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Pure Audio Phono preamplifier

Pure Audio Phono preamplifier

Pure Audio sounds like the sort of name that we all must have heard before, yet it turns out that this is only because it’s such an obvious brand name. The surprising thing is the name has never been used before. Pure Audio hails from New Zealand and has strong links to the only Kiwi company to have made much worldwide impression, Plinius. Both the founders of Pure Sound previously worked for Plinius: Gary Morrison as an electronics engineer and Ross Stevens as industrial designer. The latter was responsible for the curved chassis look that Plinius released in 2002 and has been copied by high-end brands across the world.

Pure Audio makes a small but distinctively formed range of amplifiers, consisting of a preamplifier, Class A monoblocks, and a phono stage. All share the lattice work case design that could well have been influenced by buildings like Ai Weiwei’s ‘Birds Nest’ at the Beijing Olympics. Pure Audio’s are formed from aluminium and stainless mesh, which is not just about looks, but actually contributes to low resonance and has very little ferrous content.

, Pure Audio Phono preamplifier

 

While the Phono Preamplifier is the smallest piece in the range, it’s larger than average for the breed at 41cm deep. It’s also cleverly constructed out of what appears to be only two pieces of aluminium and sits on three feet; an approach seen throughout the range. Unusually, it is only a moving coil stage with fixed gain at that. As standard, it is set for ‘low to medium output’ MCs, but Pure Audio can custom set the gain for cartridges that need more or less. The reason for the absence of gain switching is the usual one. Gary Morrison puts it thus, “Switching gain compromises the RIAA accuracy, and involves contacts in low signal parts of the circuit. So our solution is the purist one. It targets the large number of MC cartridge owners.” Impedance can be changed, however, with six settings available via micro switches on the back panel. There is also an input capacitance switch that Pure Audio recommends you use, because it acts as an RF rejection filter.

Gary wouldn’t say what he had done to make this stage sound the way it does, but the fact that it is entirely dual-mono in construction and built with very high attention to detail must have a bearing. In use, it runs considerably cooler than my Trilogy phono stage and has a white indicator light that remains on until it receives a signal, at which point the light turns off. This is unboubtedly a good idea for sound, but possibly a source of confusion for the unitiated. Similarly, I once had a DNM Start preamplifier with a backlit button marked Start on the front, and when the light was on, the preamp was off; my better half once nearly threw it out the window as a result. But hey, it sounded good.

, Pure Audio Phono preamplifier

So the light goes out on the Phono Preamplifier when you plug in a record player. My personal favourite is the Rega RP10 with RB2000 arm and Rega Apheta cartridge. I defy anyone, with the possible exception of Touraj ‘Vertere’ Moghaddam, to build a faster, more revealing turntable. It may not cost a lot more than this phono stage, but is more than capable of showing off its potential. With this at the front end and a Townshend Allegri controller, ATC P1 power amplifier, and PMC fact.8 loudspeakers the fun could begin.

 

The sound produced was among the most open I have encountered from any source; the degree of detail, dynamics, and bandwidth it produces is shocking, and this with a none too brilliant 1980s recording by New York soul funk outfit Conjure. What becomes apparent pretty quickly is how much low level detail is being revealed; this a reflection of the very low noise floor of the phono stage and its remarkable transparency, both characteristics combining to yield the same result. You can fake transparency by emphasising the midrange, but that trick becomes apparent when you notice that the bass lacks power and extension, and the highs fail to deliver the spatial clues that they need to. No, Pure Audio is not cheating; it has built an intrinsically revealing phono stage by virtue of making the right decisions in circuit design, parts choice, and layout. In the case of Conjure, you can hear both the limitations of the recording alongside an awful lot of what’s going on with the quieter instruments in what is quite a dense mix of drums, percussion, bass, and voice. It’s a physical sound that makes the band pop out of the loudspeakers in highly convincing fashion.

An earlier recording, Joni Mitchell’s Mingus [Asylum], finds Joni and bass player Jaco Pastorius spanking their respective planks in the studio together while revering the great jazz bassist himself. Here the attack of the instruments is extremely well served because of the speed in the system; there is no overhang, which means you can appreciate the full reverb in the context of a silent background. Bringing things marginally more up to date with Leo Kottke’s Great Big Boy [Private Music] from 1991, the Pure Audio revels in the space in the recording, opening it up wider than I’ve previously heard and revealing low tympani notes that other stages have hinted at, but never elucidated so clearly. This stage is immensely sensitive to recording quality; the differences it exposes from one vinyl LP to the next are massive. This has to be picked up by the record player of course and the RP10 is extremely good in this respect, but it takes a good stage to reveal the extent of those differences. The amount of subtle percussion on Kottke’s piece ‘Ice Cream’ was also surprising. Usually, the percussion blurs a bit, so that individual instruments are hard to identify; here, it was possible to hear them.

, Pure Audio Phono preamplifier

The even newer Peace… Back by Popular Demand by Keb Mo [Sony Wonder] can often sound overblown in the bass. It’s a lush sounding record and one that this phono stage manages to deliver with all its polish intact, while keeping the kick drum clear and tight, and the bass line round and slick. The instrument that comes into its own here, though, is the Hammond organ that provides a bit of brightness against the dark, chocolaty textures of the mix.

Realising that I was just plain enjoying the Pure Audio, and not being too analytical about its performance, I made a few comparisons with my regular stage: the rather more compact but two-box Trilogy 907. This has variable gain and I run it full throttle. This may give the Trilogy some advantages over the Pure; prime among these was its sense of timing, which was distinctly stronger and drew you into the music more effectively. It also had a better sense of presence. However, it was not as open nor revealing of detail as the Pure Audio and appeared to have too much upper bass by comparison.

 

Going back to the fun bit of playing records through the Pure Audio, I put on Mop Mop’s Isle of Magic [Redeye],[Redeye], in which the opening track ‘Jula Kiss’ somehow created a jungle in my listening room. It literally comes alive with a vibrancy that fills the place with percussion, all the reverb is exposed, and the vibe is intoxicating. I’ve rarely been so captivated. More down to earth is ZZ Top’s album Fandango [Rhino]. This is hardly audiophile stuff, but there is plenty of detail waiting to be extracted from the groove. ‘I’m Bad I’m Nationwide’ is the stand out, and here the fizzing energy of the song is irresistible; the guitar sounds so dirty, you can hear the tubes in the guitar amp squealing for mercy. Billy Gibbon’s voice is hardly sweet at the best of times, and this degree of resolution reveals its dry, bluesy grit to perfection. But before I knew it, we were into ‘Fool For Your Stockings’, as if there was all the time in the world.

This is the first Pure Audio product I’ve heard and I have to say I’m impressed. It offers a degree of transparency that is rare at any price and adds further fuel to the ‘vinyl rules’ fire. You might be able to get this degree of openness out of digital sources, but not at this price and not without difficulty. If this is what Pure Audio can do with a phono stage, I’m very interested in hearing their amplifiers.

Technical Specifications

Input: RCA

Outputs: RCA

Gain at 1kHz: 62dB

Frequency Response: 20Hz to 20kHz +/- 0.2dB ref RIAA spec

Input Impedance: 47, 100, 220, 475, 1k, 47k Ohms user selectable

Input capacitance: 220pF switchable as rf rejection filter

Output Impedance: 100 Ohms

Distortion: <0.01% in normal operation

Hum & Noise: >80dB A weighted with ref to 5mV input

Power Consumption: 15 Watts

Dimensions: 410mm deep, 210mm wide, 115mm high

Weight: 7kg

Price: £3,295

Manufacturer: Pure Audio

URL: www.pureaudio.co.nz

Distributor: Absolute Analogue

URL: www.absoluteanalogue.co.uk

Tel: 020 8958 0707

Tags: FEATURED

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