Tube Preamp Reviews

Rogue Audio RP-7 line preamplifier Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog Sources: Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable, Jelco 850L tonearm; AMG Giro G9 turntable & 9W Turbo tonearm; AMG Teatro, EMT TSD 75, Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue, Hana SL, Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum, My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex moving-coil cartridges; Kenwood KT-990D FM/AM tuner.
Digital Sources: Mac mini computer running Audirvana Plus 3.2; HoloAudio Spring "Kitsuné Tuned Edition" Level 3, Mytek Brooklyn DACs; JVC X-Z1010 CD player (used as transport).
Preamplification: Tavish Design Adagio phono preamplifier; Pass Laboratories HPA-1, PrimaLuna ProLogue Premium line-level preamplifiers.
Power Amplifiers: Bel Canto Design e.One REF600M (monoblocks), First Watt J2 & SIT3, Pass Laboratories XA25, PrimaLuna ProLogue Premium, Rogue Audio Stereo 100.
Loudspeakers: DeVore Fidelity Orangutan O/93, Dynaudio Excite X14, Harbeth Monitor 30.2 & P3ESR.
Headphones: Sony MDR-Z1R, Audeze LCD-X, HiFiMan Susvara, JPS Labs Abyss AB-1266 Phi.
Cables: Digital: AudioQuest Cinnamon (USB), Kimber Kable D60 Data Flex Studio (coax). Interconnect: AudioQuest Cinnamon, Auditorium 23, Triode Wire Labs Spirit, Wireworld Silver Eclipse 7. Speaker: Auditorium 23. AC: AudioQuest Tornado, Triode Wire Labs American–Digital & Seven-Plus.
Accessories: AudioQuest Niagara 1000 power conditioner; Harmonic Resolution Systems M3X-1719-AMG GR LF isolation platform; Sound Anchor speaker stands; Acoustical Systems SmarTractor, Dr. Feickert Analogue cartridge-alignment protractors; Musical Surroundings Fozgometer azimuth meter.—Herb Reichert

COMPANY INFO
Rogue Audio, Inc.
PO Box 1076
Brodheadsville, PA 18322
(570) 992-9901
www.rogueaudio.com
ARTICLE CONTENTS

COMMENTS
tonykaz's picture
Submitted by tonykaz on February 24, 2019 - 9:00am

Azure is an expensive type of Blue, almost Lapis Lazuli. Isn't it.

For $ 5 Grand I'm wondering why they didn't use variable color LEDs like Chord would use? Maybe they're Old-School "Blue" is pricy and rare type designers.

But...
...they sure did use "thru-hole" Circuit Boards which are far more repairable than those dam surface Mount boards which require High Magnification Surgery Tools ( and sober hands ) to repair.

"Alert & Water" as descriptives are a "First" in Audio Reviewing but "Transparent" is now Officially Worn-Out and can safely be discarded along with Carbon Fibre Record Cleaning Brushes.

Does this design present Musical Density along with it's Alertness?

Dam fine Five Star Appraisal here, bloating with exotic visuals that leave me in a Psychotic "tube rolling" wonderment.

Each HR writing is like a Sunset over the Gulf of Mexico: differing "colorings and flavorings", always beautiful and memorable .

Tony in Michigan

ps. the Audiophiliac is writing & explaining the New Rules Now.

ps. 2) Shabby Suits & used record stores in florida are Audio's version of Amish

tonykaz's picture
Submitted by tonykaz on February 22, 2019 - 5:55am

What is a Chinese Zippo worth?

Zippo gets it's high Value because it's Made in Pennsylvania, supported in Pa and has it's traditional value as part of American Culture. A Chinese Zippo isn't a Zippo!

A Chinese KEF isn't a Maidstone KEF made by Raymond Cooke.

A Chinese ROLEX is available at a small fraction of SWISS ROLEX Price.

Have a look at those Belgium Browning Guns and their Market Value levels compared to the Later Brownings made elsewhere.

The Market determines Prices

Chinese made stuff earns substantially lower Market acceptance.

Outfits that take their Proud Brand to Asia for Manufacture are deceiving their customer base who are not likely to remain loyal.

Asian Brands, like KIA, are building trust and Market Base thru Quality, Design and Support. KIA expanded their Manufacturing by building Cars in USA.

Asia sourcing is about TPP costing local jobs so that Corporations can avoid costs and capture significant short term profit: Quarterly.

People that support Asian Off-Sourcing do so because they've been bought ( purchased, owned ) by the Corporates, they serve Corporates not the customer.

Asian sourced stuff is worth less because it destroys it's purchaser.
It probably has negative value.

TPP is a Legacy Gift from Obama, dammit. ( My Obama )

Tony in Michigan

funambulistic's picture
Submitted by funambulistic on February 22, 2019 - 10:26am

Mr. Tony - who in the heck are you talking to? I would assume "Steve G." is referring to Mssr. Guttenberg, but he has nothing to do with this article, has not posted anything on Stereophile since, what June of last year and, if anything, has 2-3 posts per year (at the most). You are more likely to find him hanging around CNET or his YouTube channel, which, from what I have seen, he is very active on. I would hate for another one of your "Chinesium" tirades fail to reach your intended target because said target is not haunting the Stereophile comments section (especially comments on an article he did not pen). Good luck!

tonykaz's picture
Submitted by tonykaz on February 22, 2019 - 2:46pm

Mr.HR's writings are read by all Reviewers, everywhere. Of course Steve G is here, reading and making contributions.

Steve G & Mr.HR are almost the same Philosophy, one is the leading man of letters and one the leading man of Visuals.

They together are Audio's Greatest Team. ( Steve & Tyll were, sadly, no more )

I'm a Stereophile participant, not a CNET. I support getting Stereophile into all Libraryies and all Barber Shops, Stereophile is the Center of the Audiophile World, Stereophile is Everyman's publication. I am a "Stereophile"!

I don't work in Publishing and am not Staff of Stereophile or connected in any way since being an AUDIO Mag. Advertiser in 1980s when I had a business relationship with L.Lovechio and Distributing Importer of HFN&RR in the 1980's.

Tony in Michigan

ps. I am a Patreon subscriber to Steve G.

grantray's picture
Submitted by grantray on February 22, 2019 - 12:54pm

Maybe spend more time typing up rambling ranty stuff like this with liked-minded folks in the comments sections of Youtube or WSJ.

ok's picture
Submitted by ok on February 22, 2019 - 1:23pm

according to the "dominance/submission dialectic" the master gradually becomes more and more dependent on the servant’s mind and work, whereas the latter in turn becomes more and more potent and skillful till he finally realizes that he no longer has any use for his lazy old master – but Hegel never actually made it to our former brave new world..

tonykaz's picture
Submitted by tonykaz on February 22, 2019 - 2:57pm

I'm feeling a rather thin understanding of your observation.

Are you suggesting "dialectic" is a debate? or investigation? or something else entirely.

English words can have too many meanings for safe usage in short technical paragraphs.

Tony in Michigan

ok's picture
Submitted by ok on February 22, 2019 - 4:25pm

since "dialectic" is actually an ancient greek term which in this particular hegelian context means "interaction" (between master and servant) or "swapping" (of economic and political power that is..)

mmole's picture
Submitted by mmole on February 23, 2019 - 9:26am

...but I always appreciate a Marxist analysis of a line-level preamp.

ok's picture
Submitted by ok on February 23, 2019 - 4:39pm

since most of the aforementioned are usually vinyl-nostalgics, in a manner of speaking :-}

The Don's picture
Submitted by The Don on February 22, 2019 - 11:22am

Why is gain important if the Sit-3 will start to clip at around 3 Volts and most preamps put out over that? Wouldn't the actual performance of the volume control be a wild card in this as most seem to work better at say 2 o'clock setting then 9 o'clock? Thanks.

grantray's picture
Submitted by grantray on February 22, 2019 - 1:17pm

I saw him perform at the San Francisco Herbst Theater almost exactly two years ago. His performance of the Debussy Preludes as well as an encore of Scriabin was inspired, leaving all of us in the audience slack-jawed when the last note went silent and he stood for a final bow. It was amazing to watch his process as he paused before each piece and reflected on it before starting. He seemed to be conversing with himself on the complexity of the spirit and intent of the thing he was to create before striking the first note, in the way a visual artist pauses and prepares for the first mark on a surface. It was the kind of performance that demands a long walk afterwards. Next time he comes through New York on another tour, you should definitely go see him.

Ortofan's picture
Submitted by Ortofan on February 22, 2019 - 3:19pm

... all that's required to produce a reference grade product for a Stereophile reviewer.

Bogolu Haranath's picture
Submitted by Bogolu Haranath on February 22, 2019 - 6:38pm

Love (of tube sound) is blind (to measurements) :-) ...........

John Atkinson's picture
Submitted by John Atkinson on February 23, 2019 - 4:21am
Ortofan wrote:
Apparently "generally respectable measured performance" is all that's required to produce a reference grade product for a Stereophile reviewer.

Stereophile reviewers don't see a product's measured performance until after they have written and submitted their review. So if they decide something is a reference product, this is based on their auditioning alone.

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile

Bogolu Haranath's picture
Submitted by Bogolu Haranath on February 23, 2019 - 9:22am

May be Stereophile could review the new Parasound JC-5 stereo-amp? :-) ..........

Ortofan's picture
Submitted by Ortofan on February 23, 2019 - 12:25pm

... perhaps the reviewers should have the opportunity to make follow-on comments after they've seen the measurements. For example, would the reviewer still deem this unit to be of "reference grade" once it became known that the levels of distortion limited its resolution to only about 10 bits? Or is the effect of the added "second harmonic sauce" so beguiling that the measured performance can be ignored? If so, then why bother using such a device to listen to any hi-res (let alone CD-quality) recordings? Maybe there's an untapped market for recordings made in a 10-bit/96kHz format?

Bogolu Haranath's picture
Submitted by Bogolu Haranath on February 23, 2019 - 12:48pm

Regarding 10-bit resolution (SNR) ......... Analog source media, vinyl and analog cassette tape have max resolution 10-bits ........ Analog reel to reel tape has max 12-bit resolution :-) .........

Bogolu Haranath's picture
Submitted by Bogolu Haranath on February 23, 2019 - 12:55pm

BTW ..... Mp3 320 Kbps and AAC 256 Kbps have about 8-bit resolution :-) ........

ok's picture
Submitted by ok on February 23, 2019 - 4:17pm

distortion bottlenecks render any electronic “resolution” concern virtually pointless. God only knows what certain "reviewers" try to pass through their borrowed metaphors; picking up audio gear based on third party subjective accounts (and to a lesser degree on individual measurements) is in fact no different than picking up gear based on placebo, intuition or pure luck.

rt66indierock's picture
Submitted by rt66indierock on February 24, 2019 - 4:31pm

Give reviewers the measurements first then let them justify their impressions. It would be interesting to read how Herb justifies this product as reference level knowing the specifications.

Ktracho's picture
Submitted by Ktracho on February 25, 2019 - 6:23pm

For me the question is, what is more important, to please electronic measurement equipment, or to please my ears? Also, consider that my ears don't function the same way as electronic measurement equipment. In other words, electronic measurement equipment is not a faithful model of how my ears function. Certainly, very high measured levels of distortion will be reflected by poor sound, but increasingly lower measured levels of distortion are not necessarily correlated with increasingly stellar sound. At least that's my opinion.

Ortofan's picture
Submitted by Ortofan on February 25, 2019 - 8:33pm

... of distortion become too high to be acceptable, in your opinion?

Ktracho's picture
Submitted by Ktracho on February 26, 2019 - 12:24am

In my opinion, it's not a useful question. For example, how do you compare the sound of a truly great LP with a few unfortunate scratches through a great sound system vs. a cheap cell phone playing an MP3 file? More importantly, my answer would not be a useful guide for anyone else. For example, some may not be able to hear the difference between a $100 sound system and a $10000 one. Would it be foolish for someone to only spend $100 even though the distortion level in my opinion is too high?

rt66indierock's picture
Submitted by rt66indierock on February 26, 2019 - 8:25am

This device is not quiet enough.

mememe2's picture
Submitted by mememe2 on February 23, 2019 - 4:26pm

let's face it - unfettered love for all things with tubes.If one were to scour all of Stereophile's tubed equipment reviews( from beginning to present day) it would be hard to find many negative reviews of said equipment. Those reading should expect nothing less than approval for almost any tubed gear under review. It is what it is.

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