Krell Kav 280p. This is a preamp by legendary high end American brand Krell. They make some of the most expensive and highly sort after hifi in the world. They also manufacture home cinema equipment. This preamp sits at the bottom of the Krell range, it still costs a very hefty amount of money however!

First impressions of this amplifier are good. It would win a fair few beauty contests, it looks fantastic! Big and shiny and silver. There is no way your friends would miss this one! It is also nicely built and as far as connections go it is very well specified.

It comes with a remote control (a very slick unit!) and can be left on standby to keep warm. I would recommend you do this as the sound from cold bares no relation to the sound once it has warmed through.

Sound wise it is very distinctive. Krell is easy to spot in a blind listening test. It produces a huge solid sound stage and is ever so slightly bright. It also sounds a little bit cold. Mid bass is the culprit as there is no over emphasis in this particular area. The tonal quality very much reminds me of musical fidelity, it is very similar.

Where the Krell really scores points is in its control and separation. Separation is excellent and detail is also superb. Every noise however low in a particular mix can be heard and identified. Imaging is also spot on. The sound stage is large and three dimensional and realism is also excellent. All the instruments sound rock solid and you can point to where they are in the sound stage. The singer sits well in front of the band and presence is another strong point.

Another plus is coherence. Bass and treble fit perfectly and music sounds faster than usual. If you like rock or dance music you will love this amplifier as it really makes the most out of these genres.

Where it falls down is in its ability to slow the pace down, it lacks some of the qualities you would find in a low powered valve amp, it can't provide the intimacy and romance that one of these devices can conjure. It always sounds big and bold and powerful.

In many ways Krell equipment is what hifi should be. It is tonally accurate, on the beat and is smooth and musical. It is also a million miles away from cheap equipment. A complete novice could appreciate that this preamp sounds expensive.

It pulls layers and layers away from the music revealing a sound that is big, bold and bright. It also sounds fantastic in a demonstration room. It's quality is obvious. For some though it will sound a little bit unsophisticated and cold.

I would never call it clinical but there is an element of warmth that is missing. Music doesn't flow the way it can with small valve amps but to be fair you can not have it all ways and the Krell does an awful lot right.

I like Krell equipment. It is easy to use, very well specified and provides excellent sound quality. It is expensive and I wish that prices could be more comparable with Us pricing as we do pay a premium for American gear in Britain.

If absolute sounds could sort it I think that with Krell they would have a brand that could outsell most of the big British companies as it really is very worthy indeed.

Ebay alert!

If you can find one you are lucky! No idea about prices but I would not pay more than £800