From the Vault

Experience has shown me that you don’t get something for nothing, so I don’t expect the state-of-the-art in hi-fi to cost the same as a toaster. Regular readers will note, however, that I do champion those rare components which defy their price tags, and get no greater pleasure than I do from learning that you don’t have to take out a mortgage for a taste of the best.

Last year, I went a bit goofy over the Aragon 4004 power amplifier from Mondial Designs in the US. Would the company be able to produce a preamplifier worthy of it, a preamp which does at its price-point what that amplifier did for entry-level high-end?

A cut above

I’d seen prototypes of the Aragon 24K in the US, the initial and still dominant reaction being amazement at the distinctive styling. Carrying on the V-groove theme which made the 4004 stand out from the pack, Mondial took it a stage further by running the groove across the fascia instead of cutting through the top-plate. When you look head-on at the 24K at eye-level, it almost looks like any other preamp. Take a three-quarter or profile glance and you see just what a clever styling fillip graces this unit – although I’m certain that some customers will find it too outré after years of flat-panel conditioning.

There is one unfortunate by-product of the styling which soon makes its presence known, and I don’t mean the way that the lower slope catches dust. Because the central point of each knob is at the point of the groove, the legends for ‘listen’ (source) and ‘record’ are printed on the lower section. They don’t line up with the dots on the two knobs, so you have to spend time with the product before familiarity takes over. Other amplifiers I’ve seen with the legends arranged below, instead of around, the knobs use lines drawn from the click-stop positions to the labels to indicate status, so I’m not asking for the impossible.

The controls across the 24K’s front include the barest essentials without quite resorting to fakir masochism. At the extreme left is a three-position rotary control for off/on/mute, the ‘off’ position actually being a standby mode because the 24K is powered as long as the unit is plugged into a live wall socket. Turning the knob to the middle position provides full power on, while the mute position deactivates the output to the power amplifier – handy when changing records or sources. Above this is an LED which glows green when the unit is in the ‘on’ position, but it also stays on when in the mute position; I’d prefer to see it either dim to half-power in the latter mode or possibly change colour.

Next is the source selector, plus a ‘record’ knob to choose sources for recording; this arrangement allows you to record one source while listening to another. There’s then an oversized control for volume, as it should be because it’s the most used, followed by a balance control with centre detent. That’s it, the only missing items which I’d like to see being a mono button (I’m convinced that mono recordings sound better with units offering this) and a polarity inversion facility.

Luxury touches

The Aragon 24K supports six sources: phono, CD, tuner, auxiliary and two tape decks, both of the latter operating for record or playback. At the back of the unit, Mondial yet again shows its ability for including luxury touches in affordable hardware by offering two rows of gold-plated Tiffany connectors for every input and output, including two sets of main outputs for bi-amplification or multi-system applications. As with the 4004, the legends are printed both right-side-up and upside-down to assist those who lean over their kit when making connections.

Also on the back are an earthing post and an XLR-type input for the outboard power supply. The latter is an unusually styled unit carrying on the wedge motif; its frontal aspect is triangular, making it look like a big Toblerone bar without the slots.

A look inside reveals how Mondial has managed yet again to keep costs down without affecting quality. Instead of drilling the front (or rear) panel to make space for another control, moving-coil and moving-magnet pick-up selection and adjustment are accessed internally via sets of DIP switches. By combining the rockers you can create loading values to suit just about any cartridge you can name. These internal selections, Mondial argues, will be made only once in a while for most people, so the inconvenience will only be noted by inveterate cartridge changers and, of course, reviewers.

As with the 4004, internal construction is excellent and the unit is bristling with designer label components. Most pleasing of all is the inclusion of Noble pots instead of cheap ’n’ cheerful alternatives, the Nobles offering both good performance and reliability. What few bits of wire you do find under the lid are carefully routed, kept short and soldered perfectly. What it shows is that specialist manufacturers can offer professional build quality in products which don’t break the bank. British cottage industry firms, take note.

Warm embrace
The 24K needs a hefty run-in period, but this is something I don’t care to argue about anymore when you consider that simply leaving it on for three days will do it. And it’s sensible to leave Aragon’s preamp plugged in to a live outlet at all times, because warm-up from cold (after the initial burn-in) is a good hour.

I slipped the 24K into a system consisting of an Alphason Sonata turntable, Marantz CD12, Sony R1 and California Audio Labs Tempest II CD players, and Roland Model 7, Beard P100 monoblock and Aragon 4004 power amplifiers. I used Apogee Divas for most of the listening, but also enjoyed spells with more traditional speakers from Celestion, Wharfedale and Microphase.

The 24K behaves just beautifully, no bangs, pops, clicks, buzzes, hums or other unwanted sounds which can make hi-fi less than a blissful pursuit. Nothing, no headaches whatsoever: the 24K just did what it should. Score 1 for Mondial, to add to the other points for superior construction, adequate facilities and almost perfect ergonomics.

The sound is clean and clear without being either overly hygienic or too lean. If anything, the 24K is warmer than I expected, but it’s hardly one which will woo consumers away from all-valve designs or even ARC’s hybrids. This endows the 24K with exceptional power for revealing fine details, especially the sonic clues which help to create a soundstage.

This aspect of the 24K’s performance is notable, the £1395 unit almost approaching Audio Research’s SP-9 for realistic three-dimensionality. Within the stage are correctly proportioned players and instruments, but the 24K is not the ultimate in transparency, so a slight haze occupies the space between the sounds. It’s not quite noise – the amp is quiet enough to better most valve designs and challenge a few solid-state champions. Rather it’s a form of texturing that I don’t notice in units like Rowland’s Coherence One or the latest generation from Audio Research. Curiously, this didn’t seem as noticeable with the 4004 as it did with the Rowland Model 7, but that could just be the latter showing its greater transparency.

If anything upsets the 24K’s top-to-bottom consistency, it’s a slightly ‘light’ bass register. This also sounds like tailoring the preamp to the sound of the 4004, because the lightness is balanced out by the 4004’s overly rich bottom end. Again, this was more noticeable when using the Rowland power amplifier, which has such accurate bass that any changes in this region are easily identifiable.

The midband is the 24K’s crowning glory, reason enough to purchase one if the layout and physical specification haven’t already won your heart. In spite of the slight texturing of the ‘silences’, the 24K is sweet and liquid throughout the midband and the freedom from harshness even when the signals stretch the preamp to its limits make it one easy piece with which to live. The punchy brass on the Sousa CD [Nimbus] is a fine test for this characteristic, the Aragon 24K hanging on to the transients without losing control or revealing any compression.

More to the point is the way that the 24K copes with powerful vocals, especially deep male voices like Jimmy Witherspoon’s and half of The Persuasions. The chest sounds come through along with the primary vocals, never turning them into 20-a-day men unless the hoarseness is in the groove. With female vocals, the benefits are freedom from sibilance (Juice Newton) and retention of warmth (Ella Fitzgerald).

Conclusion

While the 4004 scores mightily because it has few serious rivals, the 24K has to contend with a type of product which UK manufacturers pump out with ease. Still, the Aragon preamp is now my choice for under £1500 – Mondial has put together a beautifully constructed performer with totally flexible moving-coil capabilities, top-flight ingredients, refreshing styling, adequate facilities and a detailed, non-fatiguing, wholly musical sonic delivery. The 24K can only be described as a winner.