I like the ZTPRE for what it is. I am not much for reviewing equipment, but I am satisfied with my purchase.

I often think about selling it, but I do not think I can do better for a simple balanced preamp that is hand wired with gain adjustments. I don't have the remote option or three inputs, but I like that I can have that later if I want.

I have not tried different tubes. I worry about getting six properly matched tubes (maybe I should not worry). I don't know. I too am interested in what others think about it.

My main goal and use for the ZTPRE is to pair it to SS balanced amps. I only have one at the moment. I listen to it more in the winter time because my SS amp is class A and warms up the room in extended listening sessions.

Thanks for weighing in Buster. (And great "rack"). I can see that with one source and into a balanced amp this would be a very purist and likely "invisible in important ways" preamp. I would likely use only one input as well, but split the output via ZBIT to run to two amps or one into a preamp and then into another amp.

The more I read about it the more intrigued I am. I had set aside my CSP2+ for some time when I received the ZBIT this fall and fell under the clear and solid sound the ZBIT gave to my Torii. But because it has two stereo outputs I put my CSP2+ back in and with tube rolling I really enjoy that sound! The ZP3 may even be a better sounding option, and I have the ZBIT that I could add a second output to and use both the Torii and the Taboo (for phones).

Kicking tires and appreciate your input. I'm hoping to hear a few more impressions!

Thanks buster. That says it all.

GREAT pic! I'm beginning to really want one.

I have not ran my J2 without a preamp. I may try one weekend and report back.

I got this email yesterday from a customer who had problems with his ZTPRE from the beginning. It had shipping damage causing a hum problem then when I fixed the hum problem I hooked one channel up backwards making the unit out of phase from channel to channel.  BTW, QC bench modified so that can never happen again.

Anyway, I sent it back and it was the first time he had heard it work properly:



Quote:

Picture bump

Today, the ZTPRE is feeding a ZBIT and SE84UFO.

Please share your thoughts on ZTPRE when you can.

I chose not to go with Samson V3 rack in my second system due to cost. I got a rack from cb2 that I would recommend to anyone looking for an industrial look at low cost.

Very nice setup Buster.  What speakers are you using in your main system?

Lon...looking forward to your impressions of the ZTPre.

Klipsch Forte II

Thanks Buster.  Your pictures are excellent!  Great to see amazing audio systems in such great light.  I'm glad you're enjoying your ZTPre.  Best.  

-Dave

My new (used) ZTPRE (no. 006) has arrived and is installed and the first music is being played through it. Sounds great so far!

That is great to hear Lon.
I look forward to read your future impressions of this fine addition to your system.
Enjoy.

Lon,

Awesome that it is working for you. It is sharp looking and i'm sure it sounds awesome.

JD

Okay, have to say. . . this is a great preamp.

I have three different sets of NOS tubes I can use and really was preferring the four Mullard/two Amperex ECC189 combo. . . until I left the cryo'd 'seventies Volshod 6N1Ps burn in for about 30 hours. Now these are my favorite and are going to stay in. Been a long time since I preferred 6N1Ps but gosh the sound is really really good.

There's more ambient detail and more depth to the soundstage and some very detailed imaging going on. These new cables are also contributing to an overall ease and convincing ebb and flow.

This is the preamp that is not like any preamp I've used before. . .the one that "does no harm" and does a lot of beneficial things!

Awesome Lon.
Is the pre stock or were there any options added.
I apologize if the info was stated previously.

It's been two months for the ZTPRE in my system now.

I LOVE IT. I went from deciding I didn't really need a preamp in my system to liking my CSP2+ again in my system to not being able to imagine not having the ZTPRE in my system. It is there and so not there. In conjunction with the ZBIT it is much better than the CSP2+ for my system. The slight tonal balance "wishes" I had before its arrival have vanished. I have a ZROCK2 coming and it will be fun to play with but I no longer feel the hope for "better tonal balance" I had initially before the ZTPRE.

I can clearly hear any tube-rolling, cable changes, isolation component shifts, etc. I'm using four Mullard ECC189s and two Amperex ECC189s in it and loving the sound Steve really hit this one out of the park, and all the development lead to a winner.

They are nice tubes aren't they! Glad I could help take the ZTPRE to that next level.

So do you like your Sylvania's better than the Mullard's?

I have six Amperex's coming in tomorrow and I'm thinking of testing them in the ZtPre.  Will they sound closer to the Mullard's or the Sulvania's?

I put Amperex 7308’s into my ZTPre and I may be done with tube rolling. These sound fantastic; my wife commented she never heard the bells before in one of my recordings. I tried going back to the Mullard ECC189’s but they sounded flat. The Amerex’s are so open, clear and dynamic.

Yesterday I put cryo'd 6N1P back in the ZTPRE, quite a different sound than the Sylvania ECC189, more center fill, the highs a bit less refined, but an enveloping warmth the Sylvanias don't provide. I think I ultimately prefer the Sylvanias, but will leave these in place for a while.

I also swapped out speaker cables to the Taboo earlier in the day, from Mapleshade Double Helix Plus to PS Audio xStream Statement. It always surprises me the difference between these two cables. The PS Audio have probably a bout 40 times the metal than the Mapleshade. They give a better center image and perhaps a clearer overall perspective to work with. The Mapleshade surprise me by being a bit warmer and with a bit "better" bass.

The ZTPRE is just amazing in showing one what is on the recording and what you can do with it (via gain and ZROCK2 tailoring, tube rolling etc.) I bypassed it for a bit last week but was very glad to put it back in. The sound was great with just the DAC to the ZBIT, but there's magic with the DAC to the ZTPRE to the ZBIT.   . .

I just put MATSUSHITA / NATIONAL PCC88 / 7DJ8 into my ZTPre and I am in awe.  The highs are crisp and the midrange is clear with excellent bass.  I hearing things in the mids that I had not heard before. For today, these are my favorite tubes.  Cheap, too.

https://www.upscaleaudio.com/collections/preamp-tubes/products/matsushita-nation...

A while back, I ordered an 8-pack of Russian 6N5P tubes on eBay for $22 delivered, on recommendations from Steve and Lon. On another forum Lon mentioned he liked them in his ZMA and that put the bug in my ear, so to speak. So, tonight I swapped out my wonderful Martshusita 7DJ8’s  and installed the Russian 6N5P’s. There is a small but noticeable expansion in the range with improved clarity, but the sound stage seems noticeably  larger and the musicians are more in the room with me. I think these are my new favorites.

Well, eight plus months have gone by and for a large part of that time my ZTPRE was out of the system and my 25th Anniversary Modded CSP3 was in. The CSP3 took me on a tube-rolling journey as every rectifier tube in that preamp was a different animal and then each rectifier change in the 25th Anniversary Monoblocks was another adventure and. . . it was exciting and yet a bit unsettling as I kept wanting to push an envelope and explore a new complement of tubes.

A few days ago I decided to put the ZTPRE back in to see if I really needed to keep it. I will soon be setting up a second system and the ZTPRE won't fit into the only cabinet my wife wants to have in the living room, so it's either use it in the main system or put it aside. Hours after re-installing the ZTPRE in the main system in place of the CSP3 I was hooked. I have a set of six 6N5P from Steve installed and the solid refined sound just drew me deeply into the music. And I can connect my three sources using their balanced output which is great and yields great sound. There is a slightly different presentation to the sound--the CSP3 with it's modified power supply has an energy and verve to the sound character that I had gotten used to, but the contrasting solidity and consistency of the ZTPRE sound has me relaxing into the music and forgetting about exploring which is definitely a nice thing for me NOW. That adventurous run was a lot of fun, but for stress-melting and exploring my musical holdings the ZTPRE is a great fit for the upcoming winter months. And adding the excellent remote control operation on top of that is a very nice extra dollop of ease of use.

It's a win-win because I can now use my 25th Anniversary modded CSP3 in my upcoming system, probably feeding my Taboo Mk IV and my other pair of HR-1 speakers (though I have a pair of ERR to try as well). I now am tempted to perhaps send either my Taboo Mk IV or my Taboo Mk III in for 25th Anniversary Modification. Perhaps the Taboo Mk III. That way I could keep the Taboo Mk IV as my headphone amp for the main system--it is truly a fantastic headphone amp as well as a speaker amp! The Taboo Mk III has just a touch more richness as it does not have those dimension-piercing UFO transformers, and may be the better fit for the second system and the mods will give it extra punch.

Anyway, the return of the ZTPRE to the main system is a nice thing. The Monoblocks love it and I'm getting lost in the music again. I'd recommend a ZTPRE for any Decware system (yet again).