552 preamp

I had the same experience - had a demo 552 in my home for a week or two and didn’t want to let it leave. So I didn’t!

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Apologies if I’ve misread it, but was there no element of p/ex involved? I picked up a new 552 a while back at a v good price once the various p/ex elements were factored in, and may not have gone for it without. A 552 is after all a ludicrous price.

Threads like this are bad news for those wavering over whether or not to go for a 552. I’ll add to that by confirming that it is a noticeable step up. Not night & day that some report, but still a very effective upgrade.

My dealer provided a part exchange on my 252 and Supercap DR (which had been recapped 3 weeks before I bought it). It was a rather short gap between getting the 252/Supercap (upgrading from using my SuperUniti as a preamp, which was a substantial upgrade) to getting the 552 DR, but the price was good enough (especially given their rarity here in NZ) that I decided I couldn’t let it pass.

I really loved the things that the 252 did, and I’m even happier with the 552. Overkill? Probably. But ask me if I regret it in 10 years…

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I ran the 552 beside my Fraim (I couldn’t be arsed de-racking the 252 for the demo), and after a week and a bit of listening to it, put it back in the spare bedroom to pack back into the boxes. 2 days later I put it back into the Fraim, and headed down to my dealer to talk about price.

It really reinforces the importance of a good local dealer - there’s no way that I would have done this if they weren’t in my city, and didn’t allow for a home demo.

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My dealer installed the dem 552 for me to try. His experience was that most people not choosing 500 series kit (or moving from it to something else) did so because it hadn’t been properly installed / set up, so was pretty insistent that it was set up properly. (This was Geoff - Pete has now taken over at Acoustica. Edited to add not saying that Pete doesn’t insist on setting things up right :joy:)

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I was quite prepared to strip down several levels of Fraim when Pete arrived to install my NAP 500, but no … … … “No worries, Dave, stand back”, and plop, there it is, residing on a lower level.

Having since tried to move the head unit, and failed, I still don’t know how he did it, but who’s arguing? … … … not me. :man_shrugging: :zipper_mouth_face: :rofl:

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He must have muscles in all the right places :joy:

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:joy:

After having installed my preloved 552 for 2 weeks, I can confirm all the good things that has been said about the 552 is all true.

From being a little underwhelmed initially, I am quite overwhelmed by it now.

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Odd looking pair of speakers. You sure you’ve not been sold a pup?

You cant say that here!

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Do you mean the S1 pre amp on the right and the ‘right side’ Ovator S800 on the left side of the pic :thinking: :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

As this seems to be a general 552 thread I thought this is probably the place to give an update. I ran the new 552 DR on a 250-2 set up in my study for two weeks to warm it up and bed in a little. Today I replaced the 252 in the main system with the 552, moving it on to feed the 300DR.
I was at first underwhelmed as I expected an obvious damascene moment as I had when first putting the 252 SCDR/300DR together. It sounded ‘deeper’ somehow but not xxxxx pounds worth better. Left it running and took the dogs for a walk. Came back in to the house and R2 Vernon Kay playing dance type and pop tunes. I could feel the music in a way that I haven’t felt before. I then played a couple of streaming tracks and it is significantly better in all ways. I’m only a couple of hours in and haven’t played any vinyl yet so will report back in a couple of days. The only thing I can say is that I am in a state of confusion. There is nothing obvious to say WOW, but it is a subtle uplift that is somehow just pure class. A little like comparing an ancient mini to a new Bentley or Range Rover, they all do a similar job but you just notice that one is better than another.
(While typing this Do I Love You? Frankie Wilson is playing. I can hear everything spread across a stage that takes in the width of the room 3 m either side of the speakers.)

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I am looking at getting 552dr myself but I need to hear it in my room I did hear one in a showroom and it sounded very like the 252dr just more of everything l would like to know how your getting on with it later on. Enjoy the music…

Just this evening I am beginning to appreciate what it does. Early impressions are that it is giving me more layers to the music. I am just streaming a favourite of mine, Leonard Cohen Live from London. I can hear left and right, above and below, under and overlayed, even in front and behind. The bass is particularly impressive. Not room shaking but clear and controlled. The highs are more pronounced but not in a stretched or fatiguing way. I am hearing nuances in LC’s voice that I haven’t noticed before. I guess the whole piece just has more emotion conveyed.

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Have you got a 555ps dr on your system.?

No, just the 552 psu. My streaming is low rent, node 2 and qutest.

Very nice enjoy your new 552, I hope to get one eventually. I put the a new 555dr a couple of months ago into my system and absolutely love it. Thank for reply.

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Tonights update is that after a few hours of listening to vinyl the main additional take is that there is a fuller upper mid range. Nora Jones, Alison Krauss, Kacey Musgraves, Coltrane, Chet Baker, Bob Seegar, Neil Young.
All have something extra in the mid highs with nothing lost in the lower ranges. Bob was sounding particularly lively tonight, Kacey was foot tapping, Alison almost had me country dancing. :-). Chet however was sounding reedy and broken, which may be a sign that the 552 exposes bad recordings. Both Norah and Neil were just sublime.

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All positive stuff👍