This mirrors Mike's review. It took a while to really hear what this preamp could do. Out of the box, the sound is very thin, with little to no bass. Over two weeks, things improved, but there was still a slight hardness in the treble. A Shunyata Venom 3, and a Synergistic Research fuse later, and now I'm really hearing what this preamp can do.

Overall, the preamps character is relaxed, with good weight, great spaciousness, and a presentation that mixes good atmosphere and harmonics with good detail and transparency. It is more dancer than brute. It impresses more with decay and finesse, than with impact and velocity. with the right cables, the bass can really hit with this preamp, but not at the expense of naturalness.

The volume control has an exceptionally usable range, the balance control changes in .5 db steps, the video input has a home theater bypass option, and the unit stays powered on, defaulting to a standby mode when disabled, guaranteeing good sound from the moment you're ready to hear it.

Downsides, are that it's not a visceral presentation. It's more relaxed and easy. Also, the treble stands out as a little sharper than the rest of the spectrum, but an aftermarket cord and the right cables go a long way toward curing this.

There are better preamps out there for sure, but at the prices these can be had used, or even brand new, it offers up a good dose of openness and refinement seldom heard from solid state, and certainly not at this price.

Clarity, Bass Response

None

After much looking I finally found a Pre that would
integrate with my home audio. The RLD-1 has the
required theater pass thru function. Beyond that
it has everything, sweet highs and deep bass, and the
midrange is awesome!!! I was looking at C-J when
Sound Mind Audio got the McCormack, it kicked CJ's
butt. It just felt better, the CJ was very lacking
in the bass dept.

And at $1695 list you can't beat it!!

The rest of my system includes Classe Amplifiers,
Aerial Acoustics 7b (bi-amped) Denon 2700 (for the HT)
and a Denon DCM370 HDCD player. My next big upgrade
will be to a SACD or DVD-A player that can double
as a high end CD player.

Similar Products Used:

Bryston, Classe, Conrad-Johnson, Sonic Frontiers, Krell

See previous review

Please note that the price paid was for a used system.

Exceptional midrange and non-colored highs and lows.

19" wide barely fit into my entertainment center and long breakin period.

As mentioned above the sound is incredible and not possible with the all-in-one products that I have tried.

This unit fits in perfectly with my goal of a Pre and that is music listening. I have not yet used the Theater pass through feature, but the feature is a must have in todays world.

The list price is wonderful and great for my 1st entry into separates. I highly recommend this product!

Similar Products Used:

Many hi-end receivers (Denon & HK), but this is the 1st separate.

Soundstaging; tibral accuracy; macro and micro dynamics.

Long break in period.Cable sensitive

It's taken a while for me to fall in love with the RLD-1. When it first arrived and for several weeks thereafter, the sound was VERY detailed with an unnatural emphasis in the upper midrange. This made many of the recording that I really love, a chore to listen to. It was only after several weeks of continuous use, that the tonal balance began to mellow out.

A cable change to Harmonic Technology Truthlink interconnects a few days allowed the RLD-1 to really start to shine. Now, the frequency balance is superb. Female vocals, jazz and large orchestral recordings are reproduced without any unnatural emphasis in any part of the frequency spectrum.

Soundstaging and focus within the soundstage are also first rate. You can almost imagine that you can reach out and touch the performers on well produced recordings.

Macro dynamics are first rate. With a good power amp, (like McCormack's DNA-125)your system will really rock.Micro dynamics and detail are also outstanding. Great recordings truly come to life after this piece is fully broken in.

If you've recently purchased an RLD-1, and your frustrated by the sound and if you think this thing may never break in, take heart, things will start to sound MUCH better eventually. Check out your cables as well. As I mentioned, the HT Truthlinks seem to be a terrific match.

System:

Amplifier - McCormack DNA - 125 (another great product)
Loudspeakers - Magnepan 1.6 QR
CD Player - Parasound C/DP 2000 Belt Drive
Cables - Harmonic Technology Truthlink single ended
Kimber 4TC Biwired ( my next component to be upgraded)

Similar Products Used:

Adcom GFP 750, Mucical Fidelity A3cr Preamp