SAS Audio Labs TM Audio Preamplifier Reviews
Where Music Comes Alive TM
Link to Audio Circle and review and comments by ajzepp.
Dave:
"Hi Steve,
I do still have the 10A, and I am not presently using it, but I am not really sure I want to sell it.
I never heard a linestage as good as this one - I just took it out of my system because my
Manley Steelhead can do that job in addition to the phono stage, and it makes my already
complicated system a little simpler."
Chris H.:
"Hello Steve,
I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I like this preamp. As it stands
now the 10A has better synergy in my system, so I'll probably sell the
Manley Shrimp. The Manley recently bettered the Van Alstine Ultra
Hybrid Tube.
My hat's off to you sir, for building such a transparent and musical
sounding preamp."
Maxwalrath:
"Glad you like it Bunky! And yeah, you kinda did steal it. It's a shame that the SAS isn't a flavor of the month type of item.....as I was lowering the price, I was cursing the hi-fi market where because it isn't a much-hyped item I came up losing a bunch of cash. It's the real deal. I did the Modwright/SAS comparison in my house, and it doesn't come up short in the least." (Costs less than half the price.)"
William W:
"I Started with an Anthem Pre 1L for my first tube preamplifier which sounded pretty euphonic with NOS Amperex 7308's. It was kind of like a woman who painted herself with makeup to hide flaws in her complection. Since then I have progressively gravitated to cleaner, faster sounding preamplifiers as they are my preference. Steve Sammet's SAS Audio Labs 10A linestage reminds me of a beautiful woman who does not use or need makeup and her skin is bare because she is a natural beauty. The 11A must really be stunning.thanks....WCW III"
Followup from William:
Summary:
"The SAS Audio Labs 10A could very well be the answer to a music lovers dreams. This is my fourth tube preamplifier and it is the ninth 2 channel preamplifier that i have owned. It is a Spartan but handsome unit with a basic black anodized finish and white lettering. It uses a pair of 6DJ8/6922 tubes and i know for a fact that it is the closest that this Audio enthusiast has ever come to listening to the ideal but elusive straight wire with gain. This preamplifier is extremely Neutral but it is in no way, shape or form sterile. The SAS 10A is very musical with P.R.A.T in spades.
Strengths:
The SAS 10A is a fine tube linestage that plays the Music very clean and extremely fast but at the same time it exhibits a smoothness that is very pleasing to the ear without sounding bland or sterile. In effect the SAS 10A gets out of the way and lets just the music shine thru. It has dual volume controls, five inputs and a monitor loop and it has a feature to reverse the AC polarity of the unit by means of a switch located on the rear of the unit. There is also a three position tonal balance control switch on the rear of the unit to add flexability to the 10A's sonic signature. This is truly a World class preamplifier that is shockingly inexpensive for the high performance that it delivers.
Weaknesses:
The only weakness that I can think of is the lack of a remote control volume, but it is a minor one and the designer avoided it to preserve the sonics of the 10A. It is not a biggie in my book.
Similar Products Used:
Anthem Pre1L, Balanced Audio Technology VK3i, Odyssey Candela" (Modwright swl 9.0se)
Brad: B10A Line Preamplifier:
"Steve,
All I can say is WOW! I stayed up till 1:30 am last night. I couldn't tear myself away. So many things improved but two really jumped out
1) bass definition. I could reallly distinguish the different notes on bass lines much better
2) PRAT. Wow the pace and rhythm (I forget what the A and T stands for) were incredible. It's what make music music!
Needless to say I will be keeping the 10a!
thanks so much
Brad"
Vauhn, 10A:
"It is still breaking in but I love it. It is
interfacing with my system well and I am surprised how much it has
improved my sound. Very smooth, yet dynamic with excellent bass.
Detail is excellent and instrumental placement in the soundstage is the
best I have heard on my magnepans. I was considering a subwoofer but
this preamp balances the sound wonderfully. Thanks for engineering
such an outstanding product. I'll probably be contacting you about
some interconnects in the next several weeks."
Jon:
"THE strength of this preamp IMO is its sheer ability to communicate music in a way that makes you not even care about how it's doing it....
What IS amazing is the fact the treble is just as extended, pure, grainless, and detailed as my EVS. This is an extremely difficult thing for any active preamp to achieve at any price, let alone a tubed preamp. What is even more amazing is that even though EVS does seem to pass more information, I actually enjoyed music more through 10A despite that knowledge. This is a feat that even a Bent silver TVC couldn't achieve against my EVS....
SAS 10A IS a "good tube preamp" in all its glory."
Eric:
"The 10A excels at tranparency. Not in the sence of being overly analytical, but in the sense that you hear the music as if it was live."
Bob:
"I liked this preamp…a lot! When I first turned it on, it seemed a bit dark and lacking in air, but in the next 30 minutes, the change that took place was amazing. If there was one word I would use to describe my experience with the 10a it would be evocative…or compelling. But wait, that’s two words isn’t it?"
Jerry:
"This may ring a bit insincere, but I was not prepared for the substantial increase in musical pleasure that the 10A provided..."
Earlmarc: "I wouldn't overlook the SAS Audio Labs 10A preamplifier. Bound for Sound magazine did a review comparison of both the Ultra Verve and SAS 10A and Martin Dewulf preferred the 10A over the Ultraverve..."
Bruno: 10A Line Preamp, Yahoo Single Ended Triodes Post: "Speaking of Steve's SAS 10A preamp..I got mine delivered about a week and a half ago..what a revelation..and so neutral sounding.. I have an almost new $5,000 Classe CP 65 for sale now because the 10A is that much better in my system.
I have the 10A matched with the Pass Aleph 30 SET amp..sounds
great together...and a steal for the price."
-Bruno"
"Shootout at AudioJerry"
EarlMarc: "Next, we switched preamps from the EEMM to the SAS 10A. Having lived with the SAS 10 for months, I was familiar with its character once it entered the chain..... but to me the EEMM wasn't in the same playing field as the 10A. The 10A seemed to bring out more in all of the amps tested. The EEMM seemed smeared by comparison. The 10 was more transparent. Individual instruments were more identifiable in space and more details came through. The depth and size of the soundstage increased as well..."
AudioJerry: "I'm anxious to spend some intimate time with the 10a. I'm beginning to doubt what I heard last Sunday - the transformation was too unbelievable. I thought I was already listening to a fabulous preamp in my Minimax with vintage tubes, and it's hard to comprehend how replacing it with the 10a could have caused such a dramatic improvement in all 3 amps."
Earlmarc critiques the 10A Line Preamplifier, June 23, 2004:
"This preamp gets my high recommendation because it does what a preamp is suppose to do. It gets completely out of the way of the music and imparts no coloration to the sound. It does this in a most transparent way. Great job Steve! My preamp search has ended."
Dennis N (10A Line Preamp) "I got the preamp hooked up and running and I LIKE IT! This is what I've been looking for. Much more open and detailed than my old Bel Canto and much warmer and more musical than Audio Research that I've tried...."
Paul, Nassau, Bahamas (11A Line Preamp) "The preamp is amazing, I was expecting something good but this is excellent. It is like if I changed all my system. The sound is more powerful, I hear details I was not hearing before, it is clear and liquid, I like it very much..."
"But I can already tell you that this preamp sounds like the best I ever had.... "
Tazsmonn, Minneapolis, Minn. (10A Line Preamp) "The 10A now has vacuum tube regulation in its power supply (added since BFS did review). The results are very fine details of the music are revealed and some that have never been revealed before. The clarity is so close to reality that Sandra Rae once pop into my room wondering who was talking to me only to find out it was a CD! The sound stage depending on the recording can go beyond the boundries of the room. Left and right stage are expanded as well as depth of the sound. The sound stage of this preamp is the best I have heard anywhere."
Tazsmonn purchased two 10As.
Albert, Dallas, Tx. (10A Line Preamp) "I was first going to try out the transcendent audio, but I heard yours are much better... (I have bought two other ones a Denon 8000 AVP and an Anthem AVM2 (Sonic Frontiers)). I feel, I'm not getting a great sound...therefore hopefully yours will be it."
Update, Albert, Dallas : "... I have their 10a pre-amp and its the component that opened up my system to a new world..."
Peter, Mexico City, Mexico (10A Line Preamp.)
"Dear Steve,
After living with my new pre amp for the last few days, I want to let you
know how pleased I am. The difference between the old and new pre amps is
stark. The most obvious differences are the accuracy, the better bass
response, and the greater range. I know you've heard this comment before,
but it's like having a new collection of CD's.
A difference that I wasn't altogether prepared for is the improvement in the
imaging. Even when I deliberately fix my attention on one speaker or
another, it is now very difficult to perceive the music as coming from the
individual speaker. The music now seems arranged as it was recorded (or
certainly seems much more so than before), something that often doesn't
occur with digital sources....
Thanks again. "