Analog Gear News

Nagra, the longtime Swiss manufacturers of high-end professional audio and hi-fi gear, have recently announced their Series II lineup that’s positioned in between their Classic and HD product lines. The first Series II component to arrive is the all-caps PREAMP II-S, which draws some inspiration from the company’s first-ever home hi-fi product, the PL-P, a tubed preamp that launched in 1998. That said, the PL-P was battery-powered and included an onboard phono preamp, and while the PREAMP II-S is also tube-based, it modernizes certain elements of the PL-P, and brings with it a (comparatively) lower price point.

One immediately noticeable element on the Nagra PREAMP II-S is their trademarked Modulometer (as seen in the artist’s rendering above), an updated version of the one that originally appeared on the company’s IV-S professional open-reel tape recorder back in the day.

Nagra says the Modulometer provides more overall precision in display accuracy (for dB and volts) between channels, as compared to traditional separate-channel meters. Nagra’s René Laflamme describes its function as, quote, “closer to an oscilloscope in that it’s very easy to see the finer differences between channels.” As a familiar signature design feature, the Modulometer display itself is also more refined.

The unit also has a new knob for input selection that resembles the one that’s seen on the Reference PREAMP’s front panel. Inside the PREAMP II-S is a new phenolic mechanical control. The volume control is a potentiometer, in keeping with the component’s purist analog approach.

Notably, the PREAMP II-S’s default is zero gain. So, it behaves almost as a passive amplifier. The rationale is that, according to Laflamme, sources tend to be too loud for the amp, and the amp will usually adjust the volume. Not adding gain also means that no additional noise gets added to the signal, thereby preventing additional distortion. That said, users can still add gain, seeing how there’s a 6dB toggle switch on front. With the 6dB gain boost selected, the dynamic range is specified for being greater than 125dB. The noise floor is said to remain extremely low.

Inside, the PREAMP II-S uses Genelec tubes: a pair of 12AX7s and a 12AT7, types selected in part for their reportedly more linear, transistor-akin qualities and sweeter highs.

Sonically speaking, Laflamme reports that the PREAMP II-S presents sound that’s (in his words) silky, sweet, and open with more air and clearer bass dynamics. With its pro-audio origins, Nagra tends towards natural sound with transparency to source material.

Connections include a pair of XLRs and four RCAs for inputs, and two XLRs and a single pair of RCAs for outputs. There are also XLR bypass connectors. The dimensions of the PREAMP II-S are 380 x 76 x 280mm (15 x 3 x 11in, w/h/d), and the unit weighs 4.8kg (10.6lb).

As you would imagine, this professional, precision Swiss quality comes at a certain price. Thus, the SRP for the Nagra PREAMP II-S preamp is $27,900, which includes its own outboard 12.6V DC power supply and a LEMO connector.

For those who already own a Nagra power supply, the PREAMP II-S can be purchased on its own for $24,500. We’ve also been told that Nagra expects additional Series II entries will most likely be arriving later within the year. If you don’t want to wait and would prefer to get one of their separate phono preamps now, Nagra offers the Compact Phono model from their more entry-level lineup — and that unit has an SRP of ~$6,000.

For more about Nagra, go here.
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