Beautiful full body engaging sound. Great depth, presence and punch. I’ve been listening to it for 16 years and love it more today than 15 years ago. Very versatile amp - I’ve used 5 different types of tubes to play around with the sound. All but one sounded GREAT. Factory installed tubes were the best overall. I’m getting ready to buy a Prima Luna EVO 400 for a new listening room - very excited to get it!

A little low on power.

I have been using this PP2 for more than one year and I have been totally satisfied with this purchase. Amazing sound with mucsical tones that i did not expect before I bought, but this Primaluna Prologue Two changed my mind. Worth it, value for money. Bass, Mid, Treb all are excellent.

I purchased this amp to replace my tired 5year old Harman Kardon receiver. This was tied to some inexpensive energy speakers and a bottom line yamaha sub. Although it was truly a best buy type of system,
my ears and friends with over the top systems agreed it was very passable as something to live with on the cheap! The new amp has transformed my laughable (to audio snobs) sources-an entry level rega table and
a 5 year old sony universal disc player into very listenable gear. Everything you read about in the reviews are true about this amp. In my case, more.. It was a huge wake up for my speakers. The warm 3d sound is sometimes overwhelming when I think about what my sources are. Speakers (RC 30) are tied with bottom end Ah! cables and I went with a psb power cord. I have now ditched the sub, because the speakers now produce nice tight bottom end. Will add a high end sub possibly for video and the extra umph! that I sometimes like.The only thing getting used to is not having a remote but, what a small compromise! If you're still listening to Best Buy stuff, nothing wrong with it. This is just the next step to
"real sounding" gear. Getting sound advice from Kevin Deal (Upscale Audio) was easy since he is very knowledgeable and personable.
This amp is perfect for someone wanting to go other side of audio and make the transition from generic
stuff to real audio gear without draining your wallet.
The only other drawback for me is I plan on replacing my other gear with equivalent stuff.

I have paired the tubed PrimaLuna ProLogue Two with an Oppo 63 SE digital source and Audio Physic Spark 2 speakers - resulting in an excellent sound stage in a rather large room - using LAT Mark II interconnects and speaker cable. After a brief warm-up, the PrimaLuna's produce a warm, detailed sound that impresses all who visit. This PrimaLuna integrated is my first and only tube equipment - and I'm very happy I moved UP to tubes. My other pedestrian system includes an Arcam integrated pushing NHT Super Zero's and it's mated sub woofer with separate NHT mono-amp. I can only give PrimaLuna KUDO's!!

Background

I have been in this hobby for almost 35 years and the only tube equipment that I have ever owned was my very first system ... a one piece victrola with a Philco tube stereo amplifier, a Voice of Music turntable, and two detachable speakers each containing a single 3 inch, full range, baffle mounted speaker. My dad, who owned a TV & Appliance Repair Shop in Brooklyn, was a big fan of tubes, as tubes were easier to service than the first solid state boards. After a few years, I "upgraded" to a solid state SONY HP-161 tuner/turntable compact system and I never considered tubes again.

Well, hit the fast forward button 35 years and here I am purchasing a Prima Luna Prologue Two integrated tube amp. The Prima Luna replaces a NAD C 320BEE integrated amp, that I have used happily in a secondary system almost every day for more than two years. Even though the NAD was not the most refined sounding of amps (when compared to a Musical Fidelity A3 integrated, for example), the NAD made music listening enjoyable for hours on end ... which is perhaps the best praise that I can give to a piece of stereo equipment.

If you are a reader of the hifi magazines (like I am), it has been hard to avoid the Prima Luna integrateds lately. Just about every magazine has featured a rave review about either the Prologue One or Prologue Two and they are attractively priced ... so much so, that the question became "which one should I buy?" as opposed to "should I buy?" The only issue was that I could not easily audition one (I live in NYC) and the Prima Lunas have only one distributor and he is 3000 miles away. Fortunately, the distributor is Kevin Deal of Upscale Audio. Kevin is someone that I trust and respect and have purchased equipment from several times. In all candor, knowing that Kevin was one of the key members of the Prima Luna team was comforting to me and so, not being able to audition the amp prior to purchasing, became less of a “must to do.”

I decided to go with the Prologue Two mostly due to a “technical talk” email exchange with Kevin that went ended with ... "the Prologue Two will have more pop in the bass." I was planning to use the Prologue Two with Acoustic Research 302 speakers (3 way; 10 inch woofer; acoustic suspension design) , which can go down to 35 hz, so for an extra $250, I figured ... why not take advantage of the extended bass response?

I have listened to tube amps in the past, but never with an eye towards buying one ... so I was very much in the role of the newbie when purchasing the Prologue Two. Knowing that the Prima Lunas were designed to make life easy for the first time tube amp purchaser was a comfort, as well.

The Audition ...

First a disclaimer ... when I listen to music, I tend to concentrate on the performance. I have never been one to get too hung up on audiophile concerns like soundstaging and things of that ilk. With that said ...

The first quality that I noticed about the Prologue Two was how quiet it is. The music seems to just emerge out of the darkness. The crisp, opening guitar chords of "Gimme Shelter" (Rolling Stones "Let It Bleed") seem to appear from nowhere. This is the same impression that I had when I first heard the album over 30 years ago. The Prologue Two also conveys a sense of solidness to the music ... a real sense of musical depth. When listening to Frank Sinatra's "Night and Day" (from "A Swingin' Affair"), the brass fanfare that drives the pace of the song and sets the tone for the rest of the album, sounds full and in command, not lightweight and screechy, as I have heard on other systems. On that same album, on "No One Ever Tells You," the band's instruments play counterpoint to Sinatra's vocals and the Prologue Two captures this interplay with just the right amount of delicacy and emphasis.

I have always listened to a lot of music with vocals. As a teenager, it was mostly pop music. Today, it can run the gamut from Bob Dylan to Placido Domingo. The Prologue Two captures the essence of the vocal performance with ease. I both heard and felt the full range of emotions expressed ... from desperation (Frank Sinatra “My Funny Valentine”) to longing (Bob Dylan “I’ll Keep It With Mine”) to swaggering pride (Frank Sinatra “Look At Me Now)” to pensive (Jesse Sykes “Oh, My Girl”) to operatic approaching doom (Mozart “Ah, son perduto!”).

Instruments sounded equally impressive with the Prologue Two. The violin on Bartok’s “Danses Populaires” (from "Le Violin Vagabond") had an almost three dimensional quality to it and the sound just seemed to hang in the air. The guitars on “Little Rivi Airhead” (Junior Brown “Down Home Chrome”) and “Oh, My Girl” (Jesse Sykes) sounded crisp, detailed, and musical all at the same time. There was a suppleness and pace to Oscar Peterson’s piano playing on “Caravan” (“Ocsar Peterson & Dizzy Gillespie”). Horns had just the right amount of bite and lightness to their sound (Maurice Andre “Trumpet Concertos).

From a construction and looks standpoint the Prologue Two shouts quality. If you appreciate solid, finely machined, neat looking equipment with a good amount of heft ... well, this is one amp for you. I went with the black faceplate version as it complemented the rest of my system. The stock tubes that come with the Prologue Two get the job done quite well, which is a good thing, as I am not into “NOS and tube rolling” ... well, not yet anyway. The amp gets pretty warm to the touch, but not hot, even after it has been on for a few hours.

Summary

To sum it up, I was very impressed and very happy with my Prologue Two purchase. Listening to music on this amp has been very enjoyable, as the music sounds inviting and I am finding myself playing more and more CDs and playing them all the way through. I am having a lot of fun with this amp. A special thanks to Kevin at Upscale Audio for first rate service both pre and post sale and his SoCal sense of humor.

The Baker’s Dozen of CDs Used:

Maurice Andre ... "Trumpet Concertos" (EMI Classics)
Joseph Canteloupe ... “Chants d’Auvergne” (NAXOS - SACD Hybrid)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ... "Le Nozze di Figaro" ... Rene Jacobs (Harmonia Mundi)
Graf Mourja ... "Le Violin Vagabond" (Harmonia Mundi)

David Bowie ... "Ziggy Stardust" 30th Anniversary Edition (Virgin)
Junior Brown ... “Down Home Chrome” (Telarc - SACD Hybrid)
Bob Dylan ... "Biograph" (Columbia)
Buddy Holly ... "The Ultimate EP Collection" (See For Miles Records)
Oscar Peterson & Dizzy Gillespie ... (JVC XRCD2)
Rolling Stones ... "Let It Bleed" (ABCKO - SACD Hybrid)
Frank Sinatra ... "Frank Sinatra Concepts" (Capitol Box Set)
Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros ... “Streetcore” (Hellcat Records)
Jesse Sykes ... "Oh, My Girl" (Barsuk Records)

Associated gear
SONY SCD C555 ES SACD Player
SONY DVP S560D DVD Player
Acoustic Research 302 speakers (3 way; 10 inch woofer; 85 db sensitivity)
IXOS Silver GAMMA 1001 Interconnect (amp to SACD player)
Signal Cable Analog One Interconnect (amp to DVD player)
Signal Cable Classic Speaker Cable

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VERY DEEP WARMTH THROUGHT THE FREQUENCY RANGE WITH A DELIGHTFULL AIRYNESS THAT DOES NOT OVER POWER THE LOW,MID, OR HIGH FREQUENCIES. FANTASTIC REALISM THAT I DID NOT GET WITH MY MING DA AMPLIFIER. IM A NEW AND CONFIRMED PRIMA LUNA OWNER. KEVIN DEAL AT UPSCALE AUDIO IN UPLAND CALIFORNIA IS THE MAN TO BUY FROM, AND TALK TO FOR GOOD PRODUCTS, AND HONEST OPINION'S.

SUPERIOR BULD QUALITY, VERY PLEASANT ERGONOMICS WHICH GOES WELL WITH ALL TYPES OF ROOM DECOR. AND ADAPTIVE AUTO BIAS ROCKSS! THE OTHER BRANDS SHOULD WATCH OUT FOR PRIMA LUNA!!

NONE

Hey!! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME~~ PRIMA LUNA ROCKSSS~~ JUST HOOKED UP AMP TONIGHT (PROLUGE TWO). OMGGGG, I HAD HAD A MING DA 34 A , AND I THOUGHT THE TONE, LINEARITY, AND SPACIAL QUALITY WAS GREAT, TILL... I GOT THE PRIMA LUNA! I WILL NEVER NEVER NEVER BUY ANY OTHER BRAND! IT WAS THE ADAPTIVE BIAS THAT SOLD ME. NO BIAS ADJUSTMENTS, AND NO MATCHING OF TUBES, PLUS, IF YOU REALLY WANT TO BE A FREAK, YOU CAN USE FOUR DIFERENT TUBES IN THE POWER SECTION,AND THE AMP WILL WORK AND NOT BE DAMAGED. AND, YOU CAN USE ALL KINDS OF POWER TUBES? AWESOMEEE!!!! HATS OFF TO YOU UNCLE KEVIN!! I LIKE THE SOUND OF THE KT-88'S BETTER THAN EL-34'S. WOW! THANK YOU, VINCENCONSOLO CONFIRMED PRIMA LUNA OWNER

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Lack of listener fatigue, build quality, tube interchangability. great sound, warm ,detailed, plenty of power. Price

iLike i said, on extremly complicated pieces, it gets a wee bit choked up, but not enough to really complain about.

i bought my prologue 2 new and had never really rolled tubes before.The unit with the supplied tubes sounded very good for the price .Warm ,engaging, enough power for my Spendor 2/3's. Then i bought the gold lion reissue kt88's and wow! More detail, sweeter mid's, cleaner.then i tried used but good telefunken 12au7's and it was a greater improvment than the new power tubes provided.when i thought it couldn't get any better, i tried telefunken 12ax7's and the primaluna is now a whole different machine,unbelievably sweet,detailed and soothing.Enloyable!! I tried NOS Ei kt90's and they are a bit sterile. I tried NOS telefunken el34's and they are as nice as the gold lions with a bit of trouble on VERY complex orchestral pieces but i still love them. i have tried many othe pre- amp tubes but the tele's are made for the Primaluna. I love it !!

Customer Service

Haven't needed any

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sonic frontiers 75 wpc monoblocs, macintosh everything

Build,Sound,Use......It just Plain ROCKS!!!!

You must be kidding at this price.....Ok maybe a remote for the Couch Potato!

I am a DOLT!!!! after being in the "Audiophile" hobby for over ten years, I always passed on a chance to listen to any Prima Luna gear, I always had to have much more exotic/expensive stuff, My freinds my eyes are WIDE OPEN. First off the build quality of this thing is VERY IMPRESSIVE!! I always took that for granted when reviews raved about its superior build and I am here to tell ya it is no joke!. There is something of a "Curse" about tube amps one being they are a pain to own due to bias adjustments,unreliability etc, etc, NOT SO with the Prima luna 2 as I am sure you have read it is a self biasing unit, second I have turned this thing on and off , adjusted volume on the fly and all around put it through the paces! The ONLY thing that happens Is MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC. The sound and convinience of this thing is outta sight! If you are new to Tubes, or a crusty jaded Audiophile tube freak, THIS THING WILL IMPRESS!!! Throw ANYTHING at it and I mean anything (I played everything from Slayer to Mingus) and it will blow youre mind!.To sum it up, if you are looking for QUALITY and AMAZING sound, I can think of NOTHING near this thing that even compares,Forget about the Naim,rega,Blah blah blah (although I have owned those units as well and enjoyed them) They DO NOT COME CLOSE to the PURE MUSICALITY of this thing.Now I know youre thinking is their bass? and the answer is YES !!! Not as much as that annoying Honda CR-X that rolls down youre street thumpin at two in the morning, But honest to goodness Rock Solid MUSIC bass.As I write this review I am groovin to The Clash at Shea Stadium
the bass from the kick drum CAN BE FELT!!. ....This thing ROCKS ....or as Mr. Strummer would say it ROCKS THE CASBAH!!!

Customer Service

A+ Service from Kevin Deal at Upscale Audio!

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Rega, Naim Supernait,Rogue Tempest,Mcintosh

If tonal color, and great harmonics is on top of your list. This must be it.
This thing is very transparent, you can hear and enjoy anything in a recording no matter how complex it gets, as long as you don't turn volume to 11 ;)
Very airy around instruments.
Sound great also at lower volum levels.
Very good bass.
Sound very powerfull.
auto-bias
Great build

No remote.
Not powerfull enough for very high volum levels.
Not as distortion free, as some transistor revivals.
Deep bass, is not as as tight or controlled as trians.. rivals

ad a copland tube-amp once, and never got 100% recovered after selling it ;)
I always said to myself that I will buy a tube-amp again, but it will be expensive, cause I need more power than cheaper tube-amps can give me.
Well I could not wait, and after reading a lot about this amp, and it showed up for a nice price, I took the chance.
First of all, I don't regret it. It sound wonderfull. Very natural, with lots of insight.
You have to go to the doctor, if this amp sounds boring. This is what I heard about my last amp too. (primare I30) but when it comes to tonal color, bass and insigit this one is in another leauge. I changed the stock tubes, and must say as one other reviewer here, got better balance between high, mid and bass. The stock tubes is not bad at all, but mid. bass got more detail, and mids got more linar. mids with stock tubes sound a little muddy to me.
This amp is all about music. You can enjoy most of you music collection, since it's great overall balance. But be shure to give it good partners. This thing is quite natural, and don't like bright sounding components.
This thing got high-end ambitions, some of the things it does can't be bettered, but it's not perfect, but nothing is. For the price it's a steal.
If you only listen to techno at high levels I would look elsewhere, but else this thing can rock!!!

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huff let's begin. Primare I30, Primare I21, Tact SDAI something (semi digital) many AV recivers from denon, nad, sony, arcam ect. Arcam stereo amp. Copland, LFD Mistral, anso tried many others I did not own from Hegel, AVI, Coda, Classe, Electrokompaniet ect. at home.+++

If tonal color, and great harmonics is on top of your list. This must be it.
This thing is very transparent, you can hear and enjoy anything in a recording no matter how complex it gets, as long as you don't turn volume to 11 ;)
Very airy around instruments.
Sound great also at lower volum levels.
Very good bass.
Sound very powerfull.
auto-bias
Great build

No remote.
Not powerfull enough for very high volum levels.
Not as distortion free, as some transistor revivals.

I had a copland tube-amp once, and never got 100% recovered after selling it ;)
I always said to myself that I will buy a tube-amp again, but it will be expensive, cause I need more power than cheaper tube-amps can give me.
Well I could not wait, and after reading a lot about this amp, and it showed up for a nice price, I took the chance.
First of all, I don't regret it. It sound wonderfull. Very natural, with lots of insight.
You have to go to the doctor, if this amp sounds boring. This is what I heard about my last amp too. (primare I30) but when it comes to tonal color, bass and insigit this one is in another leauge. I changed the stock tubes, and must say as one other reviewer here, got better balance between high, mid and bass. The stock tubes is not bad at all, but mid. bass got more detail, and mids got more linar. mids with stock tubes sound a little muddy to me.
This amp is all about music. You can enjoy most of you music collection, since it's great overall balance. But be shure to give it good partners. This thing is quite natural, and don't like bright sounding components.
This thing got high-end ambitions, some of the things it does can't be bettered, but it's not perfect, but nothing is. For the price it's a steal.
If you only listen to techno at high levels I would look elsewhere, but else this thing can rock!!!

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huff let's begin. Primare I30, Primare I21, Tact SDAI something (semi digital) many AV recivers from denon, nad, sony, arcam ect. Arcam stereo amp. Copland, LFD Mistral, anso tried many others I did not own from Hegel, AVI, Coda, Classe, Electrokompaniet ect. at home.+++