Allnic Audio H-3000 LCR Reference Phono Preamplifier Review

Specific examples

Rob Wasserman Duets
This is one of my new favorite albums. I love to hear the standup bass played well. Wasserman’s bass playing is superb and with the H-3000 I’ve never heard Wasseman’s bass sound better. It sounded fast, but with plenty of decay and air. My favorite cut is Wasserman and Jennifer Warnes’ version of “Ballad of the Runaway Horse”. With the H-3000, her voice sounds more believable and more full of emotion than I have ever heard. It is simply beautiful.

The cut “Angel Eyes” with Cheryl Bentyne is another great cut. Wasserman’s playing of the bass sounds incredible with the H-3000, but it’s Bentyne’s voice that really comes to life. The last cut on this album, I would like to mention, is the beautiful rendition of “Over the Rainbow” by Stephane Grappeli on violin and Rob Wasserman on bass. The combination of speed, sweetness, and air that this phono preamp let’s you hear is very much like a real performance.

Sauerkraut and Solar Energy
This Flying Fish album with Norman Blake, Tut Taylor, Sam Bush, Butch Robins, Vassar Clements, David Holland, and Jethro Burns DAWG music at its best. The cuts “Sweet Georgia Brown” and “Sauerkraut and Solar Energy” sounded the best I’ve heard when played through the H-3000. Unless you go to hear a great live performance, you will never hear a better stand-up bass. This is demanding music that requires great attack and decay and it truly comes to life with the H-3000.

Elvis is Back
This great album has Elvis’ version of “Fever” on it. This cut will tell you if a system is all about slam and tightness or if it’s about emotion, music, and feeling that the musicians and singer are trying to convey. This phono preamp shows us it can be about both, with incredible slam and great decay, and even how close Elvis is to the mic. With all of these examples, the unbelievable quietness and transparency of the Allnic H-3000 always allowed the music to sound spot on.

Is the H-3000 the Perfect Preamp?

Well of course not, there is no such thing; I have very few complaints, though. In the end, it is not quite as fun to listen to on less-than-perfect recordings than a couple of preamps I have heard. On my system, it is also a little leaner through the mid bass than I would consider perfect, but as I’ve already mentioned, this would be a plus with most speakers.

A Little Comparison

There’s no way I could write this review and not talk about how the H-3000 sounds compared to my reference the Shindo Masseto’s phono section. The first thing I want to say is that these are by far the two best ways to play LPs I have heard in my system and the H-3000 is the first non-Shindo preamp that I will really miss when it’s gone. As good as they both are, they do sound different. I didn’t say very different but you won’t have any trouble hearing the difference. First, and maybe the easiest to hear is that the Shindo is slightly warmer than the Allnic in the mid-bass up through the range of female vocals.

Second, there is also a clear difference in how they handle space. The Allnic has an incredible quite background as well as being beautifully transparent. This allows you to hear the air and space in and around individual instruments and singer in an uncanny way. Space with the Shindo is denser and more textured.

The last difference I want to point out is that the Allnic has a bigger, wider, and deeper soundstage, while the Shindo has a more solid soundstage and has a better vertical spread. I don’t think it’s easy to say which is more correct, in fact it depends on the type of music you are listening to and your personal taste.

In the end, there is no doubt the H-3000 is a world-class phono preamp. I’ve just returned from New York where I attended and thoroughly enjoyed the Westminster Kennel Club’s annual dog show. Now this is the Superbowl of dog shows, and by the time you get down to the seven group winners competing for “Best in Show” they are all seven great dogs, who wins depends on who is judging and his or her personal taste. The Allnic is surely in the Best-In-Show competition and whether or not it’s Best In Show will depend on your system and your taste, but regardless it will be a hard phono preamp to beat.