This four-chassis, dual-mono preamplifier is that rare breed that strikes a near-perfect balance between transient attack and instrumental body and does so from top to bottom in both frequency response and amplitude. Its ability to deliver speed plus sustain at all dynamic levels is extraordinary. The result, said reviewer PB, is near-perfect timbre and, if the rest of your system is up to it, nearly ideal imaging. PB, 208

Like the company’s 711 stereo and 701 monoblock amplifiers, Soulution’s latest preamplifier, the 725, set a new standard in high fidelity for JV. Exceptionally rich, lifelike, and beautiful in tone color from bottom to top, the 725 also has (everywhere) the transient speed, fine textural detail, three-dimensional bloom, and sheer acoustical power of the real thing, making for the most consistently and thrillingly lifelike presentation JV has yet heard from solid-state electronics. JV, 249

The battery-powered darTZeel preamplifier aims to provide a silkily quiet background, and it does. With a variety of options, including numerous BNC outputs and inputs for connecting to front-end equipment and amplifiers, it functions as something of the proverbial Swiss Army knife. A nifty feature is the inclusion, once a common feature in the audio industry, of a phonostage whose performance is nothing to be sneezed at. This darTZeel believes in the lush life. It delicately and convincingly treads the fine line between tubes and solid-state to produce highs that possess a rare purity, seemingly devoid of any electronic artifacts. While bass reproduction may not be quite as stentorian as some of its competitors, such as Boulder or Gryphon, the darTZeel possesses an ability to reproduce microdetail that may be unsurpassed. JHb, 327

This Danish preamplifier more than merits its audacious name. With its beefy external power supply, the Commander is simply…commanding. No detail is too minute for it to reproduce with utter clarity and control. Add in prodigious grip in the bass region, image solidity, and seemingly effortless dynamic swells, and the Commander pretty much sails through the most demanding passages with ease. Nothing seems to faze it. An enticing mix of beauty and the beast, the Commander could hardly be a more winning preamplifier. JHb, 334

Boulder’s 2110 preamplifier is a technological tour de force. It consists of four modules, two for the power supply and two for the linestage, that help to ensure amazing image stability, subterranean bass, and gossamer-like highs. Timbres have tremendous weight and heft, coupled with a delicious pellucidity that sets it apart from other preamps. Its fully balanced operation banishes any hint of hum. Nothing extraneous ever seems to intrude upon musical reproduction, as the 2110 effortlessly delivers transient attacks with unerring accuracy. AHC, 249

The L10 linestage is available as a two-chassis or four-chassis configuration. The entire system can be set up and controlled via CH’s outstanding app. The 10 Series offers extraordinary sonic performance and a level of musical engagement that must be experienced to be believed. Although the sound has a pristine clarity and crystalline transparency, it never sounds even remotely analytical. Listening to music through the L10 is a revelatory experience. RH, 323

This pricey, exquisitely made, gorgeous-sounding, two-box, all-tube linestage preamplifier shares, quite naturally, the dark, rich, powerful sound of its companion amplifiers (the 450 iQ monoblocks). In this it is typically tube-like. And yet the VAC preamp (and amp) does not sound like other high-quality tube components in certain key ways: They are not as bloomy, for instance, as vintage ARC; they are not as lush as classic C-J; they are not as electrifying as Ken Stevens’ CATs. They are a different taste entirely, sharing some qualities—speed, grip, resolution—with the best solid-state, and some qualities—liquidity, density of tone color and texture, life-sized imaging—with tubes. What they have—what all of VAC’s Statement products seem to have—is the dynamic ease of the real thing, and this almost-tape-like continuousness goes a long way toward making instruments and vocalists sound real. JV, 263

As colorless a piece of electronics as you’re ever likely to hear, with no sonic flavor of its own, the Altair II allows the finest micro-details of timbre, transient information, and spatial cues to pass through without imposing its own signature on the music. Most preamplifiers shave off some low-level detail, add a bit of grain to instrumental textures, and drape a fine scrim between you and the music. Not the Altair II; what you put in is what comes out. The sheer amount of detail the Altair II resolves, the transparency to sources and speed, clarity, and dynamics are breathtaking. Moreover, the resolution comes without a trace of etch. The Altair II and the matching Hercules II amplifiers are world class, reference-quality electronics that would be at home in the most demanding systems. RH, 260

With its wealth of controls, the two-box, solid-state 3010 preamplifier looks like it belongs in a NORAD control center. Boulder does nothing by half-measures: A new dual-phase 993SD gain stage and separate power supplies for each channel ensure that it is both dead quiet and can supply crushing fortissimos with ease. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the Boulder is that it comes very close to the proverbial straight-wire-with-gain that so many audiophiles lust after. Turn the volume dial up and the soundstage simply expands without the slightest sense of compression. It would be hard to think of a more linear amplifier than the Boulder. Those seeking tube-like bliss should look elsewhere. But for a refined presentation, amazing transient detail, and seemingly limitless power, this is it. JHb, 306