Croft Rs25 / croft micro 25 basic

[basnas]

Hi
For my second system a new croft micro 25 basic.
But against my micro25rs.
When i compare the croft pre. I Think the basic is faster in Sound.
But 25rs is far better with space and timing.
Or maybe it is because the basic have more energy in the treble.
But the basic is really a surprise. £400 great.
Cheer
Jan

[DSJR]

The Basic is a bit "raw" in comparison with its peers. Some less open systems may prefer it and I can think of one or two vintage valve power amps (Quad and Leak) which may actually prefer it. Modern more revealing/transparent amps do respond better to the R and TS models though - in my opinion...

[Audio Al]

Hi
For my second system a new croft micro 25 basic.
But against my micro25rs.
When i compare the croft pre. I Think the basic is faster in Sound.
But 25rs is far better with space and timing.
Or maybe it is because the basic have more energy in the treble.
But the basic is really a surprise. £400 great.
Cheer
Jan

I rather like my 25 Basic as well :D

[hifi_dave]

The Micro Basic is a great pre-amp by any standards but it's not a match for the 25R in any area.

[dgolh]

I must that I'm not far from Basnas's opinion. I had a 25R and now a 25RS.

Obviously, the 25RS is a "better" preamp but music seems to be a little slower. IMHO, it is only because it emphasizes the flaws of my 7R or rather because it is a permanent invitation to play louder.

I may need to consider 7R monos soon :D

[DSJR]

When I first heard the 25RS, it sounded "just like" the 25R we'd just removed, but after a while, I was continually being distracted more from the turntable I was setting up to listen deeper into the music being played. Subsequent listening to a different example confirmed this - you just get drawn deeper into the mix a bit more quickly with the RS over the others. Listen to a Basic on its own though and with no comparison, and you wonder why the RS costs so much more :)

[dgolh]

Hi Dave,

obviously I'm quite happy with it.

I listened to some piano yesterday (Meldhau and Gould) and it was just great but on my classic Hugh Masekela's "Stimela", the sound seemed to be a little bit too much polite.

To some extend, the 25RS reminds me the Audionote M3, not such a bad device BTW.

Of course, my SHL5 are not really made for huge spl but I missed some speed and sharpness.

[basnas]

Hi dgolh

Yes i still think the 25rs need some more speed/sharpness

But maybe it is really important what cartridge to use. Glenn use Decca, and is decca bright sounding?
I use a Tracer 1 from (tom Fletcher) dark sounding

best jan

[hifi_dave]

The Tracer One is very 'dark' and certainly doesn't help with your evaluation. The Decca is at the opposite end of the scale.

Perhaps an Ortofon, or similar, would be a better choice ?

[DSJR]

Decca's seem to need a line-contact or similar diamond and a very careful rebuild around it to give the best results. Suitably sorted, and in a sympathetic arm and deck, the best Deccas sound as close to the vinyl master as a cartridge can. Whether you LIKE this is, of course, a matter of opinion and the extreme hf at 20kHz and over can be an issue with some phono stages with marginal overload and/or a ringing problem when they do in my experience.

[dgolh]

Hi dgolh

Yes i still think the 25rs need some more speed/sharpness

But maybe it is really important what cartridge to use. Glenn use Decca, and is decca bright sounding?
I use a Tracer 1 from (tom Fletcher) dark sounding

best jan

Well, my listening session was made on cds.
I use 2 different cartridges in my vinyl rig (Garrott P77 and Nagaoka MP50) but I do have very few identical lps and cds (must check tonight on something dynamic).

[basnas]

Hi dgolh
whitch valve do you use in yours micro 25rs?

[The Black Adder]

I found the 25 to be more refined than the basic... But the basic was probably the best pre-amp I've owned in that price range.

All great stuff...