PrimaLuna EVO 400 Tube Preamplifier Black / No Phonostage Reviews

5 Rating 29 Reviews

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909.931.9686

Email:

joel.m@upscaleaudio.com

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2058 Wright Avenue,
2058 Wright Avenue
California
91750

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“My PrimaLuna Evo 400 preamp is simply amazing! Out of the box it kicks the ass of the highly regarded Preamp I was using! Just incredible with my McIntosh MC452 through my Harbeth Super HL5’S. I was missing so much with the other preamp that I am floored. Count me as a believer and a listener who highly recommends the PrimaLuna Evo 400! Upscale Audio as always comes through 110%! Thank you!”

3 Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

Stephen Carroll

Verified Reviewer

Author didn't leave any comments.

Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

Dale Nicholson

Verified Reviewer

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Posted 2 years ago

“Phenomenal. All the audiophile cliches, plus grins and goosebumps. The sound is clean, open, alive, huge, and transparent. If you're thinking about one of these, just do it - you won't regret it.”

3 Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

“No wonder this thing is Stereophile Class A and Absolute Sound Product of the year. It completely eclipses my VAC Master Line Stage that is at least six times the cost. The EVO400 is driving a pair of D'Agostino Momentum 400 monoblocks (75K per pair) exquisitely via Purist 25th XLR connection. The EVO will be at home within the highest of high end systems. The unit sounded great straight out of the box, but there was some upper midrange/lower treble glare. Therefore, for break in, I left the unit on for two weeks with pink noise running through it. The glare is now gone.Whether it was the amp breaking in or the tubes themselves is hard to say. I did order a quartet of RadioTechnique 12AU7's but am reluctant to put them in because the Prima Luna tubes are already excellent. My only complaint is the lack of a balance control, but I understand why the designers couldn't include one. Overall, I am nothing short of STUNNED by the EVO400.”

11 Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

“I have this paired with the PL Evo power amp, and they make a perfect pair - very clean but juicy sound signature. I also love the versatility of this setup with the "high/low" gain switch to match different power tubes, and of course the remote-controlled "Ultralinear/Triode" switch. The remote is especially well thought out with the volume buttons at the bottom by themselves and the Ultralinear/Triode button at the top by itself. Since I often listen in near darkness at night it is nice to not have to fumble around looking for these most often used buttons. The tubes these amps come with are decent, but I have replaced them all with vintage tubes I already had on hand because, for one thing, they are already broken in; and I was impatient to hear that. It sings especially beautifully. Compared to my previous lesser tube amp setup, the Primaluna allows for relaxing more deeply into the music because there is less "grain" and "glare" which I didn't really appreciate until I heard its absence. These amps are driving Cornwall 4 speakers flanked by Rel S812 subs using the "high level" connections. All in all a very fine match.”

3 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

ANDREW FLETCHER Fletcher

Unverified Reviewer

“I have had the preamp for about a week now. I just finished running it in for about 72 hours. The improvement over my previous preamp is remarkable. It is far more quiet, detailed, and warm. This is an incredible piece of gear for an amazing price. I don’t think I can recommend it highly enough. By the way, I am running four GE 12AU7’s in the front with two Mullard 12AU7’s in the rear. The rectifiers are Mullards as well. I had one of those “lightweight”, overpriced preamps that Kevin talks about in his videos. I never really took the time to look inside my old preamp until I prepared it for sale and shipping. I had to get inside to remove the tubes, and I noticed how cheap it looked compared to the PrimaLuna products. The transformer looked like something a grade-school kid would wind as part of a science project. The circuit board, capacitors, etc., all looked cheap. Worst of all, it seemed to me that the vacuum tubes were totally incidental. I’m not really sure what purpose they served, because the preamp never sounded very warm. I lived with it for 5 years, because I was convinced it was good due to the brand name. I’m glad I finally came around and got a PrimaLuna. Big thanks too all the great people at Upscale! Now I’m off to upgrade my turntable…”

6 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

“Sounds good so far, Still needs break in period. Matches well with my Evo 400 Amp. I did expect a headphone Jack but that’s not included. I should have looked at that detail before purchase though.”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

Rather than offering a small, cheap headphone amplifier board like so many manufacturers do, PrimaLuna uses the entire amp to power the headphones, hence this capability is available only on the integrated amps where there's a pre and power section. You would be far better served with an external headphone amp in this situation. Consider tube headphone amps from Feliks Audio!

Posted 3 years ago