I received an email with questions about a Cortese phono preamp.
Quite interesting questions so i thought I would make a blog with the answers.
I have a good idea when I hear things if i like them or not. But I’m in no way an engineer and while I can tell you I like silk domes much more than metal domes or that I like the timbre and space tubes can add. That some of the things I appreciate are saturated timbres and dynamics vividness and an alive quality some refer to as musical. I like to hear space but I’m not overly concerned w the size of the soundstage and image specificity I don’t like a bright etched or grainy top end or tipped up highs masquerading as details.
Sounds exactly like a Supratek preamp, but you do get a big soundstage, much appreciated with the right speakers.
Dynamics are the big thing with The Suprateks- the high gain is there for a reason- it results in BIG dynamics with the added realism that brings. The gain control at rear end of circuit can bring gain down to suit any power amp/speaker , but doesn't affect the dynamic nature too much.
So I have a Kiseki Purple Heart I will keep I like a lot its .48 mV. So I think would be ok w your lcr at 70db my pre has only 10 dB gain I think and pass power amp may be 25dB.
0.48mV is getting up there for a MC cartridge, but the LCR (and the standard Cortese) has a very high overload tolerance. Its capable of much higher inputs, with a very clean output, up to 20V which , while low distortion, is very high, so I like to recommend no higher than 0.5mV. I think you'll find that you like the really low output cartridges a lot more with a Cortese.
Dont forget you can adjust linestage gain .
I got a new table a thorens 124 I had rebuilt and got an arm for it ordered another so I will run one mono cart the Miyajima zero I had asked you about because it is per the designer developed specifically for step up transformer as opposed to active gain. Now I understand that not all engineers/ designers agree so I was planning to ask a few people I know what they thought about this. I do see the importer is selling a current phono pre now so I was under the impression this IS ACTIVE so he must feel it ok.
Well I've made it pretty plain that I dont like step up devices, even the really expensive ones cant relay the dynamics of an active device.
Most manufacturers go to step up devices because they cant get an all active MC phono stage quiet. It is a big task as with so much gain , the noise floor can become audible. It took me years to figure out how to do it, with stereo ground lines, layout and power supply design all contributing.
I've been told the LCR Cortese is quieter than the $30,000 phono M.Fremer uses with a step up.
In addition I had bought a cheap Denon DL103 to play around w till I have the carts. For the stereo cart I was thinking to go w an Ortofon SPU a Miyajima stereo or a Koetsu rosewood. Still not decided.
Ive got a lot of experience with the Denon, the SPU and the Koetsu. All are fantastic, I get the 103 rebuilt by Expert Stylus in London, who put a special cantilever and diamond in it, worth every penny.
The SPU is the most musical, engaging cart you will hear, a little warm perhaps, but again Expert Stylus revamped it , and its my favorite cartridge.
The Koetsu's are always special.
Too the best of my knowledge have never heard an lcr phono just that they sound really great. So I believe most I’m familiar w would be cr type. Is there anything you can tell me that could be thought of as generalized differences ?or typical sound traits / characteristics of the lcr type?
Kind of like the difference between the Expert 103 and the Expert SPU- both are very good, but the SPU is just more engaging, fun and exciting to listen to.
Essentially the signal is straight through on a LCR, while with the CR it goes through a couple of capacitors. Thats quite simplified explanation, there's more to it than that, but that's how it sounds.
Also could I get it w 2 inputs?
Yes
And would it be possible to switch the loading from the front / top/ side so I can switch between carts w out move the unit?
No, but the switch is at extreme back side and really easy to access. Its a slide switch that goes from top to bottom.
When you dealing with a voltage that is 5 ten thousandths of a volt (0.0005V) you dont want too much wiring , switches etc.
And I think I read balanced is available as a cost extra? Is there a benefit in terms of noise resistance? It would not be a balanced circuit just allow balanced cables?
RCA and XLR balanced are standard. But there is absolutely no advantage in using balanced cables if the following power amp isn't fully balanced, better to use a good set of RCA cables with the RCA output.
Yes if the following power amp is fully balanced there is a noise reduction, but the Suprateks are already so quiet you wont hear any difference.
One last thing. The information available is slim.
True, I need to put more info on web site- I will do that.
Not many reviews but they are usually b s anyway. I do think Srajan from 6 moons is great and conveys what I think of as very accurately the sound of a product ( from the few reviews of his I’ve read AND know the product) I have found a few things on forums people who claim to be owners have for the most part great things to say.
Thats what I rely on, I'm too small a company and not enough profit to advertise and get reviews , and as you say, they dont mean that much.
I tend to sell to people who are on the end of their audio journey, they've been through the bullshit and know what they want, and recognise it in the Suprateks.
Unfortunately, for me, they are very happy and dont spend much time on forums listening to the baying of the hounds.
I do want to ask you about I have read a few complaints about the wiring scheme and the way the caps are secured or not secured. I only read this and saw a few photos. Is there a reason that it appears to have no organization?
Many years ago, a few manufacturers didn't like that in a comparism, my preamps were obviously superior to theirs, their only comeback was to incessantly carry on about my wiring , which is all point to point , hardwired and soldered.
It is true that the first preamps, 20 years ago, were a bit messy, but they sounded so different to PCB boards, I couldn't bring myself to go down the (cheaper) road.
The preamps I build today are much neater , but they are still point to point.
Here's a reply I made to one of the internet "gurus" who posts pix from many years ago.
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The wiring I do these days is maybe a lot neater , but what makes people think PCB boards are superior to hard wiring.PCB's are used to simplify construction and because they are great for economics.
It takes me a week to build a LCR preamp. If I used PCB's, which isn't hard to do , it would take a day.
Why dont I use PCB's then? Because they sound like plastic, they sound like they look, one dimensional and boring.
There are many hundreds of hardwired joints in my pres, everyone making solid contact, before its soldered. With a PCB the lead solder is making all the contacts.
The other isssue is reliabilty, the 20 year old preamp with the "messy" wiring is still going strong, with only one change of tubes , no reliability issues at all, unlike some other manufacturers I could name.
The Suprateks aren't a 1950's tube design tarted up with "options" .
They are state of the art tube designs which will drive any or multiple power amps. They have power supplies which would drive a big tube power amp, with tube rectification, and tube shunt regulation, which makes for a big sound that is as quiet as a tube pre can be.
They have a signature sound which is unlike any other tube preamp, and if you like 3D imaging and realism, which a lot of people seem to do, then thinking outside the box and looking past conventional constraints (PCB, 1950 design, soft power supplies) might be very rewarding.
Do you have many units returning for repairs. As I live in the states it would be long and expensive to ship.
There are many Suprateks 10-20 years old still running on the original tubes, they are very reliable, I get a few back , but mostly for upgrades. Point to point is also very easy to work on, dissipates heat better than any PCB can do.
I make a big deal out of reliability, there is no preamp more over-engineered than the Suprateks.
Yes, but the Cortese is a complete preamp that is designed for phono and linestage to be optimum package , and its incredible value.
And would the high gain be too much for my system. My speakers are Devore 0’96 @96dB phono(current) 50-70dB pre(current)10dB amp 25 dB .
No one of my systems is a full horn 4 way system of 110dB - its perfect with Cortese.
