Backert Labs Rhumba 1.1 preamplifier tube preamp

A Rhumba 1.1 preamp which the owner sent to us for upgrades. When half the improvements had been completed, we learned that sadly the owner had unexpectedly passed away. We are selling this for his widow, and the entire amount will go to her. This particular customer enjoyed his Rhumba 1.1 immensely. He would have wanted a good home for it. A very fine preamp, which is best for single-ended (RCA cable) sources and power amps. Excellent physical condition. The upgrades that were completed were design improvements to the power supply regulator. The remaining upgrades that were planned were design improvements to the gain stage which would cost $120 to complete, but there is no need to do them, or any other upgrades to this unit, because it sounds absolutely fantastic. ********************************************************************************************** The Rhumba 1.1 preamp from Backert Labs. A single ended line stage using radically new technology developed by amplification veteran Bob Backert. Two 12au7 tubes, a beautiful remote volume control, and 10dB of gain. Dynamic, rhythmic, clean and beautiful tubed sound, with sound quality far above its price. The clear acrylic tube access door lets you see the warm glow of your tubes during late night listening sessions, and gives you instant access to change tubes, with no tools required. The protective tube enclosure inside the tube access door protects young fingers from touching the circuit board. From Positive Feedback: "The most engaging piece of electronics I heard during the 2016 review period was the Backert Labs Rhumba 1.1 Line Stage. This little tube beauty achieves about 90% of the performance of its costlier brother, the Rhythm 1.1 reviewed in 2015, for less than half the price. Both line stages are standouts for their speed, dynamics, pace, and definition. Designer Bob Backert is brilliant and his preamps sport numerous innovative design features. The Rhumba is the perfect line stage for those who favor small scale music, like jazz, vocalists, small ensembles and so on, but it’s no slouch on the big stuff either. Tonally true without the exaggerated warmth of some other tube line stage designs. The tubes are accessible through a removable Plexiglas window on the top of the unit for easy tube rolling although I didn’t bother, as it sounded so good with the stock tubes. I did discover some improvements by adding a high-end power cord. By all means if you have the chance to audition the Rhumba 1.1 you should do so. I predict you will like what you hear.” - Positive Feedback.com From Terry London's review in Home Theater Review.com: "Conclusion: When I reviewed the Backert Labs Rhythm 1.1 line stage, I considered it a bargain at its $7,500 price tag because it offered the same level of build quality and performance as my reference preamplifier, which retails for $24,000. As far as I can tell after a lengthy review process with the $2,995 Rhumba 1.1, the Backert Labs team has built a preamplifier that is at least at the same level of performance as its big brother in the areas of speed, dynamics, pace, micro-dynamics, accuracy, and beautiful tonality/timbres. If the Rhythm 1.1 was a bargain, then the Rhumba 1.1 at $2,995 can be considered to be the best deal in high-end gear for the 21st century. To go along with its stellar sonic performance, the Rhumba 1.1 looks and functions at a level that you expect from a much more expensive piece of gear." The Rhumba 1.1 has the same gain stage circuitry and power supply design as our $9,995 Rhythm 1.3. Remote volume control. Three RCA inputs, one XLR input. Two RCA outputs, one XLR output. REC OUT, and Home Theater bypass. Mute switch. Balance control. Comes in black body color with anodized aluminum "silver" colored face plate. Note: the XLR inputs and outputs are for convenience, they do not permit fully balanced connection. Our more recent models have XLR connections that are fully balanced. The 1.1 does not. Again - this is a lightly used preamplifier. Questions? You can just write to us here. You'll hear back from our President, Andy Tebbe.