last night i picked up a demo B&K Reference 5 S2 stereo pre-amp, currently powered by B&K Reference 125.2 S2 amp, and using Cary Audio DVD6 for redbook cd & dvd & Denon 2910 for sacd. the B&K components provide a very clean sound, with alot of detail. the pre-amp really opens up music, particularly sacd or high quality redbook recordings. i picked up some great cds over the weekend; dvorak no 8 & no 9 symphony from seraphim classics, and bruckner symphony no 4 from decca/legends, which both sound fantastic.
dave brubeck's time out sacd also sounds fantastic. if i only listened to classical & jazz, this would be a great system. however, some source material came across far too bright, and it's not the best for female vocals, which i often find the hardest to reproduce. while my klipsch rf-7 speakers at times make this task more difficult, i have found equipment which reproduces fantastic female vocals with my speakers, so it's more finding ther proper match than just the speakers alone.
generally i would recommend the B&K pre-amp & amp combo, particularly for someone who has speakers less prone to a bright presentation, and would highly recommend it someone who primarily listens to jazz or classical. it's not the best system i have ever heard, but it's near the best i have heard for the price (pre-amp msrp is about 800, and same for the amp). SACD playback is very good, and nice to have tone controls for SACD which my denon 2805 lacks. i had the amp hooked to my receiver before getting the pre-amp, and while the amp is not as clean and detailed as others i have used (cary audio cinema 5 and particularly the krell showcase 5) its a very good amp for it's price point. i am quite curious how the pre-amp would sound in companion with a better amp.
the pre-amp allows for instant switching between sources, so has been fun comparing & contrasting my cary dvd player & my denon 2910. the denon also has 2 sets of L&R terminals, one for cd & one for multi-channel sound, which has allowed a fun comparison between various interconnects. a rare feature these days is a loudness function, which the purists may scoff at, but it's very useful for night time listening or for use in an office environment where you can't crank it up. the loudness function also allows for some fun if you want to shake the house. for certain cd's, i preferred the loudness on, for others it was simply way over the top, but a nice feature to have available in my opinion.
still unsure whether i will purchase either the pre-amp and or the amp. the amp made a nice addition to my denon 2805 for powering the front speakers, and did make a noticeable difference. i wasn't necessarily looking for a 2 channel amp, but when the opportunity to demo one came up, and as i had never heard B&K components outside the store, i couldn't pass it up. i would highly recommend the amp at this price point.
one nice feature of both B&K components is XLR connections between the pre-amp & amp. have never used a XLR connection before, but going to pick up some cables today to see what it sounds like.
overall i would give the B&K components a strong recommendation, good quality, great value for the money, and would highly recommend to someone for classical & jazz listening with non-klipsch speakers. the pre-amp also is a great tool for comparing & contrasting various different components & interconnects to see if there is any difference in sound quality.
