Aurora preamp by Scientific Fidelity Inc. 💫

 

The SCI-FI Aurora preamplifier 

Scientific Fidelity, formerly Man, is the company that markets the splendid designs of a singular figure named David Man, in my opinion one of the most brilliant minds in the entire high-end scene.

Man presents himself as an American engaged in that strange mix of intents: selling (and trying to sell a lot) objects that appeal both to the user's cultural sensibilities and (too often predominantly) to their wallets.

In any case, his devices always have an extremely original aesthetic, often futuristically retro. Once I defined the aesthetics of one of its most prestigious chains (the one this Aurora preamplifier is part of), in the "Metropolis" style, clearly referring to Fritz Lang and certainly not to Peu-Sci Fi products are the perfect embodiment of what I've been repeating for years: that contrary to the dictates of a certain prudish esotericism, good can, indeed should, equate to beautiful, and there is no reason why the "spender" of money (a lot) intended for the acquisition of objects that, in addition to reproducing music at their best, represent important presences in the visual field of his existence, should at all costs have to own objects that, when they're not obviously ugly, are awkward or overbearing.

I've been fascinated by them since their first appearance at a

C.E.S. in 1989 (but notable Man product’s prototypes had been seen since 1986), a deep admirer of David Man's products, and if the siren song that first attracted me to one of his stands was the splendid aesthetics of his equipment (the Áurora preamp, the Trilium tube power amps, the Tesla speakers), the objectivity that led me to carefully follow their evolution is the fruit of the unmistakable quality of their sound, forming a cocktail that today is almost unique of different and splendidly cohesive beauties.

The Aurora preamp is an object that cannot fail to fascinate with its futuristic line, as futuristic as the machines imagined by Jules Verne, or as futuristic as the futuristic design of a certain school of interior architecture in the 1920s and 1930s (I'm thinking of Mius Van Del Rohe but also John McIntosh). In short, an archaeological futurity whose reinterpretation is brilliant and executed with extraordinary taste.

This is unprecedented in high fidelity:

the preamplifier is a sort of tubular handlebar, consisting of a wide, flat base in the shape of a low chromed parallelepiped, topped by a rectangular-based, triangular-section polyhedron mount, with a rounded upper corner, positioned orthogonally to the center of the base. A large tubular element passes through a hole drilled in the polyhedron, at the ends of which are four bands of synthetic material illuminated in a shaded, opalescent carmine red. These separate four knobs machined from the solid steel tube, flush with it. On the back of the polyhedron are the input and output pins, arranged in an orderly (and hidden) array.

In short, the Aurora, connected to a system consisting of a Michell Gyrodeck turntable with a SME Series IV tonearm personally modified by Allistair Robertson, a Spectral MCR Signature cartridge, a Micromega Duo CDP with a Duo Pro converter, Klimo Kent Silver Mono power amplifiers, and Diapason Adamantes loudspeakers, delivered a remarkable display of musicality, competing virtually on equal terms with the tube Linnett Silver Special that I use as a reference. This is a transistorized preamp with very few of the classic defects of solid-state preamps: it suffers neither from coldness nor a tendency to sharpness in the high range, which is nevertheless well extended and presents a slight coloration from emphasis above 10 kHz (noticeable as a hint of hyper-definition). 

Above all, it doesn't compromise its splendid transparency and ability to detail in the midrange with the dryness typical even of very high-quality equipment (e.g., Levinson 26 or Treshold FTen), although it doesn't possess the same astonishing tonal homogeneity. In the bass range, the Aurora behaves like a great preamp, with a resolution of even the smallest details (e.g., the touch of the bass strings or the textured texture of certain drums) of no less than exceptional quality, great dynamics, and remarkable depth characterized by an extraordinary harmonic richness. The soundstage is wide but not overwhelming, dimensionally very consistent, with a good contribution in terms of depth, which gives the sound a nice depth. In short, a different object, but far from strange, and, ultimately, one of the best preamplifiers currently available.

Thanks to the late, beloved Bebo Moroni for his a.m. review 💫🙏💫