Atoll PR300 Stereo Preamp, $2500
Made in France!
I read a lot of audio magazines. You learn a little here/there in most of them. A common question as you read, is- where are the good stereo preamps?
I have always wondered why guys who write for Stereophile only seem to know about preamps that run $30-90k. Seriously?!
Atoll has reset the bar for GREAT sounding, AFFORDABLE solid state preamps! PR300 is a case in point right here.
PR300 is $2500 in line stage configuration. That may be all you need. Why pay for the extras if you don’t need them?
Yet Atoll is SMART. You can add a DA100 DAC board (Coax/OPT) for $320. Or you can add a DA200 DAC board (Coax/OPT/USB/BT) for $500. You can also add a P50 phono board ($130, MM). So you build your own pizza and don’t pay out the wazoo for options that could be quite valuable to you.
The sound of PR300 is clean, quiet and muscular. If you compare PR300 to old school designs, or flimsy Chinese built preamps, you won’t believe the difference. The sound of your preamp is a result of what’s under the hood. Please take a look at the innards below. What Atoll provides is nothing short of phenomenal for you dollar!
PR300 brings more weight and impact to your party than the cheap pile of chips you get from the other side of the world.
PR300 is no Plain Jane. It starts with a PAIR of 10VA transformers. It has a separate smaller transformer for digital audio and another for control logic. This outstanding preamp uses four transformers to isolate various sections of performance! It has filter capacitance of 89,000uF. That’s unheard of in an affordable preamp! These caps are not “off the shelf.” Atoll has designed unique, low ESR caps themselves and has them custom built in Japan, not China. This power supply is the kind of heart and soul you expect from a hearty, 200w power amp alone.
If you take a look inside preamps from the Chinese, you’ll be shocked at how empty the box is. The typical Chinese built preamp is a pile of chips with tiny transformer and caps. There’s no surprise as to how Atoll achieves its robust sound!
PR300 goes further. It uses an array of MKP Mundorf caps that are housed in their own metal casing, so they won’t interfere with other components on the PCB. Who else goes to this effort at any price? PR300 has a precision tracking ALPs volume control. All Atolls are built on sturdy metal chassis. Atoll can do this because of their efficiency of manufacturing. Further, they don’t waste money on feet that look like sculptures or remotes you can throw through a window at Ft. Knox.
If you have separates, it’s time to pay serious attention to your preamp. You may have something that looks nice but has trinkets inside. Especially if your preamp is a decade or more old, it’s time to re-evaluate. PR300 will give you a quiet background with deep, tight bass. Unless you have a preamp that says Bryston on the front panel, Atoll is likely to give you a nice upgrade at a reasonable price tag.
