FIRST SOUND PRESENCE DX 4.0 MKI PREAMPLIFIER ULTI

First Sound Presence Deluxe 4.0 MK I with Ultimate upgrade: Same as Deluxe 4.0 with addition of MIT tin foil capacitors; increase in power supply (additional 106,800 mfd) and more extensive grounding topology. This unit is upgradable!Emmanuel Go has been quietly building great preamplifiers since 1989. Not well known in the U.S., most of his production has been scooped-up by savvy overseas buyers. Now focused on the domestic market, First Sound has begun to earn a reputation for them selves. A rave review in Soundstage! trumpeted their cause, bringing them the critical acclaim they deserve. First Sound preamps capture the essence of music. Each of these units excels in uncovering subtle detail through an absence of background pollution: grain, noise, haze, whatever you want to call it, that impediment is missing from the sound of the Presence preamps. With the background irritations silenced, music is left to appear in glorious relief against a noiseless backdrop. Emmanuel Go builds his preamps to exacting standards, utilizing top quality materials and techniques. Here is a sample of what's inside:* Stepped attenuators are hand-crafted using beefy 25 amp switches and either Holco or Vishay resistors. Expensive ladder-type attenuators are used in all models except the basic unit.* Each model features an outboard power supply, with huge capacitive storage reserves, utilizing the highest-grade electrolytics bypassed with MIT Multicaps.* Chassis are made from heavy gauge steel, copper plated to MIL Spec standards, insuring maximum isolation from EMI/RFI interference. Emmanuel has left no stone unturned in his quest for the optimal performance, exploring every last tweak, in a search to uncover every last gram of performance. Each part and piece of the design is carefully chosen to synergize with all others. Even the torque used to affix the RCA connectors to the rear panel and the location of the feet under the unit were chosen for optimal performance! The quality of the product is testament to the countless hours of listening and tuning have been invested in these designs.Both the First Sound Presence Deluxe MKII ($4,200) and its upgraded siblings, the Presence Deluxe 4.0 ($6,900) and Presence Deluxe 4.0 with Paramount upgrade ($8,100) share a common topology and build philosophy. These are active linestages with true dual mono construction, employing vacuum tubes as their gain devices as well as in the regulation of the power supplies. A class A Triode circuit is employed, with emphasis on keeping the design as simple as possible. All controls and components are repeated for both left and right channels, enhancing channel separation and decreasing the possibility of crosstalk between channels. In keeping with simple is better, my units offered no balanced or tone controls. The main chassis is made out of .06 inch cold rolled steel, plated with copper, as the best protection against spurious radiation. Circular damping materials are employed along with other vibration absorption devices to help tune the units’ overall performance. These units utilize step attenuators to set volume control, as opposed to volume potentiometers. There is no remote offered on these units, which may be an obstacle for some, but for me, I’d take the inconvenient hands-on approach to volume control, especially when it reflects technology to maintain the purest signal possible. First Sound utilizes discrete resistors with specific values to set the attenuation level, far superior and accurate, states Emmanuel, from a potentiometer, which gains resistance by utilizing a film of carbon spread on a plastic film. Holco resistors, made with no ferrous material, are utilized in these step attenuators. A look inside the main chassis of these units reveals simple yet great build prowess, with four long stainless steel rods extending the controls for the volume and selector switches to the back of the unit. Keeping the switches at the back of the unit helps maintain a very short signal path. Even in the circuit boards, the copper traces are kept to a very minimal length, keeping with this design philosophy. Emmanuel discusses the special copper solder that is used in dozens of soldering connections in the main unit. He chose this special copper solder after hours of listening tests, and is particularly proud of the extra steps he employs in soldering (after heavy crimping) of the ring terminals, which are critical in the proper delivery of power to and from the capacitors and also in the grounding of those capacitor units. Speaking of power, all of these units come with external power supplies connected to the main chassis via a dedicated umbilical cord. Removing the power supply from the main chassis ensures the purity of the signal from different kinds of radiation from the power transformers. First Sound reasons that having an overly large supply of capacitance provides stability and filtering in the power supply, and coupled with the high ampere ratings of the bridge rectifiers employed, provides a lowering of the noise floor and increased transient power “to allow the music to unfold in a space as black as space itself.” Connectors on all First Sound preamps are by RCA only, and serious solid body gold-plated RCA connectors are chosen here, reflecting the impeccable build quality of these units. The main difference between the Presence Deluxe and the Presence Deluxe 4.0 is the addition in the Presence Deluxe 4.0 of a second external power supply, (“total dual mono circuit topology”) providing a separate power supply for each channel. This addition increases both channel separation and power supply capacitance, which is increased to more than 180,000mfd, with current rating of up to 12 amps. The Paramount upgrade substitutes MIT Tin Foil capacitors for MIT aluminum foil capacitors, increases power supply capacitance further and adds more extensive grounding topology. Emmanuel highlights the change in capacitor material as fundamental to the Paramount upgrade’s sonic signature, which he suggests adds a further emotional excitement or involvement, or what he calls “flow,” to the musical experience with the Paramount upgrade in place.STEREO TIMES REVIEW: http://www.stereotimes.com/amppre083004.shtmlSOUNDSTAGE REVIEW: http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/firstsound_presence_deluxe_preamp.htmTECHNICAL: http://www.firstsoundaudio.com/technical.html... available for preview in Charleston SC, call 260-418-6576 or email sales@estateroadshow.com
Length: 19
Width: 0
Height: 5.5
Weight LB: 105
Weight OZ: 0