Audio Mirror Pre-amp

[Randy Myers]

I am seriously thinking about an Audio Mirror pre-amplifier to go along with my Audio Mirror SET mono blocks, which I think are amazing. Even though he does not show it on his website, Vladimir does still offer it. I am thinking it should be a great match for the amplifiers and it is DHT. Four inputs, two outputs... remote...

[Randy Myers]

I decided to go ahead an order the Audio Mirror DHT pre-amp. Vlad is making me up a brand new one. It should be an excellent match to the Audio Mirror SET mono amps. I absolute love the amps and am hoping to feel the same about the pre-amp to go with them!

https://www.audioshark.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=24302&stc=1https://www.audioshark.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=24303&stc=1https://www.audioshark.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=24304&stc=1

[CPP]

Cool Randy ,

[joeinid]

Congratulations, it looks awesome and will absolutely take your system to a whole new level.

[Randy Myers]

Vlad told me it is a perfect match for the amps. The only reason he does not have it on his website is he is having a problem finding a place to manufacture the chassis for the pre-amp after moving to Minnesota... he only has parts for three more units until he can get some more chassis made... hopefully will have that resolved soon...

[jadedavid]

Congrats Randy.
Whats the tube compliment on it?

[Randy Myers]

I am honestly not sure. I trust Vlad's designing with tubes for sound performance. He uses his ears much more so then test equipment.

[jadedavid]

That's great that you trust him.
Just curious what tubes it uses, that's all.

[audio.bill]

From a quick search: The Audio Mirror T-61 preamp uses a pair of 6N1P tubes for amplification (a third tube is used for the power supply rectifier).

[Randy Myers]

I believe that 6922 tubes can also be used, however I have heard that the 6N1P are military grade tubes and sound better in the pre-amp. They also appear to be pretty inexpensive, even NOS... Not sure on the third tube. If Rectifier tubes are interchangeable???? If so then I have a couple very nice ones that I roll in my Dennis Had unit.

[audio.bill]

I believe that 6922 tubes can also be used, however I have heard that the 6N1P are military grade tubes and sound better in the pre-amp. They also appear to be pretty inexpensive, even NOS... Not sure on the third tube. If Rectifier tubes are interchangeable???? If so then I have a couple very nice ones that I roll in my Dennis Had unit.
Just like with other tubes, specific rectifier tubes may have some equivalent replacements but they are not universally interchangeable. Wouldn't be wise to learn that the hard way... BOOM! :(

[Randy Myers]

Hehe... yea, I never would dare "experiment" with tubes... I am still a tube noob :)....

[Jack]

Randy

It uses a 6X4 rectifier tube and good NOS ones are usually found under $20. Really aren't that many options and the NOS one he provides should be fine.

[Randy Myers]

Thanks Jack,

Vladimir does take the sound quality first approach so I have no doubt what he provides will be good. I always like to have at least one backup set of tubes :)...

I know it is not an expensive pre-amp, but I am really looking forward to getting it in my system. It is supposed to be a very good sounding basic DHT pre-amp (sounds exactly like what Joe was looking for a little bit ago :) )... Too bad Vlad is having issues getting enough parts to build them in quantity now :(.

[jadedavid]

A good read on the 6dj8-6922-7308-6n1p family of tubes can be found online under "Joe's Tube Lore".
As for the rectifier tube, in some pieces of gear and in some systems the rectifier tube can alter the sound more than the rolling of the other tubes.
The D.C. is VERY important.
However if it is a 6X4 then you need to stay with that numbered tube as there are no (IMO) good substitutions just different manufacturers.
EZ90's, (6X4's), such as Amperex and or Mullard are usually at the top of the pile although some of the military (W's) are also good.
Just have fun with it and enjoy.

[Randy Myers]

Yea, that is my plan.... as soon as it arrives :(

[Randy Myers]

Vladimir let me know that my pre-amp should be finished by tomorrow! I am so looking forward to listening to this little DHT preamplifier.

[Randy Myers]

I just checked the Tracking... it says it is on the truck for delivery.... TODAY!!!

[Mike]

Randy, you’ve been bitten by the tube bug!


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[Randy Myers]

Yea, the dam things :D...

[Randy Myers]

I am quite disappointed. The preamp arrived today, but after hooking it up it became apparent that the right channel was much lower then the left. I did all kinds of trouble shooting from switching cables to the amps, switching outputs, switching inputs, flipping the tubes, etc. The right channel is low and does not sound right. I have written Vlad. We will see what he wants to do. :(

Feature wise it gives me exactly what I need. size and looks are fine. even the volume knob that rotates with the remote is nice... but.... if there are issues..... :(

[Jack]

Randy

Is that a 6X4 or 6X5 rectifier and also did you take it out and re-seat it too? I am sure Vlad will take care of you. Not much he can do if the carrier "flat dropped" it and you wouldn't know from the box either. UPS knocked half the guts loose in a new tube preamp a couple of years ago and the box was flawless.

[Randy Myers]

Hey Jack,

Thanks for the suggestions. I am not sure of the numbers on the rectifier tube. It is the one that Vlad sent... a Russian tube of some sort. I did try reseating all of the tubes, to no avail. Oh well... I am also confident that Vlad will take care of the unit. Just disappointing after waiting for over 3 weeks for it... Oh well. I know it is not an expensive unit, but I was still really looking forward to it :).

[jdandy]

Randy.......Sorry to hear about the channel disparity problem on your new Audio Mirror preamplifier. It is always so damn anticlimactic when something you are excited about immediately lets you down, even when you know it can be fixed. Hope this get solved quickly.

[Randy Myers]

Thank you sir. I am confident that it will. Just disappointed. I have no reason to think it won't be remedied in short order.

[Randy Myers]

Duplicate post :(

[CPP]

Thats a bummer Randy, the wait, the anticipation , lets see what Vlad does.

[Randy Myers]

Yea, it's a bummer. I have not heard back from Vlad yet :(....

[CPP]

Yea, it's a bummer. I have not heard back from Vlad yet :(....

Personally, I would say heck with email and call him, leave a message.

[Randy Myers]

Hey Chris,

I do not have his phone number. He has always gotten back to me, but is not always the fastest to reply.

As an update... Vlad just sent me his phone number and I am going to call him after work today to discuss and hopefully figure out what is going on.

[Randy Myers]

I had a nice discussion with Vlad. He seems like a good and honorable guy. He offered to refund, of course, but we agreed that he will send me a shipping label and give it top priority when it arrives . He wants to get it back to me as fast as he can. He assured me it is a fantastic sounding pre-amp. He said he would also throw an extra set of tubes in the box as his apology . Definitely seemed like a good guy.

I very much recommend his amazing SET amplifiers for anyone looking for something special... and alot of power for SET. The Absolute Sound agrees!

[adamaley]

Hopefully, this has been remedied for you and you'll be ushering in the New Year with musical bliss. I met Vlad just this past week and had a very short listen to the SET amps. Good stuff, and tempting.

[Randy Myers]

Unfortunately, not yet. It has not arrived back to Vlad yet. I shipped it out immediately but FedEx is taking its sweet time. I shipped it out on 12/19. I sat in a FedEx facility for 5 days before they finally started sending it on its way. It has finally made its way to Vlad's hometown. Now listed as sitting on the FedEx truck for delivery... on Monday....

Wow, FedEx sucks....

Certainly not Vlad's fault, but dam... it is going to take two weeks to send it half way across the country, and this is after they probably damaged it in the first place.

He has said it will get his top priority when he gets it. That is cool and much appreciated. But I certainly hope it does not take another two weeks to ship it back. I mean, it is going to take almost six weeks to get this inexpensive pre-amp working in my system. I am really looking forward to listening to it and Vlad has assured me it is a really good sounding pre-amp... just frustrated a bit... but still looking forward to getting this judging by how much I love the amplifiers.

[CPP]

Unfortunately, not yet. It has not arrived back to Vlad yet. I shipped it out immediately but FedEx is taking its sweet time. I shipped it out on 12/19. I sat in a FedEx facility for 5 days before they finally started sending it on its way. It has finally made its way to Vlad's hometown. Now listed as sitting on the FedEx truck for delivery... on Monday....

Wow, FedEx sucks....

Certainly not Vlad's fault, but dam... it is going to take two weeks to send it half way across the country, and this is after they probably damaged it in the first place.

He has said it will get his top priority when he gets it. That is cool and much appreciated. But I certainly hope it does not take another two weeks to ship it back. I mean, it is going to take almost six weeks to get this inexpensive pre-amp working in my system. I am really looking forward to listening to it and Vlad has assured me it is a really good sounding pre-amp... just frustrated a bit... but still looking forward to getting this judging by how much I love the amplifiers.

Its the holidays Randy, give them some time. Considering its been around 9 -17 degrees there and its still snowing. How about a Christmas card from Norfolk Va that took 7 days to get to my home in central Fla, we got it 2 days after Christmas.:reallymad: USPS. Nothing seems moves to fast during the holidays :), but when it gets there , from the way he has responded, you should get a nice working unit when its returned to you.

[Randy Myers]

I understand Chris. Just blowing off some steam :)... It was just frustrating that it was just shelved at the second stop (in LA area so no weather affect) for 5 days before starting to travel to Minnesota...

I am also confident that Vladimir will make it right. He seems to be a good guy who cares about what he does. He also seems to, first and foremost, care about the performance of his gear which to me means everything :D....

Judging from the amplifiers I am sure the pre-amp will also be very special! Too bad he can't offer them as part of his normal product line at this time. It would be great to have them more readily available as the perfect match to his amazing amplifiers!

[CPP]

I understand Chris. Just blowing off some steam :)... It was just frustrating that it was just shelved at the second stop (in LA area so no weather affect) for 5 days before starting to travel to Minnesota...

I am also confident that Vladimir will make it right. He seems to be a good guy who cares about what he does. He also seems to, first and foremost, care about the performance of his gear which to me means everything :D....

Judging from the amplifiers I am sure the pre-amp will also be very special! Too bad he can't offer then as part of his normal product line at this time. It would be great to have them more readily available as the perfect match to his amazing amplifiers!

Randy did he ever say why he doesn't offer the pre-amp in his product line. The way I view this, it would offer some synergy to his amps

Found this info on your amps or close to them these are the 20's but gives you some idea of the inner workings,
http://www.troelsgravesen.dk/AudioMirror.htm

Some comments on the T-61 way back in 2007
(http://www.troelsgravesen.dk/AudioMirror.htm)https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-audio-mirror-t-61-tube-preamp

[Randy Myers]

I met Vlad just this past week and had a very short listen to the SET amps. Good stuff, and tempting.

By the way, the amplifiers are amazing and highly recommended (by The Absolute Sound as well). They seem to get better and better to me. They also work well for doing a little tube rolling, especially with the driver tubes.

The Input tubes makes a very little difference. I rolled in some NOS Phillips to replace the original Russian tubes. A little improvement...

With the Driver tubes though... the original Russian tubes work well, but I have four other sets that I have rolled in... A later model Sylvania that came with the Dennis Had headphone amp... not my favorite, but maybe a slight improvement.... but the RCA VT231 Gray Glass, Sylvania 1950's vintage Chrome Dome or Bad Boys (I have seen them called both), and my favorite so far the 1956 CBS Brown Base 5692's...

Vladimir told me his favorite is the Shuguand Treasue CV181-Z tubes. I may have to treat myself to a pair at some point :)...

[Randy Myers]

Randy did he ever say why he doesn't offer the pre-amp in his product line. The way I view this, it would offer some synergy to his amps

Found this info on your amps or close to them these are the 20's but gives you some idea of the inner workings,
http://www.troelsgravesen.dk/AudioMirror.htm

Vlad told me that since moving from Houston to Minnesota he has had a hard time getting the chassis:

"To answer your question. Since I move from Houston TX to Minnesota I am still looking for a place to manufacture the chassis and metal enclosures for the preamp. I still have some remaining parts for 2-3 units. That’s why I don’t advertise much about preamp. Once I have everything set up again - I will advertise. Yes indeed it is a very good match to the amps."

[CPP]

Vlad told me that since moving from Houston to Minnesota he has had a hard time finding parts:
"To answer your question. Since I move from Houston TX to Minnesota I am still looking for a place to manufacture the chassis and metal enclosures for the preamp. I still have some remaining parts for 2-3 units. That’s why I don’t advertise much about preamp. Once I have everything set up again - I will advertise. Yes indeed it is a very good match to the amps."

Thanks Randy, some nice reviews on the T-61 out there

[Randy Myers]

I heard from Vlad today. He received the pre-amp and opened it up. He already found the issue and has fixed it. He is thinking that he may be able to ship it back out tomorrow! Fingers crossed!

[jadedavid]

Vlad is a super guy, providing excellent service.
I had an issue with one of my amps and sent it in.
Vlad quickly repaired it and returned it "no Charge".
I purchased the amps used from a friend and they were not under warranty.
I very much appreciated his fast service but felt that he was short changing himself. If a company does not charge/make enough to stay in business they will perish.
I made a payment to him for what I thought was a reasonable amount.
Rest assured you are dealing with a man of integrity.

[chops]

Randy, glad to hear it was something simple for Vlad to discover and fix so quickly. Hopefully it gets back to you safely and you can finally enjoy your preamp.

[Mr Peabody]

Did he say what the issue was or what caused it?


I heard from Vlad today. He received the pre-amp and opened it up. He already found the issue and has fixed it. He is thinking that he may be able to ship it back out tomorrow! Fingers crossed!

[Randy Myers]

I did not ask him about specifics. Probably should. His e-mail mentioned something about the input selector, but I do not have access to that at the moment. I think I will ask him if he has any idea of what caused the issue and if there is anything I should do to guard against its recurrence.

[kzhtoo]

Vlad is a super guy, providing excellent service.
I had an issue with one of my amps and sent it in.
Vlad quickly repaired it and returned it "no Charge".
I purchased the amps used from a friend and they were not under warranty.
I very much appreciated his fast service but felt that he was short changing himself. If a company does not charge/make enough to stay in business they will perish.
I made a payment to him for what I thought was a reasonable amount.
Rest assured you are dealing with a man of integrity.

Good story. It’s refreshing to hear stories like this as opposed to people that look for anything to charge you however they can.

Kudos to you as well for treating Vlad right.

[Randy Myers]

Did he say what the issue was or what caused it?

Vlad replied on what happened to the pre-amp:
"One of the relays internally shorted to ground the signal on one of the channels. This is something you can not measure or predict. It is very rare though."

He is also putting some isolator feet on the unit before sending it back. Should be sent in the next day or so!

[CPP]

Vlad replied on what happened to the pre-amp:
"One of the relays internally shorted to ground the signal on one of the channels. This is something you can not measure or predict. It is very rare though."

He is also putting some isolator feet on the unit before sending it back. Should be sent in the next day or so!

Awesome Randy can't wait to hear your impressions.

[Mechnutt]

Randy, I live about 15 minutes from Vlad. I could pick up the preamp and break it in for you:D

[Randy Myers]

Hehe... I cannot wait to get it in my system and listen to it... :)

[Randy Myers]

Well just got an email form Vlad. The pre-amplifier is being shipped. I am looking forward to finally getting a chance to listen to it!

[Randy Myers]

Slated to be here today, finally!!!

[CPP]

Slated to be here today, finally!!!

Well lets hope, there is no encounters with heavy monsoons in the area, SLEET, SNOW, EarthQuakes, tornadoes, a giant meteor, the earth tilts off its axis or the truck gets hijacked, so enjoy, we expect your report soon. :D

[Randy Myers]

The pre-amp did arrive, although FedEx was two hours late so I had to drive back to work after hours to pick it up. Oh well... it is what it is....

Unfortunately there are issues with the unit. Quite a bit of noise, a slight hum, but louder mid-range static, and hi frequency swirling sound. Noticeable from across the room, especially when listening at low volume.

But even worse is my digital has a very heavy static sound whenever it is playing. I tried different inputs, cables, with and without the Recovery (much worse without). Basically unacceptable. I hooked the T+A back to the amps and all sounds fantastic. I never had an issue with any other pre-amp :(.

I have wrote Vlad describing the issues. I told him that I thank him for his efforts, and I still highly recommend his amplifiers, but this pre-amp will not work :(. I am waiting to hear back from him.

Unfortunately, this is the lowest priced piece that I have gotten but it has been by far the biggest hassle.

[CPP]

The pre-amp did arrive, although FedEx was two hours late so I had to drive back to work after hours to pick it up. Oh well... it is what it is....

Unfortunately there are issues with the unit. Quite a bit of noise, a slight hum, but louder mid-range static, and hi frequency swirling sound. Noticeable from across the room, especially when listening at low volume.

But even worse is my digital has a very heavy static sound whenever it is playing. I tried different inputs, cables, with and without the Recovery (much worse without). Basically unacceptable. I hooked the T+A back to the amps and all sounds fantastic. I never had an issue with any other pre-amp :(.

I have wrote Vlad describing the issues. I told him that I thank him for his efforts, and I still highly recommend his amplifiers, but this pre-amp will not work :(. I am waiting to hear back from him.

Unfortunately, this is the lowest priced piece that I have gotten but it has been by far the biggest hassle.

Damn thats not good. Darn Bummer for sure.

[Randy Myers]

Yea, what can you do... Now I have to decide what to do. I may just keep using the T+A because it is rated to have a pretty good pre-amp section. I mainly play my music server, rarely spinning a disk because I rip all before ever listening to them :)... I can listen to the tuner through an inexpensive ADC going to the DAC through Coax input. It works fine for radio :)...

But I was really hoping that a nice pre-amp would add flexibility and take the sound to a higher level still :)...

I do have a couple very nice RCA cables I picked up because the pre-amp is SE only. So they are back in their boxes... I can use them if I decide to try the Dennis Had as a pre-amp again... but dang, they cost more then the T-61 pre did :)... Wireworld Eclipse 5 1M and Wireworld Silver Eclipse 7 1.5M...

[CPP]

Yea, what can you do... Now I have to decide what to do. I may just keep using the T+A because it is rated to have a pretty good pre-amp section. I mainly play my music server, rarely spinning a disk because I rip all before ever listening to them :)... I can listen to the tuner through an inexpensive ADC going to the DAC through Coax input. It works fine for radio :)...

But I was really hoping that a nice pre-amp would add flexibility and take the sound to a higher level still :)...

I do have a couple very nice RCA cables I picked up because the pre-amp is SE only. So they are back in their boxes... I can use them if I decide to try the Dennis Had as a pre-amp again... but dang, they cost more then the T-61 pre did :)... Wireworld Eclipse 5 1M and Wireworld Silver Eclipse 7 1.5M...

Thats why I have always hung on to my W4S pre-, its dead neutral and works nice with almost anything and has the inputs. But I know ya want tubes :)

[Mechnutt]

Sorry to hear the Pre did not work out for you. I guess you never know. When my friend brought over his Atma-Sphere UV-1 preamp the other day, it did not play nice with my Luxman DAC. There was a high pitched loud sound when they were connected. And it did not play nice with my Pass amp as there was a lot of noise.

I am planning on buying a Don Sachs custom tube preamp as I stated on previous posts but now I am a bit leery after readng about your experience and mine with the UV-1.

Larry

[Oly]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience with the pre-amp, Randy.

[Randy Myers]

Yea Larry, I am a bit leery about various pre-amps now, but, to be honest, this is the first time I have had a pre not play nice with my DAC, but, I suspect there is something else going on judging from all the other noise, etc.

I hooked the DAC back up to my Dennis Had Dragon Inspire IHA-1 and I do not experience any issues whatsoever.


As a follow up:

Vladimir has already sent me a shipping label to return the unit. I feel very bad that the pre-amp had these issues, but I do have to praise Vlad's customer service handling these issues.

I also want to mention again how much I recommend the Audio Mirror SET 45 amplifiers! In my opinion, these are the best sounding amplifiers I have ever heard in my system, by a long shot. They seem to be solid and built very well. You cannot go wrong with Vlad's amplifiers!

[daveoo]

This could be a good learning experience for Vlad. You handled this gracefully and so will Vlad once your money is returned. I can feel your hassle and disappointment however.

[Randy Myers]

Vlad sent me a very nice follow up email thanking me for being polite and gracious even though the unit has had issues. He said he will be issuing me a refund shortly. He obviously knows that I do what I say and will be sending the unit back (packed as well as I can) first thing Monday. He has proven to me that he is honorable and I would have no issues dealing with him in the future.

[Sean]

Sorry to hear it didn’t work out as planned, Randy. Thanks for sharing your experience.


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