Rob Leijsen: My setup? A pair of Dynaudio speakers (transmission line,
with moderate efficiency), a Marantz CD-player (type CD-67SE), and a Rotel
amplifier: the RA-840BX3. The latter was once a bit of a legend (according to
the Germans). Great sound (the first 5 Watts in class A!), and in this price
bracket. Even back then, I thought the simplicity and quality of an amplifier
were important: tone adjustment that can be switched off (unused the past 14
years), beautiful build, good parts, and good connectors.
Now, after all these years of heavy use, a selector started playing up, along
with the potmeter. Time to start looking for something else, then. First, I was
looking for a DIY-project by Van Medevoort, but I had two problems with it. I
didn’t really think the amplifier was better (in my situation) and I didn’t
really like the way it looked.
That is when I read something about the PrimaLuna ProLogue One. Its price alone
was enough to go and have a look in Tilburg. And just the looking part is more
than OK: nice build, nice color, smart connectors. There are no extras, just a
volume switch, a source selector and an on/off switch. Furthermore, there is an
opportunity to connect both 4- and 8-Ohm speakers. It looks slick, especially
given its price bracket. No, leave out the price-bracket bit. My girlfriend,
Ingrid, loves it, and the way it sits beside me now, glowing softly in its black
housing ...
So how does it sound? Immediately after switching it on, we knew it made a big
difference with our old Rotel. The Primaluna is hardly turned off anymore, old
CDs are being rediscovered, and we are fighting over the central chair again.
Whatever we have dug up so far, no problem. Our music collection (about 700 CDs)
is very diverse. At the time of the purchase, we were still wondering whether
the PrimaLuna had enough power (I had already lifted it, hea-vyyy!), but our
neighbor agrees that we have no problem whatsoever in the power department.
Still, piano, big orchestras, and jazz all come out very detailed and well
placed. I’ve listened to all 2 meter sessies albums again, and at the
moment I am listening to Elephant, an album by The White Stripes. Wonderful.
With this amplifier in our living room, music has gotten that little something
extra. Try it yourself ...