Clarity, detail, openness.

I've read the other reviews, but no one seems to mention what I think is one of the best traits of this preamp. It has this uncanny trait of making you feel the original recording atmosphere. I just forget about the system when this happens.

If I had to complain about this unit, I would say I cannot get that last bit of bell tone out of the cymbals I hear in preamps costing two to three times the 3As price. I suspect it has something to do with my other components. I'll have to experimnet with this point. But overall, I'm very please with my preamp.

One thing I forgot to mention. These comments are for the phono section only. I've never had a CD connected to it. I'm buying a CD Player next month. That should be interesting.

Similar Products Used:

Citation 11, NAD 3020

Indeed for the price, it is a very good pre-amp to match a solid state power amp like Krells. I was using it for more than a couple of years and was very satisfied with the sound.....that is until I substituted it with the CAT SL1 pre-amp (another company that only made one product until lately which also manufactures tubed monoblock power amps) which just about had it for lunch....which is a different story altogether.

Dear Audiophiles,
To say the least, I think that the Audible Illusions Modulus 3A is the best
performing preamp I have ever heard and owned. The simplicity of the circuit
tube design compliments the warmth and transparency of this unit. The soud
becomes flawless and very relaxing to listen to (provided you have good
recording material such as the Chesky recordings). Using this pre-amp
provided me the "tube-like" sound I was looking for. It really complimented
my solid-state amp. For those who love tight and controlled bass of solid
state amps without sacrificing the warmth of tubes, use a Modulus 3A preamp.
I own a pair of Dunlavy SC IIIs and the clarity, focus, imaging and depth
contributed by the Modulus 3A was very audible.

Moreover, at $2000.00 this unit is very reasonable considering the amount
of money audiophiles spend on their equipemnt. But do not just take my word
for it. I still believe in auditioning and audioning the Modulus 3A you must!
I have a feeling that even if you heard the other preamps (whatever price
range) you will still see that the Modulus 3A is still worth betting on.
Good Work Audible Illusions! and great listening to all who love music!
Take Care

Price, open sound, sound stage

Weak, uneven bass, brittle, sharp highs

I have owned this pre-amp since 1996. I thought it was great when I first purchased it because I owned KEF 104 speakers and a McCormack DNA - 1 Delux. The combination of the KEFs and the bass heavy McCormack overcompensated for the lack of bass in the Modulus 3A. When I bought my Monitor Studio 60s (which are great), I noticed how bad the Modulus 3A sounded -- both at the upper and lower frequencies. When I replaced the McCormack with 2 Graaf GM 20s, the quirks of the Modulus 3A became unbearable. I replaced the Modulus 3A with a Conrad Johnson Premier 14. I noticed a huge improvement in bass -- it now sounded whole, instead of lumpy and uneven. Compared with the Conrad Johnson, the Modulus 3A high frequencies sound brittle and unnatural. At times, the highs are piercing. Again, the Modulus 3A sounded great until I improved the other components. It just didn't measure up. For those who rave about the Modulus 3A, I have no idea what they have been hearing.

Similar Products Used:

Conrad Johnson Premier 14

Very transparent. Gives the texture and small details of the music. Outstanding sound noting weaknesses.

No remote. Dual volume is not convenient. High gain can produce hiss on sensitive speakers

I auditioned this head to head with the Musical Fidelity A3 pre-amp. Equipment with both preamps was Cary 306 CD player / Avantegarde Uno speakers / Muscial Fidelity A3 power amp.
The Audible Illusions Modulus 3 I heard had an external power supply. the first thing I noticed was an audible hiss coming through the Avantegarde speakers. The dealer told me this was because the Avantegarde speakers are 95 Db efficient and the Audible Illusions preamp had high gain. Turning down the volume by hand (no remote), I found the left speaker almost dead quiet. That's when I realized the preamp had TWO volume knobs. Sort of a nuisance.
I thought the Audible Illusions sound quality was excellent. Very detailed, good texture and brought out the fine details very well. Bass extension was just as good as the Musical Fidelity. I did not see this as a problem at all. What I did notice was a slowing of transients. The Muscial Fidelity had better rhythm and attacked the leading edges of the notes better especially in the bass. It was more engaging and enjoyable. Although these differences are SUBTLE and hard to pinpoint, they are there. My girlfriend agreed and liked the M-F better as well. Price not even being the issue.
The Audible Illusions was slightly smoother in the higher notes and on bright recordings was a little better than the M-F although the notes still came through as harsh (as they should).
If you want a phono stage, I guess the Audible Illusions would be the better choice. Also Stereophile gave the Musical Fidelity a "B" so maybe they heard things that I didn't. As far as transparency, detail, etc the two preamps sounded very similar to me.

Similar Products Used:

Musical Fidelity A3. Also Bryston 25, SimAudio, Adcom GP750

I agree with Larry Cassidy. It sounds wonderful.

Very minor, a little hard on tubes

I purchased my first 3A in 1998. In November of 2000 I upgraded to a new 3A. Soon after (due to adding a low output cartridge to my system), I had Audible Illusion (AI) install the John Curl phono board. This being the case, I have had significant hours of listening to the 3A before their most recent product modifications as well as the newest generation 3A. In addition, I have many hours of record listening under my belt with both the AI standard phono stage and also the modified stage with the John Curl phono board.

From the beginning I have loved how my system sounds with the 3A preamplifier. After years of significant listening, I am still being amazed by how good it sounds. Not to say that other preamplifiers do not sound good. I think a number do, but I have not heard any that sound even close to this good in the 3A's price range.

The 3A produces a sound that is always accurate and true to the recording but at the same time very warm, airy and musical. The sound stage created by the 3A is truly three-dimensional. I was accustomed to great separation and a great left to right sound stage in my system before I added the 3A but now with the 3A in my system, the sound stage has opened up to a much greater degree from front to back. I can now hear a singer take a breath between notes, or hear a saxophonist blow air through his instrument, or hear a guitarist hit the pick to a string a spilt second before the note sounds in a way that just wasn’t possible before I added the 3A to my system.

I have a number of audiophile friends who have great preamplifiers and I am sure there are a number of great preamplifiers that I have not heard, but I am very pleased with the 3A and do not feel a need to make any changes. The 3A just sounds so good. It is like owning a great sounding violin or guitar. You know that there may be other instruments that may also sound wonderful but why change.

I liked both my first 3A and my newest 3A but if I hear a difference between the two it is in the bass and midrange, I think that the bass sounds a little tighter on my new 3A compared the older version. The midrange is the new 3A is also more pronounced at times. This being the case, the new 3a sounds a little more even from top to bottom than my old one. This being said, I really liked how my old 3A sounded too.

Records sound great on my system with the Curl phono board but I have also significantly upgraded my turntable and cartridge. Before these upgrades, records still sounded very good using AI’s unmodified phono stage with a VPI turntable with a Benz Micro cartridge.

I should also mention that I had to return my latest 3A to the factory for service and was very pleased with AI's service department. I had some noise in one of the stepped attenuator volume controls and returned it to factory. AI corrected the problem and had it back in a matter of days. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, which shortened the turnaround time, but my unit was in AI’s factory for little more than 24 hours.

One thing I would tell new 3A owners is to be patience. I think that a new 3A takes a long time to break in. Longer than Audible Illusions indicates. I think that the 3A starts to sound really good after 40 hours of listening, but sounds better still after six to eight weeks of moderate listening. Also, even though the 3A has a standby mode where a small amount of power is keeping the tubes warm, I think that it takes 15 to 20 minutes of full power going to the tubes for the wonderful airiness of the 3A to become apparent.

I should also mention that the 3A is somewhat hard on tubes. My experience is that with the John Curl phono board; expect to change the phono stage tubes after about 1000 hours of listening.

To summarize, I love my 3A and think that it is an excellent preamplifier. Anyone looking for an affordable full-function preamplifiers should spend some time listening to the 3A.

My system:
-Audible Illusions 3A Preamplifier
-Conrad-Johnson Premier Eleven-A Power Amp.
Oracle Delphi Mark IV Turntable with a SME
-Series V Tone-Arm and a Koetsu Standard Cartridge
-Rega Planet CD Player

Similar Products Used:

Many

Soundstage, Openness, Bass, imaging, tonal accuracy

None after recent upgrade

Being in the hobby for over 25 years it is rare that one comes across products like Audible Illusion (AI). My first introduction to an AI Pre-AmP happened by accident when I was looking for a pair of loudspeakers in 1989 to go along with my then recently acquired new Amp and Pre-Amp. It was Randy Cooley at Optimal Enchantment who sold me the first pair of a Vandersteen Speakers. I was completely awestruck with the sound quality of a $1200/pair of speakers. Until then I had heard many mega buck speakers and none compared with the sound I heard.

That was the first time I also realized that while everyone else was trying to sell me a pair of speakers, Randy was trying to seduce me with the music. I told Randy that I would buy the pair right there and then if he could produce the same sound at my home. Randy told me sure, only if I used the same Amp, Pre-Amp and cables combo that he was using. That was my first introduction to an Audible Illusion Pre-AMp. While, I did not purchase the AI Pre-Amp at that time having already spent money on something else, the quality of sound and the music that I heard always remained with me.

On moving to NJ, I tried to find just as competent a dealer as Optimal Enchantment In Santa Monica, CA. I found that in John Rutan of Audio Connection in Verona, NJ. Not only both these dealers were one of the best, they both used Audio Illusion Pre-Amps with Vandersteen Speakers. My next move was to upgrade the Vandersteens to Model 3s and then 3As. This also gave me an opportunity to upgrade my Amplifiers to Quicksilver M-135s and Pre-Amp to, then AI Modulus 3. That was year 1993.

Since then I have moved to Vandersteens Model 5s. However, in my quest to find better Pre-Amps, I have always come back to AI, first Modulus 3, then 3A with Phone Board. Though Art Ferris has not changed the Model number of his prouct for last 5-6 years, to compare a 1995 Modulus 3A with a 3A produced in 2001, would be like comparing apples and oranges. Over the years, I have either replaced my older Modulus with a new one or sent it back for an upgrade. My last upgrade was done in April 2001. Every time I think that sound cannot get any better, Art Ferris at AI continuous to amaze me with the improvements that I get form upgraded Pre-Amp. It is like falling in love all over again.

I recently went to the Hi-Fi show 2001 in NYC and had an opportunity to hear some real expensive Pre-amps. All I can say is ,that I could not find many out there that compared with the Modulus and at the price none even came close.

One word of caution though. Getting good sound and music is a labor of love, that requires careful matching and synergy in the components you choose. One can make AI sound terrible, and I have heard that or as good as it gets. I remain indebted to manufacturers like AI and Vandersteen, who continue to provide excellent music at affordable avenue prices to many audiophiles out there.

Other folks have said it about as well as it can be said. I've had a Modulus 3a in my system for about a year now, and I feel it is a great pre amp in an absolute sense. When I first tried it on a demo basis, my system (already good) just disappeared. The fact that it's one of the best values in audio is just a bonus.
Four stars for the absolute / Five stars for value

The Audible Illusions Modulus 3a is an excellent preamplifier at a great price.It is dead quiet, no tube rush or ground hum. however it can be subject to tube ringing, due to microphonics in the Sovtek 6922 tubes. Placing damping material on the tubes can alleviate the ringing, as well as isolating the preamp from speaker feedback. It provide excellent timbre and harmonic integrity best show cased with acoustic intrumentation. Also, it is best with superior front end components. A well built highly dynamic unit. While there may be better preamps out there none come close at this price.

I have listened to just about every version of the Audible,at home,at friends,at dealers, and it has impressed me EVERY time! It is one of the best matches for various solid state amps (OCM,Belles,Audible S120,etc.) Smooth,detailed,built very well,and the sound grows on you,and if you take it out of the system,you actually miss it-THE MUSICALITY!