Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier
Neli had the opportunity recently to help unpack and setup Audio Note’s new Level Six linestage preamplifier, the M10 Line Signature, at Fred’s place in Houston. Fred will be reviewing it over the coming months. He’s started a thread over on Myles Astor’s site, AudioNirvana.org, with M10 Line Signature discussion and comments.
She took some pictures and told some stories 🙂 some of which I can tell you here…
Acapella Triolon loudspeakers, Audio Note Kegon Balanced amplifiers, EMM Labs’ DA2 DAC and TX2 transport, Finite Elemente racks, and, of course, the 3 box (control plus a power supply for each channel) Audio Note M10 Line Signature. Fred’s analog rig is an updated Rockport Sirius 2 with Ortofon A90, and an Ypsilon stepup transformer and phonostage.
I’m from the “How hard can it be” tribe, but , hey, there is a manual, just in case 😉
The front of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier
OK. Just like every other time we have had the pleasure… But brand new, cold, just hooked up for the first time – Audio Note rocks. Yeah, it sounds better warmed up of course, but really, it is always such a shocker to hear it sound truly excellent right out of the box, unlike just about everything else we have ever heard.
The rear of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier. Support for bi-amping is apparent. The green military-grade connectors on the left there are for the connections to the two power supplies.
The front of one of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier’s ‘Galahad Signature’ power supplies.
The rear of one of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier’s ‘Galahad Signature’ power supplies. The separate right and left channel power supplies connect to the main linestage control unit with Audio Note’s provided silver umbilical cables.
Convenient double high rack for the power supplies.
The front of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier powered up. This is the main control unit, with separate right and left volume controls, and the selector switch.
The front of the Audio Note M10 Line Signature preamplifier powered up. This piece provides two transformer-coupled balanced inputs and four single ended inputs.
The original system with the EMM Labs MTRX amplifiers [with gold faceplate] which Neli reports went very well with the Audio Note M10 Line Signature as well.
It was quite a weekend with Neli arriving rather late Friday evening and then staying until Sunday evening. Neli was instrumental in getting everything hooked up properly and sounding its best. I am unsure whether the units had any burn-in at the factory. They sounded alright even cold but improved rather dramatically after the first hour and have continued to improve since then. The aspect of the sound which seems to take the longest to deveelope is depth, three-dimensionality and air around the instruments. This is improving but still has a way to go. I should mention that hese units are very quiet, no hum and except at full output no tube rush and even then very little. Likewise they are extremely dynamic and the low bass power and extension is better than any transistor preamp that I have tried. So far I have played them with both the EMM Labs MTRX and the Balanced Kegon amps. Both are exceptional if different; however, there is truly some synergy between the two Audio Note pieces.
Hi Fred!
Thanks for your kind words. It was a real pleasure getting to see you, hear your system, and get the M10 Sig setup. Although it’s pretty spectacular right out of the box, I expect its performance to improve across the board for the next month or two. We have found that there is always synergy between Audio Note UK components — but the performance with the MTRX was really excellent also, and I think that the M10 plays very well with others.
It was also really a treat to see Paul, and to get to meet Earl and the other Houston crew. I am looking forward very much to my next visit.
Hello Neli and Mike,
Break-in continues as detailed on my recent posts at audionirvana.com; however, as Neli commented, even straight from the box it was pretty obvious that the M10 Signature was a “fantastical beast”. At this point, there are three areas that I would single out for particular mention. First, resolution of low level and ambient information. While I suspect that this may be related to the vanishingly low noise floor and Level 6 parts quality, that may not be the full story. Second, the bass, control and extension are both the best which I have ever heard and probably set the standard in these areas. Last, tonality and accurateness of timbre. While this is an area where tube preamps often excel, it is generally at the expense of resolution and bass extension and control. here that is clearly not the case. Three dimensionality is finally developing nicely after many hundreds of hours of break-in but probably has a way to go before it reaches the standard set in the other areas by the M10.
A final thought, while it is clearly evident that there is synergy between the M10 Signature and the balanced Kegons, it would be misleading to say that this fantastical beast works less well with an excellent solid state amp such as the EMM Labs MTRX. The problem is that there are just not many really good solid state amps out there.
Normally, I would not even consider tweaks to a new piece of equipment until I was relatively sure that the unit had broken in; however, in this case, Audio Note had been kind enough to provide me with two different power cords for the M10 Signature, an Isis which is their latest all copper cord and the silver Sogon, so I decided to experiment. The Sogon was, at least for my tastes, a bit soft, warm and romantic. The Isis was more linear and delivered significantly more information in the frequency range from the bass through the lower midrange that rounded out both the individual instruments and the whole tonal and spatial picture. The only downside with the Isis was a bit more edge at times. In any event, access to the two very different cords does allow the listener some flexibility in tailoring the sound.
Hi Fred,
Thanks so much for your comments! This is so much fun… Well, not as fun as being down there in Houston hearing every change as the pre breaks in, or as much fun as hearing the pre every day, … but still fun 🙂
I think cables, including power cords, are an under-appreciated method to tailor the sound just a little bit – not just to our preferences [which may indeed be to get as close to the Absolute Sound as possible], but to our current mood.
Yes, chocolate may be the best ice cream, but sometimes we might like it very cold and sometimes very melty, sometimes with more or less cocoa.
Sometimes I am stressed out and my ears are very sensitive. I may want to listen to George Thorogood, but do not want it to be ‘in my face’. At other times it has been a boring day, and I want him ‘in my face’ to wake me up, to get the blood going. No reason to have to go out and buy a whole new system. MAYBE one can find a release where he has been recorded from the 30th row, and one from the 1st row – kind of the optimal solution here – but YMMV when it comes down to a particular artist’s album selection.
This point of view, for whatever veracity and usefulness it may or may not have, is kind of a psychological crutch in response to the realization that There is No Perfect Cable. Even great cables have particular weaknesses while at the same time have particular strengths that no other cable can match. It is frustrating, or perhaps infuriating, but it is one of those truths having to do with real things in the real world – especially true when combining cables and the very best gear in the world which allows you to hear EVERYTHING.
Anyway, we are following your posts with eager anticipation 🙂
-Mike
Hello Mike and Neli,
When I arrived home last Friday, a UPS package was sitting on my front porch containing a shiny, new GAST compressor to replace the one that had died in my Rockport. One of the problems with a vintage item like the Rockport is that the manufacturer no longer supports the product, so the owner is pretty much on his own to keep the beast running. In this particular case the reward is the sound. In any event, my friend Paul had just returned from a trip to Canada to visit his family and was able to install the new compressor and subsequently, after replacing a high pressure hose that may ultimately have contributed to the compressor failure, able to get the Rockport up and running. As you might guess, the sound through the M10 was seductive.
Fred
The M10/Galahad Combo looks like a job for the Hulkster ! Must be incredible heavy to carry them arround… Greetings from Germany, Stefan/AN Germany
Hi Stefan! So great to meet you.
The two M10 Line Signature power supplies weigh about 63 lbs or 28 kg each … in Meishu-sized chassis. The control unit (with dual volume controls and input channel selector) is in a normal (say M3 / M8 / M9) sized chassis, weighs … less than that :=). We just replaced that little stand with a HRS SXR and M3x2 isolation bases … yum.