Tubes!

Rogue Sphinx V3 Integrated Amp $1700 With Remote

(5h, 17w, 15.5d, 25 lbs, 100×2 into 8 ohms. 200X2 into 4 ohms)

One of my favorite integrated amps on the planet is the tube driven Rogue Sphinx V3 (Version 3). When Rogue went from V2 to V3, it incorporated some important changes that made it a much better performer.

Rogue insists that you can’t put a DAC or Bluetooth in an integrated or you’ll soil its pristine resolution. It’s easy to buy an outboard DAC or Bluetooth device for modest (to crazy) money. Please don’t disqualify the Sphinx because they won’t put such features on board. There is a method to their madness!

V3 uses the tubes in the preamp section to drive the on board solid state amp. V2 just used tubes in the preamp input section. You can hear the improvement in V3. It breathes in a more organic fashion.

V3 has a better phono preamp that supports MC as well as MM. If you want to run top level vinyl you’ll want to consider a low output MC cart like an Ortofon Quintet Black or Blue. Sphinx is ready to make the most of your low output MC.

Sphinx uses two, very quiet 12 AU7 tubes. It is built in Pennsylvania instead of China- like virtually all of its competition.

These tubes are hand matched by Rogue. In other words, they don’t just grab a couple out of boxes and stuff them in. They graph hundreds of tubes and you get a matched set- so your balance will be right on the money. Not many companies take the time and effort to match tubes. Virtually nobody else south of $2k does this!

The Hypex amp on board is rated at 100×2 into 8 ohms and double that into 4. It has more umphh than you would expect from its 100×2 power rating. Most of our customers are very pleased with the results when running Bryston or Magnepan speakers. The latter are more hungry than your average bear. We have many Sphinx/Maggie combos out there living happily ever after.

The headphone section isn’t an after thought. It’s warm sounding.

Sphinx has variable preamp outs. Most people will run these into a subwoofer. However, the outputs are full range preamp outs and you CAN run them into a power amp- if you think you need more muscle than what Sphinx has on board.

Think about this option for a moment. You can start by using Sphinx V3 as an integrated. Later, if you think you need more muscle, you can use Sphinx as a tube preamp with excellent on board MC-MM phono section. It truly offers a building block approach.

The Sound

The best characteristic of Sphinx V3 is its sound. Where it beats the other guys is in a less congested, more open, airy midrange presentation. Vocals have superior dynamic range and more intrinsically accurate personality. Every human has a different voice. Let’s celebrate the nuances with Sphinx vs something more pedestrian.

Rogue Cronus Magnum 3 Integrated Amp $3500: 100 w/ch

(6.75h, 18w, 17.5d, 55 lbs)

CM3 is Rogue’s full tube integrated amp. It has tubes in the preamp section AND power amp section. It’s a tube extravaganza that allows amp operation in triode or ultralinear mode.

It uses five input tubes, (two 12AX7, three 12 AU7) and four KT-88 output tubes.

CM3 is for the customer who wants the full bore tube experience. It is especially well suited for speakers like Bryston, Magnepan & Amphion. These sophisticated speakers allow Rogue’s “magic” to shine through.

Inputs are phono (MM &MC!), CD, Aux 1 & Aux 2. Outputs are one fixed and one variable. You can easily drive a sub from the variable outs. It has HT bypass as well.

CM3 even has a quality headphone amp on board with 1/4” jack.

CM3 is calling out for all of you fans of singer/songwriters. Play your favorite ladies (in particular) with CM3 and you’ll fall in love- again! I hope you didn’t miss the top notch phono section- that supports MC and MM.

First Platinum Album

A Platinum album means it sold one million units, not dollars. The first ever was The Eagles Greatest Hits (1971-75) in 1976.

We can see why.

The first Platinum single? Also in 1976, Johnny Taylor’s “Disco Lady.” Wow!

RIP Sinead O’Connor (1966-2023)

Sinead was one of the most emotional singers of our time. Her various renditions of “Nothing Compares 2 U” bear witness to a singer putting it all on the line in duty to her craft. In addition to her big hit, don’t miss her scrumptious version of Peter Gabriel’s “Don’t Give Up” with Willie Nelson. This lady left nothing on the table.

Bryston A1: $4990 Per Pair

{47.5h, 9.25w, 17d, 71 lbs, 88 dB SPL, 4 ohms}

They’re baaaaack! My fave sub $5k speakers are at long last back in the house.

Covid 19 put Bryston behind the 8 ball as much as any company out there. After three long years of being at least 6 months behind on product delivery, Bryston is catching up. As they’re catching up, they’re finally producing some of their A Series speakers that were virtually extinct for three years. Tops among them is the Bryston A1. What a treat it is to have this smooth, powerful

Canadian built speaker with a 20 year warranty- back.

A1 is a prodigiously powerful (!!) tower with a gorgeously smooth top end. Please note that it is only 9.25” wide and doesn’t present a massive footprint in your room. It is also reasonably efficient at 88dB. There are many affordable integrateds that will drive them, like the NAD C399 and Hegel H190.

Its main competition at this price point is from China and the differences are dramatic. The imports are skinny in the bass and more scratchy up high. Finally, for the first time in 3+ years, you can visit to hear A1 in person. And yes, the warranty is still 20 years!

Bryston Tiny A: $990 Per Pair

{13.5h, 8.5w, 8.25d, 90dB, 8 ohms}

Bryston has introduced its first 2-way stand mount monitor speaker. Tiny A is small, though not exactly tiny. It features Bryston’s 6.5” woofer and Titanium tweeter. Literally all of its similarly priced competition is from China. Bryston’s TLC (please read the Bryston Speakers yellow tab at the bottom of our home page) provides bass and warmth that the mass market cannot achieve.

Bryston has precision driver construction to assure your music is “in focus.” When a mass production house blasts speakers out like popcorn, driver variation produces music in a less clear, noticeably more foggy presentation.

You guessed it, the warranty is 20 years! We welcome this little guy for use on its own or pairing with a fine sub- like the JL Audio lineup from FLA. How nice, to have full N American speaker/sub (JL D110, $1300) combo for only $2300?!

Rogue Dragon MonoBlock Power Amps: $6000 Per Pair

{5.5h, 12.5w, 19d, 33 lbs, 300 watts per chassis}

Rogue’s Dragon STEREO power amp has been one of my faves since the day it came out. It has 300×2, $4000. It uses 12 AU7 tubes in its design.

The tubes are used in more than just the input stage. Rogue has its own TubeD circuit that allows the tubes to also be used in driving the amplification section. The Dragon has been a stereo star. Mark O’Brien of Rogue has seen fit to build the Dragon in MonoBlock form AND soup it up a bit in the process!

The Dragon MonoBlock amps are more than just mono versions of the stereo Dragon. The MonoBlocks are also rated at 300w. Each has its own power supply which provides a higher level of dynamics. The monos use higher level components in critical locations. There are improvements in other aspects of the circuitry as well. The monos have more weight, attack, better dynamics and a higher level of transparency- with improvements in the soundstage.

And of course… the MonoBlocks allow you to put one amp behind each speaker and run short speaker cables of the highest quality if you’d like to. Kimber Carbons anyone?

Rogue RP-7 Preamp $5000

{4.5h, 18.5w, 17d, 35 lbs}

You’ll need a great preamp to run with your Dragon MonoBlocks. Please consider the RP-7.

RP-7 is Rogue’s mid level preamp and has balanced circuitry- to play ball with the Dragons, of course. RP-7 has two sets of XLR inputs, and two sets of XLR outputs (both variable). Additionally, RP-7 has 3 RCA line ins, No Phono, 2 RCA variable outs, a processing loop and HT bypass.

RP-7 runs four 12 AU7 tubes and sounds smooth as silk- an ideal mate for the Dragons. Its volume control has 157 steps in .5dB increments, so you can be sure to land exactly where you want. RP7 runs 17 regulated power supplies. Premium parts include oil based Mundorf caps, Vishay resistors and Vishay Hexfred diodes.

RP-7 sounds distinctly more tubey than its little brothers, RP-1 and RP-5.

Hit Songs Second Time Around

Some songs were not a hit the first time they were recorded. Take 2- a smash!

“Respect”

By Aretha Franklin in 1967, was written and recorded by Otis Redding a couple years earlier.

“Girls Just Want To Have Fun”

By Cyndi Lauper in 1984, was written and performed by Robert Hazard in 1979.

“Twist & Shout”

By the Beatles in1964, was written by Phil Medley and Bert Russell in 1961, recorded by Top Notes.

“I Will Always Love You”

By Whitney Houston in 1992, was written and performed by Dolly Parton in 1973.

“Time Is On My Side”

By the Stones in 1964, was written by Jerry Ragovoy in 1963, recorded by Kai Winding.

“Hound Dog”

By Elvis in 1956, was recorded by Big Mama Thornton in 1952.

“Turn Turn Turn”
By the Byrds in 1965 was written and performed by Pete Seeger in 1959.

“Nothing Compares 2 U”

By Sinead O’Connor in 1990, was written and recorded by Prince in 1985.