Purchased in 2016. Way past the honeymoon phase. Sharing my experiences with the amplifier, good and bad. Primaluna recently replaced this model with the “Evo” series. Due to my current satisfaction, I will not be upgrading.
Why Tubes?
I’ve always wanted to own tube gear for my stereo. Ever since hearing a maxed out Conrad-Johnson system at the Sound Factor (no longer in business) in Encino, CA. It was the early 2000’s, my roommate Bill and I walked in and simply asked, “What’s the big deal with tube electronics?”. We were the type of kids in our 20’s who frequented the store, but couldn’t really afford anything. Still, they treated us well, and fired up a pair of B&W 802s (I think). they were positioned far out into the listening room, waiting for a paying customer to keep their appointment for listening. In the back of the room, they had 2 full racks of gear. One rack all Conrad-Johnson, the other rack was all Krell. Each setup was about $80-100K. I do remember they had flagship Nordost Cables. The owner of the store described the Krell electronics as, “State of the art!”. We were about to have a high-end battle royal. Tube vs Solid State!
What happened next, stayed with me forever. The Conrad-Johnson gear cast holographic images around the room. The resolution was so incredible, that it was as is if little windows of overdubs appeared in space, then disappeared after they completed their task. The sounds were captivating and magical. I couldn’t believe these kinds of aural illusions were possible. Then, they switched over to the Krell system. The sound completely fell apart. No more believable sounds, no more magic imaging. Just sloppy sharp transients and frequencies that were out of synch. We both couldn’t believe how bad it sounded. The sales man helping us, just kind of smiled and shrugged his shoulders saying, “Well, some people like it.” Maybe this was a sales man trick, maybe the Krell had better potential. But, for this example, tubes won. It wasn’t even close. I’ve been chasing that tube dragon ever since.
The Itch To Upgrade
Fast forward to 2016, San Francisco. I moved to the city for a good paying job and was on the hunt for an integrated amp. I accidentally discovered the well respected HiFi store, Audio Vision on California Street! They let me sample a few amps and I wound up taking home an open-boxed Primaluna Dialogue HP Integrated Amp. The truth was, it was more then I wanted to spend, even with the discount. But, at the time, it was the only Primaluna that also had a headphone output. Which was super important for me. So, I took a chance.
When I got home, I was having trouble seting up my speakers and getting the soundstage right. Though the sound quality was already a big improvement for me, something was wrong. Then I realized, while using headphones, the left channel was much louder than the right channel. A balance knob would have remedied this, but the Dialogue HP does not have one. I suspect maybe it was just a tube issue, so I swapped them around. I was never able to fix the issue. Heartbroken, I had to return the amp to the store. This is HEAVY by the way. Carrying it anywhere was a real hassle. But, the store let me exchange it, and for a little more money, I walked out with a new sealed box version. The same one, I still currently am using, and it’s had no issues.
Sound
So, how does it sound? Pretty fantastic. It was giant leap in sound quality for me. I might describe the sound as romantic over analytical. The stock EL34s had a super addictive sparkle on the top end, bass wrapped you in warm blanket, midrange is the famous lush sound you hear everyone mention with tube gear. Kind of standard cliches, but it was finally mine and glorious. The amp is dynamic and powerful. I’ve read separates can be more dynamic, but I can’t imaging why anyone would need that. Classic and Jazz recording’s are lively and realistic. Rock, um, rocks! Really great soundstage. The kind that captivates you regardless of the music genre.
It’s worth mentioning, if you are used to solid state amps, this amp sound comes from around the drivers. It takes a little getting used to. My last couple of solid-state amps had a very direct driver sound, music came from the tweeter shooting straight at you. This tube amp has more of an aura to it. I have no idea how this is technically possible, but that’s how it sounds. Perhaps subtle distortion creates this effect?
Over the years, I often hear the question asked, “What component makes the most difference in your system”? Some people say, Source is everything, others say Speakers are #1 priority. I was in the camp, that believe speakers were probably most important. Until owning this integrated amp. I know believe the amp is most important. What led me to this change in religion? In 2019, I upgrade my 25 year old Mirage speakers with some brand new EgglestonWorks Emma Evo series. Though, I’m very happy with the speakers, they did not make as big of a difference in my system as the Primaluna amp did. There are many other reviews explaining how easy the Primiluna amps are to use, and how they except almost any type of power tube. You can seek those types of reviews. The bottom line for me, is the amp sounds fantastic. I think it would be very costly to upgrade or try to beat it, so I’m staying put. Am I casting Holographic images, did I catch that dragon. Well, no, not yet. There’s more to come regrading that!
P.S. The rarely discussed reality of impedance.
There is a complicated mysterious microcosmos known as impedance. The more I learn, the more I realize it’s greatly misunderstood. Speakers and music swing wildly through different impedance curves. The numbers on your speaks and amp are useless. Experiment and see what sounds best for you. I wound up preferring my amp’s 4ohm tap, regardless of what speaker is plugged in. Perhaps this is what I like about tube electronics, even guitar amps have a way of gripping the speakers better. Do tube amps somehow manage impedance swings differently than solid-state? Maybe its the output transformer? I supposed there will always be unanswered questions. Always more to learn. This hobby will continue.
rePtile like Me 
I can relate to wanting that magical tube audio experience.