A fellow SLP-05 owner! Also, I see a Sutherland phono pre. I had a PhD. Love my Cary and the Sutherland (sold all my analog a while back). Both contain the “magic” we’re looking for.
I just replaced my Tortuga Audio passive preamp with an active preamp, Purity Audio Design “Reference.” I have a huge amount of headroom so dynamics and volume is not an issue so I decided to try activating the 20dB attenuator feature on the DS Sr. to lower the noise floor. I likey!!.. a lot!!
Diagram updated…
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The pre-amp is gorgeous to look at…how is the sound so far?
Have fun!
The preamp is sounding gorgeous. Mind you, it has only been a day but I have been able to run through quite a bit of material. What I love so far is it does not add or detract from the Canary Audio sound I love so much. It is doing a really wonderful job giving me the increased dynamics and “meat on the bones” with its active gain stage, but without altering the overall sound characteristic I have really enjoyed prior to the Purity preamp addition.
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Just tried to read up on your pre-amp manufacturer…no luck (URL is kaput)…!
Is Purity Audio Design defunct?
Regards.
No, they are still alive… That website thing literally happened yesterday. I emailed the owner Joe Jurzec about it.
Gotcha!
SEE
What is special about this preamp is they use autoformers for the attenuation, not resistor-based attenuators which in my experience, negatively affect the signal - even with high-end stepped attenuators with expensive resistors.
@JeffofArabica Sometimes I “fall in love” with a beautiful face before I get to know the object of my desire’s “personality”.
To paraphrase one of my favorite “poets” (Lyle Lovett):
We could always opt for the more temporal gratification
Of sheer physical attraction
That wouldn’t make me a shallow person
Would it
This kit really pushed my aesthetic buttons for some reason; and it apparently pushes the aural ones as well.
Cheers.
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Well, I can’t say I don’t absolutely agree. I am ok with an ugly duckling if its performance in other areas more than makes up. But, the Purity does have an appealing look. And luckily, it sounds even better.
Love the Lyle Lovett quote…
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Still no luck with the website: Was This the Purity Audio Design URL?
Would love to se what they have currently, if still in production…
Cheers.
@scotte1 Soooo… I stand corrected in that Purity is no longer producing under the Purity label. I reached out to Bill Baker (Purity Audio designer/engineer) who informed me that he started a new venture developing products for Response Audio, his new venture. These products are being sold at a much more approachable price point, but they are not Purity Audio. I think he felt the squeeze of the last recession and probably never recovered. The cost to market such high-end gear must be astronomical if you have a brand that is not widely known. Anyway, he did state that he is absolutely servicing all Purity Audio products as he is the one who designed and built these products (his words). This brings me peace of mind that IF something was to happen, THE MAN will be able to repair it
That said, it looks like Purity Audio is limited to the used market. Well worth the search effort and patience to find the Reference or Statement model, in my opinion. I was intent on purchasing an active preamp that avoided resistor-based attenuation - and offered balanced outputs - so my focus quickly brought me to Purity and I was fortunate to find one within driving distance (demo unit).
I like the redundancy of the wired AND wireless option to feed the music server chain Internet connectivity. I am curious as to what would every prompt you to deliver the stream wirelessly vs. your wired feed?
Bill is a good guy. I’ve know him for almost twenty years to back in the day when he was the only Jolida dealer in the US other than the importer, Michael Allen of United Audio. He is now involved in a venture with Dave of Raven Audio
Yes! I should have mentioned Raven Audio as his email signature clearly denotes…
Warm Regards
Bill Baker
Design Engineer
www.ResponseAudioNY.com
Www.RavenAudio.com
Very cool to learn of your history with Bill. I literally just met him via email after I bought my Purity Reference preamp. This preamp is really something special with the autoformer attenuation.
I think the flooding from the river has done more harm to his business than the recession over the years from my understanding. He’s still got several pieces for sale on his website if anybody is looking for quality hand built gear.
Thanks for the credible insight! You certainly would now better than my simple assumptions with regard to his business decisions.
I am really impressed with the engineering that went into this preamp. I’ve been to multiple high-end audio shows over the last two years, none have impressed me from a design perspective as much as this Purity preamp.
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