Sherwood

I don't know what the admin is on about. It cured my AIDS.

I particularly enjoyed the "I got in a gangbang with a pack of hawt wolves" comment. /purchased

I already mentioned where the term came from. I can't prove that I didn't make it up, though, so you're free to assert otherwise if you feel it necessary.

Gallo should eventually release the giant reference towers. I don't know how they'll compare to the Ref. 3.1s, but if you like the 3.1 they're surely worth a listen if/when they come out.

Since it's not my term, I'll decline your offer. I feel I've made a reasonable effort to be self effacing and admit to my mistake here. As regards the B1 circuit, this description written by Nelson implies to me that it does match impedance. I've no doubt he'll answer. I've enjoyed speaking with him before, though I don't currently have a DIYAudio account.

And thanks for the snappy custom title

That seems like an invitation to participate to me. I was clearly in error interjecting a technical explanation out of my depth, but it was an unrelated interjection. I don't feel it really degraded a thread about the KX-R.

out of pure ignorance. The idea of a hybrid preamp sparked my memory. I didn't entertain the idea that were a multitude of successful methods of implementing a hybrid preamp. After closer inspection, I was clearly mistaken.

Look, I didn't design it and I'm not professing that I could. These are direct quotes from Colin Pass. I have them written here in front of me. It appears the term "buffer" would have been more correct than "autoformer", but I hardly made it up. If it's bullshit, I'll eat crow. My understanding was that the only active portion of Pass' design was a buffer which was externally powered. It was used, in Colin's words, "to couple the input and output impedances". Clearly you've a more thorough knowledge of what this means than me. I've clearly run afoul of the BS committee, so I'll keep my mouth shut on technical details from here on out. I respect the high S/N on this forum, and have intention of degrading it.

Jesus Christ, how many smilies do you need, Grawk?

Leave it to Grawk to turn a Ayre preamplifier thread into a Pico/Predator debate. I did some digging, and the McCormack pre is completely different than the Firstwatt. The McCormack even has a +6 dB gain, which is really hardly passive at all. Next time I make an assumption labelled as such I'll be sure to use smilies.

Especially considering that full price ($650 on ebay) has an extra 25% knocked off ATM.

If Steve McCormack's design is anything like Nelson Pass' (and why wouldn't it be) it uses active autoformers to match input and output impedances, but the rest of the circuitry is passive. Firstwatt has that pre, and recently released a DIY kit with the JFETS for like $50. Regarding the KX-R, it was rather the toast of the show. Impressive, considering the issue of Stereophile hadn't come out yet, and the deep pockets were just carrying their "recommended components" issues. Insofar as I can describe the sound of a preamp in various setups, I would say it was extremely transparent. Soundstage is difficult to capture in a hotel room, but every room I heard the Ayre in had far better than average depth, width and height. That's understandable with the Vandersteens, but I heard the Ayre in the Lansche / Continuum labs room, too, and that room took best of show in my book. Timbre was dead accurate, noisefloor was absolutely zero, and the size of the image was phenomenal. If you're in the market, you should really go for a listen.

Their mojo comes from the input signal, which should be plenty of mojo to drive a linestage. That being said, I also heard the KX-R at RMAF, and the system it was in (Ayre and Vandersteen) was breathtaking. The demo guy was a real asshole, too, but in the fun "don't torture me with your boring chamber music grandpa" kind of way which I always enjoy.

I read the article. I have a difficult time believing that any active linestage cuold be more transparent than an excellent passive linestage, and breathtaking transparency is what's in play here. I'm not well versed enough to have a truly technical discussion of the product, though, as some of the measurements and theories were over my head.

It takes hours for moms to bite all the hair off my balls. Who has the time?

Since we're clearly beyond redemption, I prefer "plasma shaving". I also have a razor milled in the depths of space from the Bose-Einstein condensate. Traditional forms of matter offer an inferior shave.

Knowing that you just ordered a dustcover, I think it would look fantastic if you windowpaned one yourself. Build a wooden frame with slats and use sheets of acrylic in between them. I suppose the weight could be an issue, but I'm not an expert at anything. I don't doubt that the custom cover will look great, but I wonder if it is majestic enough...

Whoa whoa whoa... How did we actually start discussing shaving?

Well, we can't all be Nordic bread Barons, Birgir...

well then the better question is: what did you get?

Thanks, that's all the review I need

That thing costs more than a hooker, even on A'Gon. For that money, I expect more satisfaction than a hooker.