I have owned my Prelude for over 2 years, and it is by far the most musical piece of equipment I have ever heard. I knew immediately upon hearing this amplifier that I was listening to something very, very special. The Prelude can extract the minute details of any genre of music, and coupled with its wide, deep soundstage, makes for an incredible listening experience. This amp can really rock! It's versatility enables it to handle everything from jazz to rock to classical music (and everything in between) smoothly and effortlessly. The build quality of the Prelude is excellent, but beware: it is very heavy (solid support required), and generates a large amount of heat. You MUST audition this amplifier to appreciate its qualities, and I highly recommend it.

all the power and bass of a 150 watt solid state with the richness and delicacy of a tube amp

big and bulky

Sound is fuller with MORE accurate bass production than the Krell 300i. Voices and acoustics rendered beautifully, smooth highs, very engaging. Not bright at all. I'm amazed by the power and accuracy of the bass however. This is a rare tube amp that can "rock" with the best solid states out there. Ultimate resolution may not be to the heights of the best SS, but the sound it creates is undeniably music to listen to hours on end, classical, jazz, blues, rock, pop, techno, etc.

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first tube integrated i've listened to; other integrated amps: krell 300i, plinius 8150i

Nice build quality, honest sound.

Close to ZERO reale value...underserved but nevertheless a reality.

I have owned my Audiomat for 2 years now, and switched to the Sim. I put the Prelude for sale for a full year on various audio sites, with no success (audiocentre.com, canuckaudiomart, Audiogon). As far as the amp goes, it's a good performer with nice midrange and highs...but sory folks, as far as power and low end, even the thin sounding Krell 300i walks all over it. The previous reviewer must be a dealer? Why the low resale value? In my humble opinion, Audiomat's independant and slightly arrogant distributor, with his "full retail price philosophy at all times" (wake up this is america!)has managed to build a confidential network of dealers at best. I live in Montreal, which should be Audiomat's kingdom for any French manufactured audio good. BUT THERE IS NO DEALER HERE, EVEN THOUGH THE NORTH AMERICAN DISTRIBUTOR RESIDES HERE! So here we have it. If the Prelude or any other Audiomat product sound good to you (and they are good machines)AND you intend to keep the unit for a long, long time, it's a good buy. In any other case, it's just another good sounding product with zero notoriety and zero resale value that will frighten people away looking for a better investment. 3 stars for overall qualities, 1 star for value. As good as it is, I just cannot recommend this unit. There are better ones out there for less money, and you can still dream about upgrading one day and not lose your shirt for it.
Mine is still for sale by the way....

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Sim Audio I-5

neutre,musicale,puissant

encombrant

je suis tres satisfait de cet ampli il est capable d'alimenter beaucoup d'enceintes.Il est tres ouvert avec un grave profond et ferme,un beau medium et un aigu parfais

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aucun