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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 1
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 2
1 Using your VRE-1 Pre amplifier Congratulat ions on your pu rchase of the VRE-1 p reamplifier. Th e VRE-1 is simple to s etup and operate, but that sim plicity belie s an e xceptionally sophisticated design that includes a great deal of innovative thin king and t he best parts available today. A lthough reading th is manual may no t be necessary f ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 3
2 Preparing for use - locating your VRE-1: Your VRE-1 has a lot of wonderful attributes, an d one of th em is the fact that neither it nor its p ower sup ply produ ce appreciable heat. In addition, the Corian chassis is fa irly im mune to h eat, so the VRE-1 may b e installed in an enclosed cabinet. Th is mean s that you m ay loca te you r VRE-1 an ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 4
3 Front Panel layout • Input selector sw itch: Rotary switch sele cts one of 4 inputs. • Polarit y swi tch and LED indicator: Sets system po larity (absolute polarity, sometimes called “a bsolute phase”). Up is norma l, n on-inverted polarity, a nd flipp ing the switch down in verts signal po larity. Th e LED then lights to ind icate that s ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 5
4 Front Panel layout • Input selector sw itch: Rotary switch sele cts one of 4 inputs. • Polarit y swi tch and LED indicator: Sets system po larity (absolute polarity, sometimes called “a bsolute phase”). Up is norma l, n on-inverted polarity, a nd flipp ing the switch down in verts signal po larity. Th e LED then lights to ind icate that s ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 6
5 • Circuit Ground Conne ctor: This binding p ost offers access to the system electrical groun d if needed. There is norm ally no connection to this po st. • Main I nput Group: 4 pairs of inputs are pro vided, lab eled 1 thru 4 (correspond ing to the front panel Input Selector switch). Input 1 is a dedicated ba lanced input with XLR co nnectors ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 7
6 near-idea l load on t he input and confer that magic tube-like musicality. T hey also act as a “brick wall” filter against DC and RFI contamination. In add ition, the y allow th e VRE-1 to b e conf igured f or voltage gain (up t o +6dB) if it is nee ded. Thus, the VRE-1 is a “passive” preamp -- but with gain. Finally, all of th e parts an ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 8
7 The Powe r Supply The V RE-1’s compan ion power supp ly provides carefully tailored DC p ower fo r the pro per ope ration of your preamp. The “Power 1” conn ection provides +/- 24 VDC of choke-filtered, unregulated power, while the “Power 2” co nnection provides +/- 24 VDC of f ully regulated power for the relays, LEDs, and Monitor Out ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 9
8 Please Note: The VRE-1 is a hand-built work of “in dustrial art.” It is a b eautiful object, and a great deal of effort ha s gone into its creation. Ironically, beca use it is hand-made, you may f ind small blemishes that do not occur in the routine perfection of mass-marketed consumer goods. W e believe you’ll acce pt these a s part of the ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 10
9 This is important because I cannot fu lly break-in your VRE-1 before sh ipping. Your preamp has been thoroughly tested a nd listened-to, but this is just the beginning. I make every e ffort to present you with a good initial im pression, but beyond that it is u p to you to comp lete the brea k-in process, and to *un derstand* that it will take ti ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 11
10 Acknowle dgements This project has been in development for a long time, and I sincerely thank everyone who contribut ed in any w ay to its success. However, the re a re a few people I would like to point-out for their special con tributions… • Jim Merod - For his to-the-po int observations and criticism, and h is indefatigable efforts on b e ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 12
11 Getting the most from y our VRE-1 preamplifier - a user’s guide Suggestions for AC cords and access ories After some thought, I h ave come to the decision to le ave a “standard” AC co rd out of the parts comp lement. It is my e xperience that the AC cord is an integral part of the sound of your VRE-1, and I suggest that you use the b est p ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 13
12 Grounding Options Your V RE-1 provides se veral o ptions f or mat ching ea rth ground arrangem ents for best results with your sy stem . A binding p ost connected to circuit ground is provided on the rear panel to facilitate external conne ctions to other equipment chassis ground s if need be, a nd a n adjustab le groun d jumper is pro vided ins ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 14
13 Tuning the Stea lth power link cable Your VRE-1 use s a custom-b uilt power-link cable from S tealth Audio Cables. This cable inclu des a carbon-compo site sleeve t hat will slide along its length. The position of t his slee ve has a “tuning” effect - m oving it will affe ct the sound of your pream p to some degree. I f ind th e effect t o b ...
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SMc Audio VRE-1 - page 15
14 Using the XLR-to-RC A ba lanced i nput adaptors As stated in the owner’s m anual, all 4 of the VRE-1’s inputs are actually balanced. I chose the connector arrangement based on a best-guess estima te of what most audiophiles are l ikely to have in their systems - one balanced s ource (X LR), and the rest unbalanced (RCA). If you have more tha ...
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