VINCENT KHV-1
Preamplifiers
In price to performance ratio the Vincent KHV-1 preamplifier is the winner. The tubed design lends it sweet sound, no listening fatigue and tons of humanity. The KHV-1 provides ample amount of musical detail, amazing connectivity and the versatility of a control center. I really liked it.
Function and form
The tower of the KHV-1 is stylistically clean, cool on touch and elegant in its black elox. It is also available in silver aluminum, though. All controls are lined up in the device's vertical axis: the power button, input selector, headphone 6,3mm jack and volume knob. The round window was the feature that attracted most looks of the visitors to my house; despite that there is only one tube visible in the KHV-1, the mirror behind it does the trick and multiplies its light to glowing warm aura. In Vincent they know that the love starts with eyes - therefore there is a slider at the KHV-1's rear panel that controls how much the tube glow illusion should be prominent. If you prefer listening in dark then it is possible to switch the lights off completely.
Apart from the visible tube (12AX7B) there is another invisible tube inside, another 12AX7B.
Bass management
The Vincent KHV-1's is primarily a headphone amplifier, not a preamplfier, but when I used it in my all Accuphase system it knew how to behave. The KHV-1's presence in the system did not change the overall tonality neither the proportions of the bass, mids and highs. The bass became less weighty and less articulated, the heights became less resolved and bit rougher, yet I did not find the sound unpleasant or lumpy. Subtraction is better than addition and the KHV-1 nicely balanced the frequency spectrum for quite mature sound.
Clarity & delicacy
I've always loved Hammond organ's sound. It's unbelievable but the instrument that was already invented in the period between two world wars, became a staple for the rock bands of the 70s and 80s (Deep Purple, ELP, Yes or lesser known band Big Elf). With the KHV-1 in my set up the Hammond in Visions of Johanna sounded different than I was used to - more fragile, more vibrating. It was as if the instrument had been recently renovated. Similarly, I had the feeling that the guitars acquired new strings and provided me with more rhythmic drive and juice.
Tonal accuracy
Spatial resolution
Despite the KHV-1 is quite a competent preamplfier one cannot expect (at such a ridiculously low price) perfection. Thus I found the slightly compressed soundstage depth to be the Achilles heel of the Vincent. The lateral presentation is pretty good, spacious with good focus on instruments within the natural soundstage. When listening for the front-to-back separation the KHV-1 had the tendency to blend and homogenize the depth. However, this only happens in the KHV-1's PRE-OUT mode; when I used headphones the sound was extended and holographic with no signs of any compression. It is quite possible that there is impedance mismatch when the Vincent is used as a preamplfier which is not for what it is designed.
Recommended resellers
Hifi studio MeLissa, Brno, tel. +420 777 041 313
Manufacturer's website: http://www.vincent-tac.de
Associated components
- Sources: Linn Unidisk 1.1, Accuphase DP-55
- Amplifiers: Linn Akurate Kontrol, Accuphase E-550
- Interconnects and speaker cables: Nordost Heimdall, Nordost Flatline Super MkII, Audioquest Panther)
- Loudspeakers: Usher Be-718
- Headphones: AKG K 701
- Power cables: Vincent Power
Gallery
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