Galion Navy Tube Preamplifier DO NOT ORDER, OUT OF STOCK

My solid-state setup is based around the Galion A20, MonAcoustic PlatiMon VC Ones, and a Denafrips Terminator Plus 15th DAC. Before getting the Navy, I was using a Burson Soloist 3GT headphone amp / preamp; this combination sounds good, but I wanted a bit more midrange detail and musicality. I was considering preamps like the Hegel P30a and the Meitner PRE, but Thomas told me the Navy might have the sound I was looking for. He was gracious enough to send me a demo Navy to audition—I listened to it for almost two weeks before deciding to send him my money.

For the two-week audition I used the stock PSVANE 12AT7-S tubes (PSVANE Art Series). Compared to the Burson, I heard a wider soundstage (the Burson really went only to the width of the speakers), better top-end (airiness), similar low end to the Burson but with a little more texture, and—most impressively—a clear midrange with a lot of musicality and detail retrieval. My tube setup is Decware, and I have a lot of experience with NOS, PSVANE, Ray, and Crytotone tubes, so I expected some improvements with tube rolling, but I figured that even if this was the best I would ever get, it was plenty. I ordered the Navy.

After my Navy arrived I tried it with both Ray 12at7 Reserves and Crytotone 12at7s (the P75 Bundle Wathen offers).

Ray 12at7 Reserve: At first the sound was just a tad on the too bright side, but this matched my experience with the Ray 12au7s in my Decware setup. After a week or so they smoothed out; the overall sound was richer than with the PSVANES, especially the midrange. What surprised me was the amount of added detail / clarity: there are a bunch of songs where I heard instrument & voice “noises” I had never heard before. At first the soundstage seemed about the same or perhaps just a tiny bit wider than with the PSVANES and also noticeably deeper. After some burn-in and a lot of listening, the soundstage became wider. The bass was just a little more defined than with the PSVANES. I could live with the Rays for a long time.

Crytotone 12at7: The sound right out of the box was eye opening: better definition, placement in the soundstage more accurate (instruments and voices better separated), and much better speed. The bass was better defined and the texture more discernible. The soundstage got noticeably wider and the center image came forward a little (that is, the soundstage got a little deeper).

One surprise was that with the Burson I preferred the OS setting on the Denafrips, but with the Navy—and especially with the Crytotones—I preferred the NOS setting.

Overall with the Cryotones, the listening experience is very (very!) good. Music is sweet and watching movies immersive. I hear things in even familiar recordings I'd never heard before. With good recordings the music seems to be all around me—holographic. Small details in the treble are clear and well defined—they seem to pop out, and I suspect that was what the recording engineers wanted—I think some call this “airiness.” My plan is to get a backup set of Cryotones for the future, keeping the Rays in reserve.

I listen to music; I don't listen to the gear. My preference for the solid-state setup is to be able to hear what's in the recording, even if that reveals imperfection. Not everyone feels that way about imperfection: I've heard it called “the perfection of imperfection.” With all three tube groups, my poor recordings are listenable—mostly because I listen to the music.

The Navy pairs well with the A20.

For those of you who get a Navy, here are three tips that might help:

1. The Ray tubes needed some coaxing and force to seat all the way. With the Cryotones I applied some Deoxit on the pins (with a swab—never spray) to add some lubrication—no coaxing or added force needed.

2. When you take off the cover to get to the tubes, keep in mind the corner screws are shorter than the middle ones (4 corners, 8 middles). Thomas: an access door with fewer screws would be welcome.

3. The Navy is sensitive to ground loops. The ground-lift switch on the back is very effective, but putting all the sound-munging equipment on the same circuit will likely solve everything. I use a Mac Studio with Audirvana, and it was the only device not on the same circuit; there was a tiny bit of hum until I moved the Mac to the same circuit. Now the background is black.

This is the second Galion unit I have purchased. The first was the A20 power amplifier. After listening to the Navy for about two months, I feel it is time to write down my impressions of this preamp. I have been using the stock tubes, and honestly, I do not feel that an upgrade is necessary.

I won’t go into detailed descriptions of how this unit sounds, as Thomas and 6moons have already done an excellent job outlining the Navy’s sound characteristics. Their descriptions were spot on. Instead, I’ll provide a brief summary of my own impressions. The Navy checked all my boxes: speed, clarity, resolution, definition, and dynamics. However, what really surprised me was the sense of energy. The Navy seems to supercharge my system without sounding bright. The presentation is far more engaging, and I found myself doing a lot more toe-tapping during listening sessions.

A couple of preamps I own that are worth mentioning are the ASL Flora and the AudioSpace WE300L. In terms of price, they are comparable to the Navy. The ASL Flora had long been my reference point, but the Navy clearly exceeded its performance. For those familiar with the ASL Flora, it was known to outperform some much more expensive preamps back in the day.

Lastly, having a remote control for the preamp is extremely helpful. It allows me to fine-tune the volume without leaving my listening chair. If I had to nitpick, it would be purely a matter of convenience: the input selector. For some reason, the preamp always defaults to the last selected input after being completely powered off. This doesn’t affect the sound in any way, but it is slightly annoying to switch back to the first input every time I power it on.

Who really loves music more?
The one who listens to it anywhere and anytime via smartphone, Bluetooth headphones, or TV?

Or us?

The ones who need a treated dedicated room for it, who meticulously obsess over speaker placement, where not only every single task in the playback process is handled by a dedicated device, but even cables seem to play an essential role.

Instead of actually listening to music, we spend time on YouTube letting ourselves be persuaded by equipment that’s far beyond our budget.
Instead of truly enjoying music, we focus on picking out individual sounds.
We dream of the next amplifier—and as soon as we have it, it doesn’t take long before we’re longing for the next one.

Just like junkies craving their next fix, we crave the next upgrade.

But Thomas delivers the finest heroin here!
Anyone can afford it if they’re willing to make the necessary sacrifices—and once you’ve had it, you don’t want anything else anymore!

I’m a proud owner of the TS A20 and the Navy preamp, and I’ve shamelessly “borrowed” the TS120 SE for so long that Thomas could probably report me for it by now. And sure, I could now talk about how great the stage is, how every detail is brought to light without ever becoming fatiguing, and so on—but in the end, only one thing matters: I no longer long for any other power or preamp.

And when I just want to listen to music briefly in between, it’s like taking a nap without setting an alarm. It might last 10 minutes or 3 hours—and when you’re done, you don’t quite know who you are, when it is, or where you are. It takes a little while to return to reality.

And I love it!

Music sounds so good with Galion that it takes first place again.

Awesome

I don't write review often. Actually never.
But the Navy from Galion deserves one.
I built a new sound system in a second room lately. It's a hobby room (mainly for 3D printing). The space is a bit crowded but the acoustic is pretty good. The system evolves around these components: speaker GR Research X-LS Encore, DIY amp class A F5M, and my old and trusty pre-amp Sim-Audio P5003.
Usually when I change a piece of equiment the enhancement is subtle.
I was suspecting the pre-amp was olding back the performance of the whole system. So I looked around for a pre-amp and stop my search at the Navy from Galion. Bought it, received it, connected it, let it warm up an hour or so, then I sat down for listening. I was prepared for an evening of swapping pre-amp all night looking for subtle enhancement... Then came the first note out of the Navy. Short story: I never came back to the old pre-amp. I didn't need to. The enhancement was so obvious. First impression: air, precision, decay, texture, which make the presentation more musical, a lot more musical. With symphony No. 2, of Franz Schubert, from the Canadian National Art Center orchestra, I see the orchestra in from of me. The precision is outstanding. "Don't smoke in bed" from Holly Cole is sweet! I can hear all the subtlety in her voice. Amazing. "Songe" from Vincent Belanger: like I never heard before. Tom Waits, etc... All good. Some albums I had problem with (I didn't like the presentation, too muddy, no soul) now sound amazing. Example Guy Belanger, "Post card from London" recorded at Abbey Road studio. Each instrument has more air around it. I like it.
Anyhow. This is for sure a big improvement to my setup.
I don't plane to roll tube: I like it as is (Psvane). I'll upgrade the tubes once these one reach end of life (2000 to 3000 hours according to Thomas).
Thanks Thomas for the nice discovery. I really like the Navy.