Listening to the PRE35
Contents
Next, we connect the Primare PRE35 Prisma to our Sonnet Kratos mono power amplifiers and disable upsampling. A conscious choice. We begin with “Window” by Taylor Rae from 2021. A lovely country song where it quickly becomes clear that the dac in the PRE35 does a fine job.
How good those built-in dacs have become!, we hear ourselves saying out loud to no one in particular.
There is air resulting in a very high intelligibility without sharpness. The excellent timing also stands out. Music comes completely off the speakers and is slightly more forward than with the Morpheus. The combination with the nippy Sonnet Kratos power amplifiers is also a hit here. Bass has particularly good definition and although it does not reach as deep as with the A35.2 there is now a bit more punch and speed underneath. The DM36 dac module also sparkles a bit more than our previously smooth NOS dac.
Listening to “From up Here” again, the bass sounds a little less unwieldy and a little more pointed. Just that tad different. Not better or worse. Different. The Sonnet power amps let the low end flow and resonate a little more. Vocals sound just a little lighter. The whole midrange now has a little less body without the A35.2. Compared to Morpheus, the built-in dac is a little fresher and richer in detail. Very nice to listen to and you have the choice of upsampling or not.
Eddie Chacon’s “Let The Devil In” sounds glorious. Exciting, new and sophisticated at the same time. The Primare lets you hear everything and gives space to every part. It never gets dull or boring.
Again, it is the timing, in part due to the Sonnet Kratos, that makes our feet move. The PRE35 is a neutral, fast and open preamp with a dac that matches it perfectly. This is enjoyment. With the built-in dac we enjoy the details and and hear the strokes of the strings on the guitar a little better.
