Reffc System Pictures

[User211]

A percentage is not a factor!!! ;-)
(I'll get my coat!)...


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Er... if you knew my school record in Maths you would know I should not have made the mistake.

The shame. The pure shame.

Where's the noose?

[M6NTL]

Don't hang me!!!


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[Reffc]

OK...back on topic:




Now I've had the preamp in the system for a while, I can give an update on what it's brought and how it's performed. (Thank you Andrew for getting the attenuators out to me so quickly).

First thing is the build quality. It's up there with the very best, and all that separates it from some top dollar phone directory number stuff is that Graham keeps costs sane by not going the CNC milled bespoke lumps of casework that cost a fortune to manufacture. However, the casework supplied is solid.

Internally, it's a work of art. Whilst I am on a promise not to reveal the circuit, some pictures from TRON's website give a clue to the standards of internal build:





The controls are high quality and feel it. The ELMA selector is top drawer and is very positive but smooth in operation. The volume is solid feeling and very refined in use, allowing fractional changes to be easily made unlike some lesser switches. This is a NOS Noble pot (I commissioned one with a few minor changes and to Reference spec, but unsure if Graham usually offers the sort of bespoke service I received, but there are three upgrade levels you can get as standard).

The internals are top-drawer in execution and in quality. The power supply is very impressive and very well shielded.

Sound-wise, it's been a revelation! The preamp completes a link in the chain not previously attained, and offers superb low noise thanks to Graham's almost obsessive quest for high S/N performance, principally as this is designed to be used with some of the best high sensitivity horn speakers around.

It's pretty astounding what detail can be retrieved from recordings, high resolution but not high fatigue....it sounds natural in a way that both connects you to the performance and convinces you with good recordings that you are actually sat there (eyes closed). It's that good. Part of this is the immense dynamic range it offers which allows the very best from the partnering Radford (itself no slouch in S/N performance). On some classical recordings for example, the differences between quiet and loud passages are truly immense and can be quite startling, especially with crescendos and tympani. It puts me in mind of this iconic photo:



The system is capable of huge dynamic swings, and now, it gets them!

Rock, such as Deep Purple's Live in Japan are pretty breath-taking, both for realism and for scale.

Graham has done a fabulous job here and the Seven allows the very best from source and power amp combined to present some astonishingly good sounds. The preamp is highly revealing yet very natural, and with the levels of rise and decay on offer, music just sounds real, as intended. The decay of a piano or cello note into obscurity is presented in stark reality against (wait for it!) an intended inky backdrop (sorry about that). It's superb.

It has also allowed me to play about with and note differences with things like connectors, something seldom presented with such distinction in some cases. For example, I had an old Mk1 Mercury but using the lesser copper Eichmann bullet plugs between pre and power. This wasn't making great contact with the Rothwells in place on the power amp, just adequate and they were a little tarnished on the earth pin, although I cleaned this up. I made up a RFC Neptune for this duty just to see (hear) if it made an improvement. Those who know me well, know that I'm very objective, but also open to trying things. I have a mind of my own, so can't be pigeon-holed. However, nothing prepared me (or Kirsty) for the massive improvement immediately apparent with the RFC Neptunes in place. I put this mostly down to the connectors. They made a good snug fit with the Rothwells and use a high quality fit and polish to the thick gold plating. The soundstage opened up dramatically, especially in depth and both the level of detail and dynamics improved notably over the older connector. Connectors matter!

The Neptunes will stay in place. They're superb even if modest by modern snake oil salesman standards.

Graham has done a fantastic job. He's created a sonically "invisible" link between source and power amps that really does allow the best to be got from recordings without adding any notable colouration (although everything will, to a degree). It's been done in such a way that dynamics are preserved allowing the full swing of musical swells and impact to be experienced. I wonder, in part, if this is due to his insistence at using no feedback and on implementing superb quality power supplies (channels individually supplied with their own chokes)? He certainly hasn't skimped on the quality of the parts fitted, and in spite of my objective engineer's head, I do think this matters, especially when working with such high S/N products like this. After all, it was created to drive some of the top horn systems available, and when dealing with 104dB/1w/1m or more systems, low noise is a must!

All I know is it works and has allowed the best from the system to be revealed, along with the ability to improve by tweaking the last 5% on things previously which might not have mattered. Now they do, and can be identified and tweaked for the better. This will allow me to make the final little improvements to tune the system to deliver its best.

I would say that this ranks up there with the best that Modwright has to offer and also compares very favourably with some top class EAR amplifiers I've heard or used so it will be interesting to hear Tom's new EAR by way of comparison.

Meanwhile, I'll do the unthinkable, and start to tweak some of the caps and resistors in certain areas of the system for some top quality items, to see if they will make a difference (who'd have thunk it! me, with a soldering iron, tweaking components? ). Well, why not. Graham's work shows that component quality matters. It may matter more in some areas than others, but it also matters everywhere if you want the very best from something. It goes without saying that tolerances and ratings must be well within spec, and for comparison, the originals for the things I'll be looking at all ought to be. It'll be fun trying anyway!

I look forward to Graham's next visit when he's threatened to bring a TRON Atlantic for me to play with. It'll be great to hear what 10 Watts of pure Class A loveliness sound like in this system

[topoxforddoc]

Paul,

Sounds like you're really happy with your new TRON Seven preamp. Should be interesting to compare with Tom's EAR 912.

Charlie

[Reffc]

It's sounding pretty good Charlie. Pretty happy with everything now with the system as a whole. There's still a few areas that need some improvement but they;re more long term tweaks now than anything wholesale.

[Spectral Morn]

Something new in the rack







TRON Seven...a bit of a one-off but basically built to the TRON Seven "Reference" spec (upgraded internals including AMD resistors and high quality capacitors, silver plated copper in ptfe PTP wiring and quality Noble 100K Pot). Triple choked power supply (initial smoothing choke and an additional choke per channel in pseudo dual mono layout).

Early days for any lengthy review but initial impressions are very good indeed, although I have to sort some attenuation out between pre and power.

Very nice Paul, and post 303 is a nice write up.

[YNWaN]

The Radford Revival amp looks absolutely fantastic and the Tron gear is really beautifully built - both outstanding choices IMO.

[Reffc]

Thanks Mark.

The amps are chalk and cheese really. One is a single ended zero feedback design using a simple, short signal path but top quality components throughout, the other is single ended with lots of negative feedback and quite a complex circuit by comparison. Arthur Radford was a clever old soul though and thanks largely due to the design and quality of the output transformers, high amounts of negative feedback combined with some stability circuitry in the feedback loop to keep things nice and calm at the frequency extremes result in wide bandwidth, low THD and a highly stable circuit with low output impedance. The Hold Grail of the valve power amp. Few other designers can get away with it without the sort of design and quality of the output transformers used here.

The TRON follows a house-style of "simplest is best" and augments good, rational, simple short signal path design with top drawer components. Another perfectly valid approach. To have something like the Radford using say the component quality of the TRON would be my ideal for a power amp, but that would mean a lot of added expense and I know that Radfords themselves cast doubts as to whether this would alter the characteristics of the amp. I can't comment as I haven't tried it but it would be an interesting experiment! Perhaps one day.

For now, even with sensitive loudspeakers, it's uncanny just how quiet the set up is. Even with a fair amount of gain, there's hardly a whisper of hiss through the 'speakers. It's every bit as quiet as some of the best SS outfit's I've owned and betters almost all valve set ups. The Emille was pretty quiet too, and I do miss it's slight warmth in the mids, but it didn't have the detail nor the bass control fo this set up.

[ianlenco]

I remember hearing a Tron pre years ago and thinking - one day, one day but I still can't afford one! I'll just have to make another visit Paul and hear what I'm missing.

[Reffc]

I remember hearing a Tron pre years ago and thinking - one day, one day but I still can't afford one! I'll just have to make another visit Paul and hear what I'm missing.

You are more than welcome to Ian.

Please do bring your power amp if you like too...would be interested to hear that on the back of the TRON as well.