A history of PC's CJ gear....

[Puma Cat]

I thought I would kick things off with a pictorial/editorial history of my C-J gear.

My first C-J component was a C-J PV12 LS tube preamp. The PV12 used two 12AU7 tubes in the line stage. This preamp was also available with a phono stage at the time it was being manufactured. I bought this from a friend that I met in Rasputin's Records in Berkeley. It served me well for over a year and a half.

http://photos.imageevent.com/puma_cat/fujif31andf20photos/BoardsNBlocks-1.jpg

Really nice sounding preamp, sweet and musical. Gave me my first taste of C-J gear. Not as rich as the classic PV-5, but warmer than neutral than the current crop of C-J entry preamps (with the possible exception of the recent C-J Classic, which is very similar in sound). A great entry into the C-J lineup, these can be had used on Audiogon for a median price of about $800.

After some tube rolling, I found that the mil-spec Mullard CV4003 12AU7 equivalant sounded best to my liking, especially after cryogenically treating the tubes. The PV12 also sounded great with the famed RCA "clear-top" 12AU7s.

Conrad-Johnson now has a capacitor upgrade for these where they will install their famed Teflon capacitors. My guess is that this would take this fine preamp to performance levels very respectable to today's preamps in the $2500-$3000 price range.

[Puma Cat]

Another pic of the PV12:

http://photos.imageevent.com/puma_cat/fujif31andf20photos/websize/Themes-1.jpg

[Masterlu]

Nice PC, keep em coming!

[Puma Cat]

Here's pic of my current preamp, my C-J Premier 17LS:

http://photos.imageevent.com/puma_cat/fujif31andf20photos/Pr17-1_1.jpg

The Premier 17 was based on the very famous ART design in a single chassis, used four 6922 tubes in it's gain stage designed to act as a "single-active-stage composite triode circuit introduced in the ART, which means the entire amplification circuit is a single active stage, without buffers or feedback." (quote from C-J's literature). The Premier 17LS was very comparable in design to the Premier 16LS, but used two fewer tubes in the composite triode circuit (four compared to six).

The Premier 17LS was Product of the Year for Audio Revolution.com in 2002. It was later updated to the Premier 17LS2, which incorporated C-Js Teflon capacitors, which further increased it's transient speed and transparency, but made the preamp's musical presentation a little more on the neutral side of things than the original Premier 17LS. I deliberately bought the 17LS as i am more inclined to give up a bit of transparency for a somewhat more warmer, more musical presentation. I'd rather have a slightly warmer basic preamp that I can pull back towards a more neutral presentation through tube rolling than the other way around, that way I can fine-tune the movement towards warmth or neutrality. My sensibilities are more around naturalness, accuracy of instrumental timbre, tone colors and presentation of musicality than absolute neutrality and ruthlessly revealing transparency.

Here is a link to it's design brief from C-J:

Premier 17LS Vacuum-Tube Line Stage Preamplifier (http://www.conradjohnson.com/It_just_sounds_right/a-pr17.html)

The 100 dB S/N certainly appears to be true; this is one very quiet preamp, especially considering it is a tube design.

Premier 17s are still very in much demand in the used community, Premier 17LS' sell in the $1800-$2000 price range, and Premier 17LS2s sell in the $2750-$3000 price range. Both models tend to move on Audiogon very quickly, generally within days, which is a testament to how highly valued this preamp by discrimating buyers even today. I got mine in mint condition for $1900. I spotted it at 11:00 PM the day it appeared on Audiogon, and when I called the seller (who was local) the very next morning, he had already had a full price offer on it. He sold it to me for that price as he did not want to deal with the hassle of having to ship it out, so I considered myself very lucky to have snagged it.

More on my own impressions on this wonderful preamp to follow this evening after work.

[Puma Cat]

Some comments from a Stereophile review of the Premier 17:

http://www.stereophile.com/tubepreamps/370

Note later in the review , it is being compared quite favorably to an ARC Reference 2:

"The VAC, on the other hand, is wonderfully alive and engaging, with vibrant details and dynamics and rich tonal colors. The Premier, however, matched it goosebump for goosebump, but was subtler and a bit more refined. The C-J's images were more detailed and better-defined, its tonal palette more varied. Shifting my original paradigm, it's the VAC that has the bigger, warmer, more vivid, and slightly less sophisticated sound.

The ARC Reference Two is a truly superb preamp that combines the neutrality of the Sonic Frontiers with the subtlety and vibrance of the VAC. It's more neutral than the C-J and outperforms it at the frequency extremes, but it didn't match the C-J's engaging detail, to-die-for midrange, or rich, luscious tonal structures.

and...

"Overall, it was a tough call—I could be happy with any of these designs. On a tight budget, I'd opt for the Adcom and never look back. If I had a bit more fiscal flexibility, I'd opt for the VAC, ARC, or C-J. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, and a music-lover won't go wrong with any of them—but if I had to pick today, on purely sonic terms, with my current system and in my existing room...I'd opt for the Premier 17LS."

[f1 fan]

PC...nice pieces of CJ equipment. I've always been a fan of theirs especially the phono stages.

Dave

[Puma Cat]

Here's my C-J Premier 11A Power amp. This was my second C-J product, and combined with my PV12 allowed me experience and own an all C-J system for the first time.

http://photos.imageevent.com/puma_cat/fujif31andf20photos/BoardsNBlocks-3.jpg

The C-J Premier 11A was a 70 Wpc stereo version of the famous Premier 12 monoblocks, with half the power, but a very similar design. Both amplifiers debuted in the 1994 time-frame to excellent reviews, and continuned in production for quite a long time, the better part of a decade. The Premier 11A was specced with 6550s, but also worked very well with KT88s. I found that the newly issued Genalex Gold Lions gave the amp a warmer and more musical, fuller quality than the standard 6550s. The 6550s were more neutral, slightly more transparent, with tighter bass. For the most part, a six of one/half dozen of the other sonic proposition. A listener's choice in tubes would really be down to personal preferences than an absolute one is better than the other situation. Personally, I preferred the Gold Lions to 6550s in this very nice amp. i ran some Mazda and GE/Jan NOS input tubes that the seller bought from Upscale that really added detail yet a sweetness to the sound.

Selling for an average of about $1600 used, combining this amp with a good preamp like a C-J PV12 or better yet, a Premier-level C-J preamp and with first-class clean source material, this amp is capable of very respectable sonic performance even today. It makes music, that's for sure. If you wanted to take it further, C-J also offers it's teflon capacitor upgrade on this amp, which I would guess would make it very competitive with contemporary tube amps in the $5,000-$6000 price range. The Premier 11A came with excellent, high quality transformers which, even though the amp is rated to 70 Wpc, is capable of providing very high quality to drive speakers.

I bought a second one of these with the intention of making bridging them to mono, but found out from some knowledgeable C-J owners this was not a good idea with C-J tube amps due to their transformer configuration. I sold the second amp in Jan 2010 to someone in Silicon Valley who is still using it today after living with a buddy's set of Premier 12 monoblocks. He loved the Premier 12s, but did not need the power or monoblocks, so he bought the stereo equivalent. I ran into him at the CA Audio Show last July, and he was still very happy with the Pr11A. I sold my first 11A, pictured here, to a good buddy who is using it in his home system, and absolutely loves it.

All in all, a lovely, very affordable amp that is a an excellent entry into the "premier level" of C-J's products.

[turntable]

Great to see another conrad-johnson lover PC, keep the pictures and story coming.

I am rather partial to conrad-johnson myself :thumbsup:


I do have one bone to pick with you thou. Get rid of the capital's on your signature.
It must be conrad-johnson , not Conrad-Johnson :D

[Puma Cat]

oh, yeah, you're right!

[Puma Cat]

A new C-J piece is heading my way as of tomorrow.

Stay tuned....