Also has a pair of very nice sounding Ripole subs.
I have a similar system with a bi-amped Acoustat 2+2 stat speaker , so I was eager to build Matt a Dual Cabernet preamp with his stats in mind.
The Dual Cabernet has two seperate and independent linestages.
Preamp 1 uses the two back 6SN7 tubes - its a transformer coupled linestage very similar to what I use in the Gen3 preamps.
Preamp 2 uses the front two 6SN7 tubes and the 6N6/6H30 tubes in the middle .
This is different circuit and has extremely low output impedance, in the order of 30 ohms .
It also has very good bandwidth with response from 5hz to 100Khz +- 0.5dB
Both circuits have the Supratek sonic signature , but preamp 2 is a bit more of a beast in its drive capabilities - you could use it to drive 6 power amps and a set of subs.
The two large knobs on front of pre are the master volume and input selector.
The top front right hand is balance.
The top front middle is level control for preamp 2 .
The back middle knob is level control for preamp 1 and is switchable in and out.
So the master volume is used for volume control and the two level controls are used to set the levels for bass (+sub) and the mid/treble amps.
Admittedly , this is a system for a real enthusiast- you need this specialised preamp and multiple sets of amps, but the result is real control of the tonality of the speakers.
The passive crossover used in most speakers sets the level of bass to mid/treble balance , but its set to the designers ideal, not necessarily what will work best in your room, or to your taste.
It's amazing how the smallest adjustment to this balance can really bring a set of speakers alive. It's more than just frequency response, hit that sweet spot and the two seperate drivers seem to merge and really sing.
And of course, we all have different tastes and its nice to be able to get a tad more bass if you like , or even reduce it if necessary.
There is also the advantage that bi-amping brings- more power and control to each driver as it has its own seperate power amp.
Some customers have used the Dual Cabernet to run a solid state amp on the bass and a sweet tube amp on the mid/treble.
The Dual Cabernet is a real enthusiast's preamp, that can bring stunning results. I voiced this one with stats in mind, and was very pleasantly surprised when I hooked it up to my stats- I was using a Dual Cabernet with 10Y DHT tubes and similar Preamp 2 , but the Gen3 linestage is very exciting.
