Vac

The design of the all-new VAC Master Preamplifier takes the essential developments from the cost-no-object Statement pre-amplifiers and presents them in their most elemental and effective forms. If the Statement products are like a Formula 1 racecar, the Master Preamplifier is the derivative ultra-performance road-ready sports car equivalent. All of the hand-wired Class A1 audio circuits are carried on machined, mass-loading plates, which are decoupled from the main chassis.

An astonishing value for the money, you’d have to spend twice as much to even begin to come close to its performance.

The Renaissance Mk V Preamplifier replaces the earlier Mk III, with a totally new in circuit, new chassis materials, and new appearance. It has more in common with the VAC Statement Series than the prior Renaissance generation.

The line stage circuit is the same transformer- coupled Class A1 balanced triode design found in the Statement Line Stage. The external power supply has rectification and filtering of the crucial high-voltage supplies for superb, spacious imaging and great preservation of nuance. The remote volume control is of direct-acting analogue type and continuously variable, so users can find the precise level necessary to snap the music into focus.

The Mk V features premium rhodium-plated Cardas and Neutrik Professional audio connectors with three high-level inputs, two of which may be balanced or single-ended, just like the output.

Vinyl lovers will enjoy the optional MM / MC phono stage, featuring three twin triodes operating in pure Class A1, variable MC impedance loading, and purely passive, precise RIAA equalization. The circuit topology is derived from the Signature Mk IIa SE, while the results rival and exceed those delivered by the more costly separate phono stages.

After designing the cost-no-object, award- winning Statement Phono Stage, VAC approached the Renaissance Phono project with great excitement wondering how lessons learned could be applied to create a more attainable phono stage. The goal was to find a way that the techniques developed for the Statement could be adapted and applied. That goal was obtained and the sonic family resemblance is uncanny and unmistakable. In fact, the stunning Renaissance Phono Stage Preamplifier is already a reference for turntable manufacturers.

The Renaissance circuit is developed directly from the Statement, incorporating the six twin triode tube stages responsible for the principal amplification of the phono signal and RIAA equalization.

Dual mono rectication, filtering, decoupling, and energy storage are provided in the external power supply and in the audio chassis for spacious imaging, incredible detail, and full-range impact. The new chassis design greatly improves EM shielding, with results more similar to the Statement than to earlier VAC preamplifiers.

Three inputs are provided on premium Cardas rhodium RCA jacks. Front panel controls allow you to customize the gain as well as both MM and MC cartridge loading. You can even select a mono mode to optimize noise and resolution with non- stereophonic recordings.

This 100 watt per channel stereo, 200 watt monoblock powerhouse features the exclusive patented VAC iQ Continuous Automatic Bias System, the only system that has the ability to hold each power tube's true underlying idle current steady at all times, resulting in more detail, increased subjective power, greater stability, lower noise, less distortion, and no more runaway tubes.

It will even tell you when it's time to replace weak tubes.