ton Cabernet Dual alla ton sauvignon. Perimena peripou 10 mhnes mexri na kataskevastei, alla pragmatika axize ton xrono.

Mou stoixhse 3500 evrw me custom made headphone output kai diafora alla internal customisations. H supratek exei pia kleisei. O Mick Malloney (exeretikos anthrwpos kai electronic engineer) den evgaze pleon xrhmata mias kai oi enysxhtes poulionousan se timh kostous. Skeutetai plewn na strafei sto allo tou pathos. Sthn kaleiergeia ampeliwn kai sthn paragwgh krasiou. Oi enisxytes autoi einai plewn syllektika kommatia. Mporw na pw oti noiwthw perifanos pou exw enan custom made sauvignon (an kai se kouti apo chardonnay mias kai o Mick den eixe alla koutia Sauvignon sto apothema ) Epifylassomai sto mellon se ena review.

En oligis, o ixos pou vgazei einai... anepanaliptos. Apo osa systhmata exw akousei (symperilamvanomenwn kai enos headroom balanced max), exei ton pio plousio hxo, h soundstage tou aplwnetai pantou (nai akoma kai mesa apo ta akoustika to noiwtheis). Polles fores se hxografhseis klassikhs h moiskh apokta treis diastaseis, noiwtheis to vathos pou exoun ta organa kai akoma kai to ypsos tous mesa sthn orxhstra. Ta vocals pernoun allh diastash. Pragmatika meta apo 5 lepta akroashs ksexnas oti foras akoustika kai noiwtheis oti vriskesai mesa sthn aithousa synavliwn.

O exoplismos mou:Lossless FLAC via foobar-> usb connection -> Russ Andrews DAC 1 -> Kimber Kable Hero -> Supratek Sauvignon -> Equinox cable -> Sennheiser HD 650

 

[ironsienna]

Opoios endiaferetai gia perissoteres plhroforeies gyrw apo autous tous enisxytes mporei na riksei mia matia sto thread pou exei dhmiourghthei gi autous sto audiogon http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?aamps&1016931418&openfrom&2&4#2 Alla prosoxh. Einai apo to 2002 kai exei panw apo 60 selides me comments. Me arketo psaksimo isws na mporesei kapoios akoma kai twra na vrei kapoion metaxeirismeno. Proswpika pote den tha poulaga ton diko mou. Den prokeitai apla gia mia "Mallon endiaferousa periptwsh" alla gia kati to monadiko, syllektiko, cream de la cream sthn kathgoria twn lampatwn proenisxytwn...

An apo Oktwvrh eisai akoma Londino Kosta, mporeis na peraseis apo Cardiff gia mia akroash...

 

[Gebreselassie]

Ironsienna καλώς ήρθες στην παρέα μας και καλή διαμονή. Θα σε παρακαλέσω να γράφεις μόνον στα Ελληνικά όμως για να είναι όμορφα και ευανάγνωστα τα posts σου. Τα greeklish άλλωστε απαγορεύονται από τον κανονισμό του site (τον οποίον έχεις αποδεχτεί με την εγγραφή σου).

Σε ευχαριστώ πολύ.

...

 

[ironsienna]

Ουπς... συγνωμη παιδες!!!