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GRANITE AUDIO is a system concept.
A system with true synergy.
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NEW
Now with remote volume control.
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MODEL 770R MSRP $6,500.00 (With remote volume)
MODEL 770 MSRP $6,000.00 (Without remote)
Acrylic-Granite Faceplate
225kb photo 70kb photo
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This is the finest tube preamp
with tube phono section in the world today.
Check out these glowing compliments from
Mike Malter's review in Positive Feedback Magazine, 2003 , Issue #6.
Mike uses our Model #470 silver interconnects in his reference system,
which also includes the #770 preamp because he bought the one he reviewed.
Quote #1 "The Granite Audio Preamp delivers the magic of music. Listening with this preamp is one of those hair raising on the back of my neck while I'm tapping my toes kind of experiences. A vinyl recording of Orphee Aus Enfers is playing as I write this, and I am tapping my toes to the beat, laughing with joy at what I am hearing. I feel at one with the emotion of the music." Mike Malter.
Quote #2 "With a piece of gear this outstanding, I was intrigued by what went into it to make it sound so good. What I mean by so good is that this preamp by my way of thinking is so incredibly musical. It is also extremely quiet, a virtue for its built-in phono stage as well as in general for allowing fine and subtle detail to emerge. Furthermore it handles very complex musical passages such that fine instrumental detail is apparent while at the same time maintaining the broader musical picture. Its tonality to my ear, or shall I say tastes, are correct. I tried to find weaknesses to write about. And I am embarrassed to say I couldn't find any, at least from a musical perspective." Mike Malter.
Quote #3 "After break-in, I had the best time listening to music that I have ever had. I would like to share some of the highlights of my experience, to reveal both the strengths and weaknesses of the preamp and, in the case of vinyl, its phono stage. For my vinyl references, I first chose Also Sprach Zarathustra, performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and George Solti. This is a very complex piece with enormous range, and because of this, much can get lost in reproduction. That was not the case here. It seems that the more complex a piece of music, the more the Granite Audio phono stage likes it. The opening buzz representing the nothingness of the Universe was clear, not at all mushy. When God spoke, even during the crescendo of the Grand Voice, each instrument sounded separate and clear. This rendition has a lot of bass, and it was always tight, never mushy or bloated, and never emphasized at the expense of higher-pitched instruments or the gestalt of the piece. I never heard any kind of congestion. The sound was natural, open, and spacious, never harsh or glary. Next up, Kind of Blue. What's not to like? I heard sound that was wide and spacious, with small details very easy to hear. The bass was clean and tight, the highs crystal clear. The music was liquid and smooth, with a strong, solid presence." Mike Malter.
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"Most Outstanding
Rooms at the Show."
Stereotimes magazine writer Michael Wright picked the Granite Audio room as one of the "Most Outstanding Rooms" at the 2005 show.
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The PC board is a special 4-layer board.
It's like four circuit boards made into one audiophile sandwich.
The high B+ voltages and high-current filament voltages are on separate layers from the signal path and trace circuits, and isolated from them by a layer of pure copper. This gives excellent ratings for low noise, extra shielding, and low cross talk between channels and inputs. All traces are set at maximum distances apart and only cross at perpendicular orientation, as opposed to parallel which would generate noise and crosstalk. This differs from most PC boards which are single layer with no shielding. The traces in a single layer board must run parallel and unshielded , which causes all sorts of interference. The 4-layer board is cleaner and quieter sounding, as well as fully shielded.
Why tubes? A tube is a true valve. A transistor is a switch. Tubes let the music flow, while transistors are incessantly turning your music on and off by their very nature. Ever notice how the water flows smooth from conventional shower heads while it pulsates from massage heads? The on-off pulses feel good on your back, but they're harsh on your music and add to listening fatigue the same way your back gets numb to the water pulses after a while.
All the quality parts from Vishay, Alps, Sprague, Alcoswitch, Electroswitch, and Holco are mounted directly to the PC board. There is only a few inches of wire to connect the power supply board to the main amp board. Essentially the main board is one piece with all the parts attached.
The power supply is on a separate board to eliminate potential ground loop problems which cause low frequency hum. The filaments are filtered and rectified with low-noise ultra-fast recovery Schottkey rectifiers which produce a smoother voltage rail than conventional silicone rectifiers. Switches and contacts are either gold or silver. The RCA inputs are hard gold plate over silver over copper for the best in long-life wear and maximum transfer of a clean unaltered signal. The Model 770 uses tube rectification because we believe it sounds better and gives a fuller richer bass sound.
Click this link to open an Acrobat PDF 304kb file that is an 11" x 17" color poster of the inside of the #770 preamp. Around the border of this poster are text boxes that describe the quality features & benefits of the #770 with arrows leading from the text box to the feature inside the #770's well engineered interior. The #770 is an investment in quality that will last many decades. Check out this poster and see for yourself that you're getting your money's worth.
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GRANITE AUDIO
MODEL 770 PREAMP, Vacuum tube amps, preamps, tube phono preamp, preamplifier, power amplifier, CD player, valve amps, stereo amplifier.
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