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Primaluna vs Vincent.

tritiumglo

tritiumglo

New Member
Im getting ready to move on a tube preamp.
I am looking at a Primaluna Premium Dialogue and the Vincent SAT7.
The VIncent has a DAC. PrimaLuna does not.
Mcintosh makes a nice tube pre with a DAC, but its Mcintosh with Mcintosh service. So that one is a no go.

How do these brands stack up against each other for sound, reliability and service?

Thank you all!
 
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Im not familiar with those two brands. Are either a hybrid like what Rogue Audio sells? If I remember right, Rogue has a tube line stage with a SS phono stage, also the integrated 100wpc amp they sell does also. Some tube preamps have a tube front end and SS output, or SS with a tube buffer.
 
From a build quality to value standpoint it is hard to beat Primaluna. We have their EVO series components and they are very well constructed. Put your DAC in a second box, those are decade components while your preamp can last many without becoming obsolete.
 
tritiumglo said:
Im getting ready to move on a tube preamp.
I am looking at a Primaluna Premium Dialogue and the Vincent SAT7.
The VIncent has a DAC. PrimaLuna does not.
Mcintosh makes a nice tube pre with a DAC, but its Mcintosh with Mcintosh service. So that one is a no go.

How do these brands stack up against each other for sound, reliability and service?

Thank you all!
Click to expand...
Unless a DAC is in a module which can be upgraded (future proof), I would never recommend any built-in DAC which becomes obsolete once purchased.

1, What Amp, Speakers are you using?
2. PrimaLuna is a Point-to-Point design, Dual Mono Topology and the value is hard to beat.
3. Tube Circuit Boards are not your friend in the long haul. Tube socket solder connections (unless they have standoffs) will break over time and should be monitored once a year by reflowing the solder.
4. Price Point for the Pre-Amp?
 
Primaluna gear is notoriously well built. Check out any underside pictures you can find to see what I mean. I’ve only heard one Primaluna integrated amp with EL34 tubes for about 5 min of listening, so I essentially have no opinion. Between the two brands I’d opt for Primaluna.

Avoid DAC in same chassis.
 
I run KT77s in my Prima Luna Prologue Premium and it has a very nice neutral sound. Plenty of power. Build quality is top notch. As stated above, don't worry about the DAC. You can take your pick from dozens of them at any price range. The amp will last forever.
 
CohibaJoe said:
Unless a DAC is in a module which can be upgraded (future proof), I would never recommend any built-in DAC which becomes obsolete once purchased.

1, What Amp, Speakers are you using?
2. PrimaLuna is a Point-to-Point design, Dual Mono Topology and the value is hard to beat.
3. Tube Circuit Boards are not your friend in the long haul. Tube socket solder connections (unless they have standoffs) will break over time and should be monitored once a year by reflowing the solder.
4. Price Point for the Pre-Amp?
Click to expand...

Thank you.
Good info on the tube circuit boards.
I need to check the inside of that Vincent to see how they mount the tubes.
Now I am heavily leaning towards this Primaluna.

I have a variety of speakers and amps.
PSB, KEF Revel Goldenear Tyler Infinity JBL. More.
Amps are Anthem Arcam Carver Marantz Kenwood Parasound NAD and More.
 
I'd be looking at a used Audio Research preamp, something like a SP6 or SP8. Keep the DAC and any other digital tech in a separate box, that stuff changes way to fast but a great tube preamp will always be a great tube preamp.........

BillWojo
 
tritiumglo said:
Im getting ready to move on a tube preamp.
I am looking at a Primaluna Premium Dialogue and the Vincent SAT7.
The VIncent has a DAC. PrimaLuna does not.
Mcintosh makes a nice tube pre with a DAC, but its Mcintosh with Mcintosh service. So that one is a no go.

How do these brands stack up against each other for sound, reliability and service?

Thank you all!
Click to expand...

I used to have the PL Dialogue premium pre. as others have noted, very well built, and trouble free. Its also wired point to point, which minimizes heat problems down the road.

would also say I would keep the pre and DAC separate avoiding the all in one box option.
 
I have a Prologue 4 and Prologue 5 (EL34 and KT88) power amps.
The only issue I have with the PL preamps is their format.
Why, in part, I use a Van Alstine Transcendence 10RB, and Proton AP1000 preamps.
IMHO the PL power amps, and their transformers is were PL really excels.
Tops any current tube amps, except some modded old school tube amps, for over all sound and drive. No contest IMHO.
The ruggedness and old school hand wiring is awesome.
But the transformers, IMHO is why they sound so good. Deep powerful lows and highs free from typical new/current construction amplifier tubular grain. Nothing worse IMHO-that grain. Eh...
Why a PL 35 wpc KT88 power amps can smoke high end 100-200 wpc amps-even at loud levels.
Even driving a pair of Infinity RSiiia's for example.
Pretty amazing stuff IMHO-blow my mind every time I fire them up.
 
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I’m an outlier in the tone control department, and would say the Vincent’s defeat-able tone controls are its main advantage over the PrimaLuna. I wish more manufacturers would offer this once common feature.

That said, I don’t feel mounting 8 tubes to a circuit board is the way to maintain reliability or serviceability ( your second and third concerns).

Say what you will about Kevin Deal and his salesmanship style, but he’s never afraid to show, in great detail, the inside of the PL gear and explain exactly what you’re getting for the money. I don’t think ever read a thread where a piece of PL gear has failed catastrophically. While I cannot comment on the sound quality between the Vincent and PrimaLuna, I do own an Evo 300 and it’s been a fantastic addition in my main system. The build quality goes well beyond expectations for the price.
 
i very much enjoy kevins entertaining salesmanship, the videos, etc. he does give you a good look at the guts of those prima lunas.
 
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I think people are more likely to upgrade their DAC over a short period of time rather than their preamp. So from a cost perspective it may seem nice to have a DAC in the preamp, but I think it's more versatile to have an external DAC that you can upgrade without having to upgrade the preamp. I can also attest that PrimaLuna is very high bang for the buck. I have a Prologue Premium loaded with GL KT77s and it is smooth as silk and dead quiet. And the motorized remote volume is good too.
 
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