Предусилители — Dan D'Agostino Relentless Preamplifier

The Relentless Preamplifier belongs to the Relentless series from Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems, split across three separate chassis - one for each audio channel and a central enclosure for power supply and control. Buyers choose silver or black, and it was designed to handle two sources feeding two zones at the same time, a feature rarely found in a stereo preamplifier.

Key specs that matter

All inputs are balanced, with five pairs of XLR connectors. Outputs comprise two balanced XLR pairs for Zone 1 and one balanced XLR pair for Zone 2. D'Agostino rates bandwidth from 1 Hz to 120 kHz within 0.0 dB. Noise lies over 105 dB down unweighted and 100 dB A-weighted. Distortion stays below 0.006 percent from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. Gain can be switched between +6 and +10 dB, input impedance is above 1 MOhm, and the inputs accept up to 30 volts. The stack measures 43.2 cm wide, 34.9 cm high and 43.2 cm deep and weighs 60 kg.

Engineering and use context

Separating the left and right channels into their own boxes and moving the transformers into a third chassis keeps the power supply away from the signal path. That supply uses two 150 VA toroidal transformers, an 8 A bridge rectifier and 26,400 uF of filter capacitance. Volume is handled by two independent controls, each assembled from 14 metal parts, so Zone 1 and Zone 2 can play different sources at different levels. Level can be shown either by the moving volume wands on the front panel or as a number from 0 to 99. The very high input impedance means the front end is largely unaffected by the output characteristics of the source components. Control options include RS-232 and 12 V triggers, and the rechargeable remote communicates over Bluetooth 5.0 BLE, charges over USB, and has its own LCD with bi-directional feedback. A digital board can be ordered as an option, bringing S/PDIF on coaxial and optical sockets, USB-B, wired network, wireless network and decoding of PCM up to 32 bit and 384 kHz, DSD256 and MQA, and working with Roon.

Pairing

With three balanced output pairs, one preamplifier can drive a main pair of monoblocks from Zone 1 while a second amplifier in another room runs from Zone 2, and the switchable gain helps match amplifiers of different sensitivity. All sources need balanced XLR outputs or suitable adaptors.

Alternatives

The Dan D'Agostino Momentum C2Z is a two-chassis preamplifier from the Momentum series with three balanced and one unbalanced input.