Price Paid:  $0.00 from Private sale

Summary:
I got this along with a Robertson 6010, which is now gone. I replaced the 1N400x diodes with UF4007's, and the Illinois Capacitors in the audio section with the same value Black Gate caps. This cleared up all issues of slight grain, lack of detail, improved dynamics and generally made this a first rate preamp. It is a really nice preamp in stock form, for the money, but it is an awesome preamp once moded.

Strengths:
Open, involving, musical, etc.

Weaknesses:
Unmoded, lacks a little clairity, has a little grain.

Similar Products Used:
Spectral, Minuet in "A" with $2,500 in mods, Forte F-44 heavily moded, various others.

Price Paid:  $560.00 from Direct from Sound Va

Summary:
This is a great preamp, I could label everything I love about it but that would take up to much time, and I wouldn't have said anything that hasn't already been said by others. It's a greap preamp, I would recommend it to anyone. Check out Sound Valves entire line, I'm using the preamp with the Sound Valves VTA-70i, a very nice amp as well.

Strengths:
Everything.

Weaknesses:
Absolutely none.

Similar Products Used:
Creek, Parasound, and others not worth mentioning.

Price Paid:  $550.00

Summary:
This is one of the best preamp bargains out there. I was prepared to spend up to 2K on a preamp, but much to my surprise, was totally enthralled by this unit when I first borrowed it to test on my system. I am running Magnepan 1.6's, which are very revealing of downstream electronics, so if there is anything lacking with this preamp, I believe I would have heard it. This unit is very 'tubey' sounding with a perfect amount of analytical finesse. The combination of smoothness and detail is stunning, for a preamp at this price point! It seems that on a complex musical piece, everything just 'blooms' correctly, with a forward presentation that is lush, resolving, and as warm sounding as a good tube system. This is a perfect match for an analytical amp, such as the McCormack I am running. Kudos to SoundValves for cutting out the middleman costs associated with bringing a product as fine as this to market, and passing the savings along to the consumer (soundvalves.com). I am not affiliated with the company in any way, but have become a fan of their products. Buy this preamp with confidence!

Strengths:
Solid construction; direct-path internal construction with NO loose wiring; looks and feel of the unit exhudes $$$

Weaknesses:
No RCA sub out jacks.

Similar Products Used:
Rotel, B&K, Parasound

Summary:
Well folks, I got this preamp for ONLY $170 on eBay. Yup, what a bargain. I thought a pre-amp couldn't make a difference in the way a system sounds. I was wrong. This preamp totally opened up my sound stage, I listened to Pink Floyd, Supertramp and other CD's with a whole new ear. The biggest improvement over my CA-5 is in the upper midrange. This pre-amp uses JFETs and they seem to add nice detail to the cymbals and piano bits. Locations of instruments are well placed. I'm using a Nakamichi PA-7 and Apogee Caliper speakers. It's a bit strange, but the bass seems louder on them now. It also seems to have a tad more dynamic range. I can only say good things about this preamp for the money. You can get it from around $250 from Sound Valves as a factory 'blem' on eBay. I got the one with the Silver face and I'd rather have the black face ... but for what I paid, I really can't complain. I could go on, but I'm being drawn back to my system which is currently playing ...

Strengths:
Bargain price, mid range and treble detail, sound stage, well defined base

Weaknesses:
None yet that I can see ... oh yeah, it doesn't have a phono section. Based on the 'fire-sale' of items from Sound Valves, I suspect this company is going out of business REALLY soon. Get these while you can!

Similar Products Used:
Nakamichi CA-5, Hafler 101 preamp, ADCOM products

Summary:
I obtained this preamp as a 'blem' unit directly from the manufacturer on Ebay for about $300, and found that the only thing wrong with it was that the blue LED on light was not working. Everything else seems to be working great, and cosmetically the preamp is perfect. Oh yeah... my review. Well, in short, I LOVE this preamp! It has added a good amount of 'warmth' and unmasked newfound subtleties from my CD's! The soundstage is very defined and well balanced and natural sounding, and it does ascribe a 'tubelike' sound to many of my discs, which is good when it comes to digital sources. The JFET transistors in this unit very possibly DO make a difference in sound, because my music sounds detailed and effortless. I find myself drawn into the music I listen to with great joy. It is hard to believe I only paid 3 bills for this unit on Ebay, and from what I understand, retail is a bit less than twice what I paid. Even at that price, the SV-100 is a superb value, and an excellent addition to one's high end setup. Highly recommended!!!

For whatever it's worth, my equipment is the SV-100, an Onkyo M-504 amplifier, Sony ES series disc player, and older Polk Audio studio monitor 10B's on stands (older Polk's from the late 80's sounded better, and were of better quality than the one's being built now, in my opinion). Interconnects and speaker cables are Monster cable.