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Nobsound 12AX7 12AU7 Vacuum Tube Preamp HiFi Preamplifier - Unleash Audiophile Excellence! Review

8

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Very good

Revainrating 4.5 out of 5  
Rating 
4.4
🍿 Home Theater, 🎵 Home Audio

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Description of Nobsound 12AX7 12AU7 Vacuum Tube Preamp HiFi Preamplifier - Unleash Audiophile Excellence!

Improved circuit; Vacuum Tube: Shuguang 12AX7 (ECC83) * 2 / 12AU7 (ECC82) * 2 / 6Z4 * 2. Note: Tube models may vary according to supply chain. Their performance are the same. Excellent scaffolding design, reasonable, regular, symmetrical device layout, strictly respect the grounding line. Power Transformers 76 * 40 H250 0.35 sheets; Japan ALPS 16 A-type audio potentiometer. Full aluminum chassis with wood side panel; 4 Set of stereo L/R RCA auido input, 1 set of RCA output.

Reviews

Global ratings 8
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Type of review

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Feel free to buy this.

What an amazing tube preamp. The tubes that came with the kit are suitable for most people, but I needed something more. I have ridden the Mullards (reissue series) and all I can say is WOW! So pure and wonderful to listen to. My vinyl collection consists of pop, rock, metal, R&B and rap. They all sound fantastic. Musically everything is there. I hooked up a preamp to a Rotel 980BX and a pair of Advent as2s. Great combination IMHO. I left some photos to show inside. The stitching is much…

Pros
  • understandable even for the old one
Cons
  • The cable is shorter than other picks

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Neat linear table. with some problems.

Build Quality: Inexpensive but functional tubes. A cheap selector switch can get stuck between inputs and cause audio to be muted. OK, potentiometer. Capacitors with WIMA inscription. The power transformer is 110V, which is different from the 115V in the picture above. Most importantly, the entire setup is not properly grounded which creates a ground loop unless I somehow connect the input to my Pro Power Amps. Sound Quality: Fairly good after grounding. Slightly mid-centered, but with a subtle

Pros
  • Excellent workmanship
Cons
  • No mold required

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Outstanding performance

In every respect this preamp is a great achievement. At $210, it's almost a miracle. I use it with a good 120 watts per channel solid state amplifier. The soundstage is wide, deep and very detailed. The timbre of the voices and instruments is very reminiscent of the live sound. I have seen many famous singers live including Kathleen Battle, Renee Fleming, Kurt Moll, Diana Krall, Placido Domingo and many more in 15-20 years as a subscriber to the Met in New York and at concerts elsewhere and…

Pros
  • Expensive but decent
Cons
  • Long delivery time

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Great sound improvement at minimal cost

After trying several reasonably priced tube preamps in various configurations, I decided to try something better. The difference is so noticeable my kids have been asking me if I have new speakers or an amp. I switched the signal lamps to Phillips and Electroharmonix and after about 10 hours the sound was really good. I hooked it up to a mid-range Yamaha solid-state amp, as well as reference speakers and an Energy subwoofer. It's worth every penny so far. Expensive cables, DAC voltage…

Pros
  • Certified
Cons
  • Hard to say

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Crown of my system

When I first ordered this box I was suspicious of this box given the price but was amazed when I turned it on. This is an absolute gem for the price. Even with original Chinese tubes, the sound was rich, warm and meaty. And with four inputs, there's plenty of room for components (but no phono stage). The box itself is a solid piece of metal sandwiched between handsome blocks of wood and topped with massive knobs and switches. I was a little worried it would look like a toy but it is a rock…

Pros
  • Slim design
Cons
  • Makes me angry

Revainrating 2 out of 5

Great sound bad quality check

So I got this on 09/14/2020 in a well packed box. WIMA and Nichicon caps. JJ 12AU7 bulbs, but 6Z4 rectifier bulbs are of lower quality than 12AX7 bulbs. The point to point soldering is very good. The input selector has an illogical wiring for 4 inputs. The rear panel connectors are numbered 4-3-2-1 from left to right and the selector switch is numbered 1-2-3-4 from left to right. Crazy. I replaced the rectifier tubes with good Russian tubes and the 12AX7 with NOS 1966 Mullards tubes. The sound…

Pros
  • special offer
Cons
  • style 90

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Great tube preamp if you're using higher quality tubes!

I really like the sound quality of this inexpensive tube preamp. It's supposedly based on the classic Marantz M7 design, but I'm not sure because I haven't reverse engineered the circuitry yet. The included Chinese lamps seemed a bit flat for my taste, even after 24 hours of warm-up time. Instead, I installed some nice old JJ Tesla light bulbs that I bought on eBay through Viva Tubes. Now the device has a rich, expensive sound that will appeal to most serious music lovers. Now I can listen to…

Pros
  • Hands-free
Cons
  • Very expensive

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Good basic preamp but with poor quality tubes

Bought a bit by accident. I know the circuit and it looked well put together (see photo and schematic in Q&A). Worst case I could use the case and connectors for a DIY project (buying everything individually wouldn't be far from what I paid for it). I received it well packaged in a double box with a mouse and in the promised time. All lamps were individually boxed (as they should be) and fit in easily. Doesn't sound good at first, but after a few (2-3) hours the sound opens up and sounds…

Pros
  • Nice packaging
Cons
  • Can't remember