[Big Red Machine]

Funny post, but so true!! Flavor of the month? There's been a lot of "Flavors" over the years...
I did hear that TRL has stopped making the Samson and will make a tube amp at the $6k price point.

You can still order the Samsons. 

[mtruong34]

Do any of you Dude owners leave on your Dudes 24/7 or near all the time?  Is it recommended not to?  What are the pro's and con's?  Thanks for any advice.

--Mike

[jtwrace]

Do any of you Dude owners leave on your Dudes 24/7 or near all the time?  Is it recommended not to?  What are the pro's and con's?  Thanks for any advice.

--Mike

Hello Mike

I do not leave on 24/7 but Paul said it's not a big deal for the unit whatsoever.  He leaves his unit on 24/7 and another owner that I spoke to does.  I'm not able to listen every night so it would be wasteful IMO.

[Big Red Machine]

My whole system has been playing at low volume for 5 days now.  I do that quite often so it is warmed and ready for me to enjoy.

The tube circuits are being taxed so lightly in the Dude that they will outlast us I am sure.

For tubes to try, give me a shout.  I have some TungSol GTB's coming soon.

[mtruong34]

Thanks for the responses.  I have a Mac MC275 that sounded bad cold, and took about an hour's worth of warm-up time to sound its best.  I don't think the Dude is as sensitive but I'm sure it sounds a bit different cold vs. warmed up.  I use Marconi's in my Dude based on advice from other owners but I've never tried any tube rolling.  Let me know how the Tung Sol's work out.

[Big Red Machine]

And let me know where you got the Marconi s.  Can't seem to find any.

[mtruong34]

Hey Big Red,

Two pair of Marconis came with the Dude from the last owner.  It also came with a pair of Tung Sols that I've never tried as the previous owner described the Marconis as warm and musical (which I prefer) and the Tung Sols as detailed and dynamic.  I haven't really felt the need to look around for different tubes to try as I'm pretty happy with the Marconis, and I've got enough backups to last me a while.  Let me know if you get the same impression about your Tung Sols as I was told.

[jtwrace]

I started seriously looking for a new pre about 6 months ago.  It wasn't that I wasn't happy with my previous unit it was simply that I felt that it wasn't offering the neutral clarity that the rest of my system was able to offer.   

I looked at literally everything.  I spoke to a couple of dealers that had ARC, Atma-Sphere and one that had Rogue.  I was really intrigued.  It's really hard to spend $8k on something that if I didn't like it was worth 60% of what I paid at best.  I learned my lesson with my last "hi fi" pre.  I decided that I was sticking to $4k or less.  Period!  I contacted 6 Dude owners and even 1 that sold his unit (went to intergrated b/c he moved) and every single one of them had nothing but good things to say.  I've spent a lot of money over the years on this hobby and now look at it very different in many ways.  One being that I want to reduce the risk of lost funds as it's getting harder to make it!  Resale is always a concern now for me.  The Dude from my research has great resale so I thought I could purchase and sell without much loss if I wasn't happy.

In the end, I decided that the Dude was what I needed to try.  Paul and I emailed about 100 (yes, 100) emails back and fourth from start to finish and spoke three times on the phone.  He was always responsive and always answered my phone calls.  The one thing that I had to have was a remote and he understood why as my quality of music would suffer otherwise by using the digital volume control within the music player.  At first I asked if he could do the layout within the case so I could add one myself but he realized that it would probably be better to do it at TRL then have strange fingers in the unit.  I got what I wanted but the remote is all on me down the road.  Not a problem either as John at Bent Audio is another fine guy. 


The unit arrived in a wood crate that is filled with foam and the Dude is wrapped in it's own white sheet.  In the box the remote was packed in a box with about 10 Cd's that Paul has recorded and mastered.  That's right he's also an accomplished recording / mastering engineer among other technical talents. 
 

I unpacked the Dude and set it up on the rack which I needed a hand as the size and weight is nothing short of impressive.  We got it positioned and I plugged it all in and just did a quick function check to make sure I had input / output.  I did!  I left the unit on as suggested by Paul until I got home the next day. 
 

The first night I sat down to listen was the time that I really knew that I made the right decision.  It was everything that I could've hoped for and more.  I'm not going to use all the glorious details as we get enough of that every month from the online mags and print mags.  Over the last week the unit to my surprise has just gotten better...it just totally sucks you into the music like I've never experienced before.  If you heard my system and thought it sounded good before, you need to hear it now.

I can't say enough about Paul and the Dude. 
 

Is it for everyone?  I don't see why not but everyone certainly has their own taste and that's fine.  I will say that it's easily the best preamp that I've ever owned regardless of price (half of the most expensive that I've owned).

[wilsynet]

I've had it on for about 36 hours now and I just listened for a few hours tonight.

It is easily amongst the finest preamplifiers I've ever heard, and most certainly is the finest I've ever had in my system.  Music has body but is neutral.  Transparent but not a hint of sibilance or fatigue.  Relaxed but immersive.  Tonally beautiful but quite clearly accurate and neutral.  The Dude does everything right.

Unfortunately, I am likely to sell it.  The spouse says that the aesthetics of the Dude do not appeal to her at all, not one bit and has begged me to be rid of it.

This is a very disappointing outcome indeed.

[doug s.]

I've had it on for about 36 hours now and I just listened for a few hours tonight.

It is easily amongst the finest preamplifiers I've ever heard, and most certainly is the finest I've ever had in my system.  Music has body but is neutral.  Transparent but not a hint of sibilance or fatigue.  Relaxed but immersive.  Tonally beautiful but quite clearly accurate and neutral.  The Dude does everything right.

Unfortunately, I am likely to sell it.  The spouse says that the aesthetics of the Dude do not appeal to her at all, not one bit and has begged me to be rid of it.

This is a very disappointing outcome indeed.

  tell her you bought it for listening, not to look at, and that you do not have the budget to spend multiples of what it would take to equal the sound, yust cuz it ain't pretty.  tell her "end of discussion".  what a ridiculous attitude - it's a metal box for chris'sakes.  some speakers i can understand, when they are totally off-the-wall looking, and can make a huge wisual impact on a room.  but a preamp?!?   

ymmv,

doug s.

[JP78]

What I don't understand is how can manufacturers customize several thousand dollars worth of options but not a faceplate to make it worth keeping?

Additionally how does a pending owner, having a spouse for a presumably reasonable amount of time, not think to check for aesthetics and ask for any required changes before spending thousands of dollars on a made-to-order piece?

Indeed we all share a strange hobby.

[wilsynet]

In her defense, it is the first time that she has ever objected.  She's put up with awkwardly large speakers, various turntables, amplifiers that put out 400 watts of waste heat.  And has always agreed with me that the sound is more important.

The current incarnation of the TRL Dude is quite large.  It's not obvious from pictures that people take and the dimensions are not listed on the web site.  She's seen the pictures and approved, but in real life, I'll have to admit that the TRL Dude is a bit over the top.  It is 19" across, 17" deep and 8" tall.  I think that makes it bigger than most turn tables and is certainly the largest piece of audio equipment I've ever owned.

If it were just me, I'd put it in an audio rack and call it a day.  One problem is that she doesn't like audio racks and it sticks out like a sore thumb in front of the television.  Sonically it really is terrific.  As I said, the finest preamplifier I've ever had in my system, and I've had a few nice ones grace my system over time.

[jtwrace]

I've had it on for about 36 hours now and I just listened for a few hours tonight.

It is easily amongst the finest preamplifiers I've ever heard, and most certainly is the finest I've ever had in my system.  Music has body but is neutral.  Transparent but not a hint of sibilance or fatigue.  Relaxed but immersive.  Tonally beautiful but quite clearly accurate and neutral.  The Dude does everything right.

Unfortunately, I am likely to sell it.  The spouse says that the aesthetics of the Dude do not appeal to her at all, not one bit and has begged me to be rid of it.

This is a very disappointing outcome indeed.

   I will say that it's only going to get much better with time.  I think you'll be hard pressed to find something that is smaller, equal or less cost that sounds the same or better.   

It would be worth getting her a pair of diamond studs in the long run.   

[BPT]

If it were me, I'd have one of the fine woodworkers hanging around AC, make a custom faceplate for the Dude out of some exotic wood--let your spouse help pick it out.
Chris H.

[Big Red Machine]

What color is it?  Single volume knob or dual?  I agree with Chris - keep the best preamp you have had and put a face on it.  A hollowed out solid piece with snubbers on the edge could keep it pressed onto the outer rim of the faceplate.

[wilsynet]

It's not the face; it's the size.  It is gigantic.  The Dude seems to have been designed for Andre the Giant.

[Big Red Machine]

It's not the face; it's the size.  It is gigantic.  The Dude seems to have been designed for Andre the Giant.

Same case as the Samsons.  A little tighter packing of the internals could have been doone in both.  Probably why they say it abides.  That large neighbor who won't stay off your porch.

Can you buy your wife off?  Jewelry perhaps?

[JakeJ]

  tell her you bought it for listening, not to look at, and that you do not have the budget to spend multiples of what it would take to equal the sound, yust cuz it ain't pretty.  tell her "end of discussion".  what a ridiculous attitude - it's a metal box for chris'sakes.  some speakers i can understand, when they are totally off-the-wall looking, and can make a huge wisual impact on a room.  but a preamp?!?   

ymmv,

doug s.

I agree sonics should take precedence over aesthetics but some peoples tastes differ.  We must respect that even if we disagree or don't understand.  That said, if the size is that overbearing then maybe Paul can offer another solution.


Hey Doug,

Is this what you mean by "wisual impact"?

 

[doug s.]

I agree sonics should take precedence over aesthetics but some peoples tastes differ.  We must respect that even if we disagree or don't understand.  That said, if the size is that overbearing then maybe Paul can offer another solution.


Hey Doug,

Is this what you mean by "wisual impact"?

 

as i stated, i could understand someone objecting to speakers.  such as my horns.     fortunately, i do not have that problem.     but a preamp?  sorry, i don't get it.  even a 19"w x8"h box. 

ymmv,

doug s.

[SteveFord]

You can not go wrong with a doiley and a nice geranium set on top.