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VAC Signature Preamplifier Mk 2 Review

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With The Kingsound King Speakers

The Kingsound King speakers have become an authentic joy to me and are one of a handful of rare instruments like the Signature 2 which play waaaaay beyond expectations. When I was forced by paucity of funds to return the Legacy Helix, I despaired that I would never again find speaker satisfaction on a large scale. The King does not have the dynamic force of the Helix, however it brings a similar large, well defined, highly cultivated and coherent sound to my room so capably that your $8k spent on it will reward you as if you had spent $30k.

Kevin played a part in my securing the King for review. As VAC components were utilized at CES 2008 to demonstrate the King, he was on hand to discuss them. That is when I learned he owns a pair, and that they were one of the “triangulation” speakers used in the voicing of his Phi 200 amplifiers! He offered that the speakers sounded much improved by replacing the speaker’s 12V wall warts with his own power supplies. I used my own powers of pleading to acquire them for the review. As would be expected, the fingerprints of the master are all over these devices. The King rose from superb to state-of-the-art sound under the influence of the VAC “Royal Power Supply”. That’s pretty much how it goes with VAC gear – whatever it is connected to sounds about as good as it’s going to get!

Case in point, helping the VAC to strut its stuff was the pair of Moscode 402Au amplifiers set to Bi-Amp mode. The preamp and amps were a powerful combination, giving me one of the best results from separates I had yet assembled. I discussed in a full review the beefy, well textured sound of the amps. While they sounded more congested with less exotic preamps like the Cambridge Audio Azur 840E, the Signature II opened them up, preventing them from collapsing upon themselves sonically from their own weight. Some of the best bottom-end I have heard in my room was achieved with this pairing. In many instances I have found that use of both tube preamp and tube amp(s) results in a nearly suffocating mellowness, an unacceptable loss of precision and detail. However, the precision I have come to demand in a system was captured by the Signature 2 despite it being a tube preamp.

One of my most beloved and over played pieces from my youth was Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s “Fanfare for the Common Man”. The reverberation of the opening trumpet and tympanis, as well as the throbbing, pulsating electric bass are burned into my psyche. While the Rowland Capri and the Cambridge Audio Azur 840E rendered the trumpet and tympani cleanly, they sounded as though located at the back of an auditorium. However, when the Signature 2 handled this piece, the instruments sounded as though they were strategically located along the street of a city, heralding an event for the citizenry. The echo of the trumpet notes especially had a sense of extending beyond the walls of an enclosed space.

A Preamp That Doesn’t Mangle The Music

Over the years, one of the reasons I have gravitated toward using the two Pathos Classic One MkIII tube hybrid integrateds as a primary amplification scheme is that it is so pristine sounding. Every preamp that I had used in my system added coloration, detracted from detail, skewed the music ever so slightly – until the Signature Preamplifier Mk 2. It is the only preamp I have used which sounds as clean and refined, but more spacious and audacious, even with mellow sounding tube amps.

This says to me that the Signature II is world-class in terms of shaping the music without distorting the music. Isn’t that what the perfect preamp is supposed to do, to influence the signal without calling attention to the fact that it is influencing it? This is the only preamp I have used, bar none, which does not in some manner mangle the music by reducing dynamics, veiling detail, portraying a compressed soundstage, or sounding flat. I can see, or shall I say hear, clearly why Kevin Hayes prefers to refer to his creations as instruments as opposed to components. The level of refinement is extreme. The Signature Preamplifier Mk 2 is suitable for the most exquisite of audio systems, and thus is recommended without reservation!

Associated Components:

  • Source: Cambridge Audio 840C; Ayon CD-2; Sonos Digital Music System; Oppo DV-970HD
  • NAS: Buffalo Linkstation 500G
  • DAC: Monarchy Audio NM-24 DAC/Pre
  • Preamp: Jeff Rowland Capri; Cambridge Audio 840E; Eastern Electric BBA “Buffer Amp”
  • Amps: Jeff Rowland 501 mono blocks; Jeff Rowland MC-606 Multi-channel; Cambridge Audio 840W; Moscode 402Au
  • Integrated: Pathos Classic One MkIII stereo tube hybrid (two units bridged to mono)
  • Speakers: Legacy Audio Focus SE; Eminent Technology LFT-8B; Kingsound King
  • IC’s: MIT Oracle MA-X; Tara Labs RSC Air1 series 2; Wireworld Equinox; Wireworld Silver Eclipse; Wireworld Platinum Eclipse
  • Speaker Cables: MIT Magnum MA; Tara Labs RSC Air1; Wireworld Equinox 5; Wireworld Silver Eclipse
  • Digital Cables: MIT Oracle Digital Reference; Tara Labs RSC Air 75; Wire World Startlight 6; Wireworld Gold Starlight 5, Wireworld Gold Starlight 6
  • Power Cables: MIT Oracle V2 and Magnum; MIT Oracle ZIII; Tara Labs RSC Air; Xindak PF-Gold; Wireworld Stratus 5, Electra 5 and Silver Electra
  • Power Conditioning: MIT Z-Power Bar; Wireworld Matrix Power Cord Extender; Tara Labs ISM Power Screen; Tice Audio Solo

Manufacturer’s Comment:

Thank you for the obvious time, care, and passion evident in this review. And, while I know that the intent and purpose is to enlighten readers rather than coddle designers, I would be remiss if I did not note that you have moved me greatly. It is always a humbling experience when a listener “gets” what we have tried to do, when they say, “Yes, that’s a good piece of work.” We love sound, we love music, and it is our great joy to be able to contribute to and be productive in this field that we love.

I am deeply aware that as we reach to higher levels of fidelity, we are able to do so only because we stand on the shoulders of so many pioneers who went before us. They had a hard job, figuring out the basics of how electronics work, developing fundamental circuit topologies, and so forth. As a designer today, I am privileged to study the efforts of great talents like Sid Smith, Saul Marantz, Frank McIntosh, Stu Hegeman, Lincoln Walsh, D.T.N. Williamson, and countless others. I can read their theories, study their efforts, and analyze where they may have been right, and where they may have gone wrong. There is a century long record to be studied and understood. My Dad, whom Doug mentions in the introduction to this review, helped me gain the skills to tackle this. This, coupled with the patience and the ethics he modeled, are about the best legacy any son could hope to have.

A friend (and customer) who restores classic studio microphones once observed to me that the instruments we at VAC create will, in a sense, continue to speak for us long after we have gone to our rest. We want that message to be of quality, care, and grace, as they continue to reproduce the emotion, vitality, and breath of life of music for generations to come.

Thank you again.

Kevin Hayes, President
VAC / Valve Amplification Co.

3 Responses to VAC Signature Preamplifier Mk 2 Review


  1. bzr says:

    Doug Schroeder article on the VAC Signature Preamplifier Mk 2 Review. One of the better reviews that has made my mind up to buy one of these pre-amps, thanks Doug!

  2. Alonski says:

    Ditto. Doug, your review was instrumental (pun intended) in my decision to purchase this preamp to replace my beloved VAC Standard LE preamp. In terms of upgrades, this represents a significant jump from one end of the spectrum of VAC offerings to the top of the range (well, almost. The new VAC Statement Line Stage $47k and Phono Pre $50k are on another planet altogether).

    My Signature 2a just arrived with Phono option installed. I’ll be setting it up and burning it in over this weekend. If even half of what you’ve experienced with this pre comes to pass in my system, sonic euphoria will be experienced. If most or all the benefits you wrote of show themselves, especially since I’m connecting it to my VAC Phi 200 amp, there will be no leaving the house for a few weeks (and I’ll hold you accountable!).

    Thanks Doug, I’ll post my impressions on A’gon when I emerge from the Man Cave, no doubt needing a shave, a shower, and some sleep.

    Alón

  3. Alex says:

    Hello! Do you think this preamp (or the Statement Line) could have a really good sinergy with Audiopax amps, especially the Maggiore M100? Thanks!

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