Calling all ModWright LS36.5 owners - past, present & future.

[mondie]

After more than a decade of using TVC's from Bent I have got the itch to sample another valve pre. For a short while I ran a Mastersound PHL5 as I needed the extra gain for a cartridge I was using at the time but it went soon after the cartridge did as I preferred the TVC. The ModWright 36.5DM, the two chassis version, has piqued my interest. I was surprised to see there have been quite a few owners on SNA over the last 5 years.

 

So - how good is it and what have those who have sold one moved onto? What else should be considered against it?

 

My active speakers have a low 10k input impedance so this restricts compatibility somewhat, the 36.5 is transformer coupled on its output so matching is not an issue with it although this seems to be the exception rather than the norm.

 

Over to the wisdom of SNA

 

cheers,

Simon

Edited April 18, 2016 by mondie

[Guest]

TonyM is using a Modwright pre, not sure if its the 36.5 though. A Weston Touchstone would be well worth considering too, tubes and TVC.

[mondie]

Oh I didnt know that @TonyM

 

That Weston sounds interesting too but living on the otherside of the world is a concern for warranty etc.

 

Cheers

[Tony M]

G'day Simon

 

Your "@@tony M" notification didn't work for some reason (spaces in the wrong place?) and I've just stumbled onto this thread.

 

I've had the Modwright LS100 for a few years now and I like it a lot, but would be open to the idea of upgrading if I found something I liked even better.  ATM, I'm experimenting with an assortment of NOS valves and that's a nice way of tuning the sound to individual preferences.  Everything I read suggested I'd prefer the LS100 to the 36.5, so I was happy to grab one at a good price second-hand and haven't regretted it for a second.  However, I suspect you might have a different preference and the superior resolution of the 36.5 might be more to your liking.

 

I guess you've seen the comments Dan Wright posted on Hifi Wigwam, but, just in case:

 

"Hi Keith, the LS 100 is a FINE preamp and MANY customers love it!

It is a newer design than the LS 36.5 and actually was designed to replace the first preamp we ever designed - the SWL 9.0SE. The 9.0SE was EXCEPTIONALLY popular, and yet there were some functions that people wanted, such as XLR in's and outs, even though wired SE. There were also requests for balance control, remote triggers and a headphone out. We added remote input select and power on/off to the remote volume and mute only, of the SWL 9.0SE.

Lastly, some people felt that the 9.0SE, which used 5687 tubes was just a BIT too lean in its sonic presentation. We took all of this information to heart when designing the LS 100 and I decided to design around the 6SN7 tube for its 'fat tone' and beautiful sound. Also, there are A LOT of 6SN7's and variants to tube-roll with. The 5687 is NOS only and has fewer variants.

The LS 36.5 design was done after the 9.0SE and is similar in many ways, except that it offers fully balanced outs and has a more sophisticated tube circuitry. It is more resolving and detailed than the LS 100 and also RUTHLESSLY revealing! It uses the 6H30 Russian tube, which is not as sweet sounding as the 6SN7 tube. It is closer to SS than tube, if that makes sense.

They are both good designs and have a sort of Yin/Yang tonality to them. The LS 36.5 does have fully differential balanced outputs, if that is important to you. It does not however, have the option of adding internal phono or DAC, like the LS 100 does.

In short, I always say let your ears be your judge. I am QUITE certain that you will be VERY happy with the LS 100 and based on what you have said, I also feel that its tonality IS the sound that you prefer overall.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Dan W.
President, ModWright Instruments Inc (MWI)"

 

Looking forward to hearing what you end up with.

[mondie]

I leave town and you get all adventurous on me   Yes I had read the post you copied above and a whole lot more too. You are correct in that the 36.5 sounds more like me and would be a better match to the low input impedance of the ADAM's. Its damn hard choosing without many options to audition so you find yourself scouring every hit for opinions and then try and synthesise some sort of estimate of suitability.

 

My shortlist as its stands is:

 

Allnic L3000 (missed one by hours otherwise it would have been mine )

The 36.5DM of course

Pure Sound L300

Einstein The Tube mk2 (in discussions on one now)

 

Thats about it. I need something with very low output impedance and preferably output transformers. Plus I want nice aesthetics and a remote, preferably single box too. Only the Allnic does all of that. The more I read the more I discover many discussions of active pre vs TVC which adds to my interest to get an active pre in my system again. I just need to be patient and wait for the right unit to come on the market.

 

Most importantly how's life treating you? I must send you an email and find out all the latest happenings back in Hahndorf

 

Cheers,

Simon

[HumanMedia]

I seriously love my 36.5. It's the single chassis version, but was factory modded to take the ELM Mesh rectifier tube. The mod changed it to work at a lower current somewhere in its circuitry and needed a new top plate. The EML rectifier made an enormous difference. Also good signal tubes are getting harder/pricier to find.

[mondie]

I have taken the plunge on an Audio Research Reference 40th anniversary preamp. It arrived yesterday, I just need to get organised and install it.

[jrisles]

I have taken the plunge on an Audio Research Reference 40th anniversary preamp. It arrived yesterday, I just need to get organised and install it.

 

Nice one mondie. (Ignore my pm  ). I eagerly wait to hear your review in a few weeks as your ears adjust to the new sound and you put it through its paces.