Primare R15
Contents
Finally, the Primare! We’ve had the Primare R35 as a “reference” pre-amp for a while now. So we are familiar with that sound. But what about the R15? The ‘little brother’? After all, it makes a difference of 550 Euro! (The R35 costs about 1600 Euro, the R15 sells for 1050).
The Primare R15 offers the same functionality as the R35. This preamplifier accepts MM and MC elements and offers dipswitches to adjust all kinds of settings concerning capacitance and resistance. Thus, a very versatile device. On the front we see one button: on / off. Cool design!
We can be very brief: the sound is similar to the R35. We hear the same grip, tranquility and authority. Those who do not have balanced inputs on their amplifier, do not have to buy an R35. The R15 draws an equivalent picture with loads of silence and detail. This remains an impressive device.
Measurements Primare R15
The Primare measures very cleanly. We see a neat noise floor (top of the field) at the analog outputs where the noise in the low end is also very good. This is incredibly good for a built-in linear power supply since that is where scatter fields come into play. Bizarrely, the Cambridge scores even better in this area.
The response is neat and completely in line with the rest of the field. The bass curve is neat, and we don’t see a rumble filter.
The power supply noise is very low. We are – we estimate – towards the noise floor of the measurement setup. Peaks are around -127 (differential mode) and -123 dB (common mode). On average we see -130 and -137 dB. Only the AVID is lower on average, but it has a – much – higher peak around 35 kHz.
| Type | Primare R15 |
| MM/MC | Yes, both |
| Curves | No |
| Adjustable impedance / capacitance | Yes, both |
| Power supply | Linear, internal |
| Price | 1050 |