Primare I22

[chris_bates1974]

Managed to get an hour or so of listenig last night prior to the game.

The very fist impression is that the 30 day return window may as well be 30 minutes. It's not going back.

I played with all three of my sources, first up was CD and I listened to a bit of the first London Grammar album. The striking thing about how the sound is different is the clarity. Everything is just so much more precise. That massive bass is controlled, and the vocals sound so natural and "there".

Next I moved on the AEX and Apple Music. The changes here were pretty much the same, and tracks I've listened to a million times just sounded better - Dire Straits, The XX, Carrie Underwood, The Prodigy, Faithless, Placebo - a real good mix.

Finally, I put on some records. I should point out at this stage that I also pruchased a pair of Chord Clearway RCA interconnects to replace the freebies that came with the Fono MkII. Although I'm not a believer in spending 100s and 1000s on cables, I do think that a well constructed, reasonably priced cable makes sense.

Wow. The biggest revelation in the evening was the vinyl playback. It was like having a new deck. The separation, precision, clarity - all stunning. Albums from The XX, Oasis, and Nirvana Unplugged were a sheer joy to hear.

The only downside is that the new setup for vinyl seems a little unforgiving. For the first time ever I was able to hear the difference with tracks near the inside of the record, they seemed - on a couple of ocassions - to be ever so slightly slow.

I'm now torn as to what to do next. I have the Cyrus 5 and will sell it. The question is which of these two options do I follow?

1 - Sell the amp and put the money into a better cartridge or stylus depending what I get for it?

2 - Sell the amp and CD player (Cyrus 6) and replace the CD player?

Of course, either of those questions would then open a whole other can of worms.....

One last thing, the CD player is connected with Analogue RCA cables (decent hand built ones). Would the DAC in the new amp be better than the one in the CD player if I was to get hold of an optical cable and connect across that way?

 

[insider9]

That's was quick

What colour is your new amp? Do you mainly listen to vinyl or CDs?

 

[Al ears]

Managed to get an hour or so of listenig last night prior to the game.

The very fist impression is that the 30 day return window may as well be 30 minutes. It's not going back.

I played with all three of my sources, first up was CD and I listened to a bit of the first London Grammar album. The striking thing about how the sound is different is the clarity. Everything is just so much more precise. That massive bass is controlled, and the vocals sound so natural and "there".

Next I moved on the AEX and Apple Music. The changes here were pretty much the same, and tracks I've listened to a million times just sounded better - Dire Straits, The XX, Carrie Underwood, The Prodigy, Faithless, Placebo - a real good mix.

Finally, I put on some records. I should point out at this stage that I also pruchased a pair of Chord Clearway RCA interconnects to replace the freebies that came with the Fono MkII. Although I'm not a believer in spending 100s and 1000s on cables, I do think that a well constructed, reasonably priced cable makes sense.

Wow. The biggest revelation in the evening was the vinyl playback. It was like having a new deck. The separation, precision, clarity - all stunning. Albums from The XX, Oasis, and Nirvana Unplugged were a sheer joy to hear.

The only downside is that the new setup for vinyl seems a little unforgiving. For the first time ever I was able to hear the difference with tracks near the inside of the record, they seemed - on a couple of ocassions - to be ever so slightly slow.

I'm now torn as to what to do next. I have the Cyrus 5 and will sell it. The question is which of these two options do I follow?

1 - Sell the amp and put the money into a better cartridge or stylus depending what I get for it?

2 - Sell the amp and CD player (Cyrus 6) and replace the CD player?

Of course, either of those questions would then open a whole other can of worms.....

One last thing, the CD player is connected with Analogue RCA cables (decent hand built ones). Would the DAC in the new amp be better than the one in the CD player if I was to get hold of an optical cable and connect across that way?

Says pretty much everything that I thought about my Primare pairing that I owned some years ago. The only thing I can say is regarding the DAC in your new amp is almost certainly better than the one in the Cyrus so would be a good idea to try this as a 'transport'. Worth a go for cost of a cable.

I am asuming the only digital out is the optical option.

I cannot recall which cartridge you currently employ on the Rega but an upgrade hear would certainly help. Not too sure how much you would get for the Cyrus 5 though, and it may depend on how much vinyl you actually play.

 

[chris_bates1974]

Hi guys,

The amp is the titanium finish. it's a pretty good looking unit.

I reckon around 30% of my listening is records, 5% CD, and the rest Apple Music.

I've an optical cable floating around so will give it a go and see.

Current cart is a 2M Red, which I know is not too popular in these parts. It may be I could stretch to a discounted Bronze after selling, though a stylus upgrade to Blue seems more likely.... Unless there are any other suggestions?

 

[insider9]

They're great too look at, aren't they? I've not had a DAC board so can't comment on quality. Definitely try it. There's enough connectivity to support your streamer and CD player if it turns out to be as good as we all think it should be.

With 30% listening on vinyl cart would be reasonable next upgrade, but I wouldn't be able to tell you which one to go for.

 

[rainsoothe]

Hi guys,

The amp is the titanium finish. it's a pretty good looking unit.

I reckon around 30% of my listening is records, 5% CD, and the rest Apple Music.

I've an optical cable floating around so will give it a go and see.

Current cart is a 2M Red, which I know is not too popular in these parts. It may be I could stretch to a discounted Bronze after selling, though a stylus upgrade to Blue seems more likely.... Unless there are any other suggestions?

Congrats on your setup. And go Nagaoka (mp110 for sideways move price wise, but better than the red, or mp 200 for major upgrade)

 

[CnoEvil]

M

1 - Sell the amp and put the money into a better cartridge or stylus depending what I get for it?

2 - Sell the amp and CD player (Cyrus 6) and replace the CD player?

3. Sell Amp and CDP and get a Streamer (Linn/Naim/Cyrus).

If most of your listening is from Vinyl, then spending on the TT makes sense.

Glad you found what you were looking for.

 

[Al ears]

M

1 - Sell the amp and put the money into a better cartridge or stylus depending what I get for it?

2 - Sell the amp and CD player (Cyrus 6) and replace the CD player?

3. Sell Amp and CDP and get a Streamer (Linn/Naim/Cyrus).

If most of your listening is from Vinyl, then spending on the TT makes sense.

Glad you found what you were looking for.

AS Cnoevil states if you only use 5% CD then a streamer may be an option depends on whether you want to retain your own hard copy of said music.

 

[nopiano]

Good choice! I’ve been delighted with my I32, and I still use the original Rega Fono mini, with Crystal cables. It’s a much better phono stage than it should be for the price.

I can’t really advise on what to change next, other than to hear the alternatives if you can.

 

[chris_bates1974]

I'm not sure how, but I swear it's getting better every day I use it.

Everything I listen to is just so much better than when I last listened!

I'd love to hear from anyone else who has a Primare....

 

[Al ears]

I'm not sure how, but I swear it's getting better every day I use it.

Everything I listen to is just so much better than when I last listened!

I'd love to hear from anyone else who has a Primare....

Whether it is getting better with age is not a topic I would want to get into on this forum. , however it's all in the ears of the listener.

It may be fortunate that, over the years, their ability to be auditioned, in the UK at least, has improved dramatically.

I must admit that I bought my pre/power pairing purely on spec and reviews, something I would not normally do. The price I paid, however, was so good it wouldn't have mattered if I found them lacking and had to sell them on.

 

[Vladimir]

I'm 1000% convinced Primare don't use moldy french cheese in their digital amps. But I definitely know what you're experiencing. You are more engaged and immersed in the listening ritual each day. The new amp is a great occasion to revive the enthusiasm for enjoying music.

Whatever the I22 is doing, it's doing it right.

 

[chris_bates1974]

I think you're both right - Al, I certainly got an absolute steal on my I22, and I got a 30-day no quibble refund promise, so no risk whatsoever.

Vlad, yes yes, and yes. I am finding that now I am purely listenining, and not reading news on the ipad at the same time! Or Facebooking!

Cheers...

 

[Al ears]

I think you're both right - Al, I certainly got an absolute steal on my I22, and I got a 30-day no quibble refund promise, so no risk whatsoever.

Vlad, yes yes, and yes. I am finding that now I am purely listenining, and not reading news on the ipad at the same time! Or Facebooking!

Cheers...

Excellent. If you simply want background music you could save a fortune..

... ;-)

 

[Al ears]

I'm 1000% convinced Primare don't use moldy french cheese in their digital amps. But I definitely know what you're experiencing. You are more engaged and immersed in the listening ritual each day. The new amp is a great occasion to revive the enthusiasm for enjoying music.

Whatever the I22 is doing, it's doing it right.

Nor do they use a decent red wine but you're right. If it feels that way to you the listener then it's performing as it should.

 

[seemorebtts]

IV owned the i22 and the i32 and the cd32. I remember getting the i22 it was a breath of fresh air from what I was used too.its a fantastic amp for the money and sounded amazing with my EB acoustics eb2s speakers. I'm selling my cd32 if you're interested. Would be excellent with the i22

 

[nopiano]

IV owned the i22 and the i32 and the cd32. I remember getting the i22 it was a breath of fresh air from what I was used too.its a fantastic amp for the money and sounded amazing with my EB acoustics eb2s speakers. I'm selling my cd32 if you're interested. Would be excellent with the i22

Ha, as it happens I saw it on eBay the other day. I thought, I recognise that name! Good luck, it looks super.

 

[seemorebtts]

It's yours for £700

 

[Fenton Beasley]

I have a Primare A34.2 power amp that replaced my Roksan Kandy 2 in power amp mode and while I am happy with the Primare now, but I wasn't always happy with it.

The Roksan had plenty of bottom end and could easily rattle the windows if pushed. I saw the Primare with 50% off and took a chance on it. As soon as I swapped, the bass was gone. It was more detailed and had a better soundstage but it was very thin sounding. The next chance I took was the speakers. I'd read that my Tannoy Revolution DC6T SE speakers did not play nice with class D amplification. I wasn't sure what to make of that but I upgraded anyway to the Monitor Audio Silver 300's. The bass is back and while it may not rumble the house as much as the TannoyRoksan's, I'm extremely happy with the overall sound. Plenty of bottom end and sparkling detail. The icing on the cake was the recently bought Van den Hul "The Clearwater" speaker cables.

Lesson learned? Always audition in future.