Best Preamp Under $10,000.00? Designed by John Tucker, this hand-crafted tube preamp is the culmination of 12 years of design refinements. It features innovative, high performance power and control circuitry, resulting in low noise and sonic purity. An eclectic mix of solid state and tube components, the Exception SE enjoys the best of both worlds. The Exemplar Exception SE Preamp has neither the excessively warm overtones of some tube preamps, nor the clinical coldness that is exhibited by many solid state components. The sound is superb. The top end is very smooth and there is tight bass at the low end. Truly a musical sounding preamp. A first listen draws attention to the impressive sound stage. Each instrument can be individually pinpointed. The Exception SE is very revealing, but still those less than ideal recordings are enjoyable. We recommend an audition.
